What do you expect to find on a Monday night in a bar in Leeds? The answer truly could be anything, luckily for us we found the band Nature TV in the wonderful Hyde Park Book Club.
Situated in the heart of the student district the quirky venue has a great selection of drinks, a brilliant line up of bands and – if you want a more low-key night – lots of board games (win)
Celebrating their newest release “Mid Flight EP” the Brighton based Nature TV is on an impressive UK wide tour.
Kicking off the night was singer-songwriter Katie Billes, who treated the audience to some really interesting methods of how they orchestrate their songwriting process, speaking of art and literature that is often the inspiration behind lyrics.
We also need to give acknowledgement of Katie bringing not one but two guitars to the show. The acoustics were great.
Following on from Katie Billes was Manchester based artist Lei Hope accompanied by their band.
Pulling inspiration from the likes of Frank Ocean, Phoebe Bridgers and Omar Opollo, Lei Hope’s low-fi indie tracks were clearly appreciated by the audience.
A key similarity between Nature TV and their support acts is just how much thought and effort goes into the music. All three bands were very method-driven in their craft and it was really inspiring to feel that from them.
Rolling onto 10pm and The Hyde Park Book Club basement was ready to welcome Nature TV.
The cosy feel of the room was a fitting setting for us to experience the band’s soulful hits. Think heartbreak, tenderness, nostalgia. Making sure we know what Nature TV does best, cool toned harmonies filled the room, making music memories for the audience on tracks like Hometown and Illusions.
Giving us a mix of signature indie, and dipping into folky, there’s a bouncy feel to Nature TV tracks. Every moment you can hear a different instrument coming to the forefront. Little hidden elements playfully work together to create such a fun sound. The band’s great chemistry on stage fed through to the audience and even on a cold Monday night in Leeds the crowd was feeling all the summery, beachy vibes.
If you’re new to Nature TV, Mid Flight Is a great introduction. A personal favourite is Frida. With its smooth baselines and sweet lyrics it gives the perfect Sunday morning vibes.
Solidified in the indie label family of Heist Or Hit, you’ll get such brilliant whimsy shoe-gaze tracks from the band which translated perfectly to being played live on stage.
Keep up to date with all things Nature TV by following them on their socials. @naturetvmusic.
Ed’s Note: Owing to an unexpected glitch, we have had to rely on the generosity of Clang Artist Management to provide us with images of Nature TV. Those you see here were taken earlier in 2023. Thank you, Clang.
Photographs of Katie Billes and Lei Hope by Lewis Hart. Photographs of Nature TV by Ire Giunta.
