Feast Your Ears Launch

Feast Your Ears might be an unfamiliar name to some of you, seeing as it is brand new - however, we’re hoping that by the end of this year (or maybe even this term) Feast Your Ears will be a household name for both students and residents in Exeter, particularly those who love live music. We’re passionate about the Feast Your Ears brand, as they share exactly the same values and motivations as us - to delve in and find all the fantastic local artists that we’re not already hearing about, and make them accessible for everyone to listen to. Each week, Feast Your Ears will be hosting an event on Tuesday evenings in Mama Stones, showcasing a hand-picked selection of brilliant local talent. Here’s our summary of how their first event went down.

Six Days Six Days, an acoustic duo from East Devon, kicked off the event last night. I have to say, a perfect choice to open the evening. As I walked into Mama Stones, with its low ceilings, quirky decor and bohemian vibe, Ellie Harris’s delicate vocals served as a wonderful welcome, and complemented the atmosphere greatly.

My initial thoughts on the band were that they seemed very sweet, with Harris’s vocals serving as a strong reminder of Laura Marling’s more recent work. However, as their set continued and their songs became more up-beat, I couldn’t help but compare them to The Civil Wars. Their newer songs were far more powerful, and Ollie Harris’s guitar playing was almost flawless, and topped off perfectly by his exquisite guitar-playing face. While their recorded songs are good, I feel as though the true energy of their live performance doesn’t come through on their Soundcloud - I would however, very strongly recommend trying to catch Six Days at one of their upcoming gigs.

The Deets As soon as this band took to the stage, I knew they were a ‘lad’ band. With their pints full of beer and their collars buttoned all the way up on their polo shirts, it didn’t surprise me when their genre turned out to be ‘shouty indie’ (a genre us at PearShaped thoroughly enjoy, by the way). Though some may describe it as noisy, I would describe The Deets’ style as massively high energy, with vocals sounding like an eclectic mix of The Futureheads and the Sex Pistols.

An incredibly engaging set in which not one song managed to wash over me - and they definitely got progressively better. A highlight of their performance for me was their Jake Bugg cover, a song which the guys really managed to put their own stamp on by completely pulling away from the folky/country-esque style of Bugg and turning it into a fun, vibrant track. Overall, we’re very pleased The Deets made the long trip from London to play for us at Feast Your Ears.

Luke Friend Many of you may have heard of Luke Friend, who is currently through to Boot Camp in the X Factor 2013. I, however, am completely sheltered and had no idea that this was the case until reaching Mama Stones. Probably a good thing as I tend to be cynical about all things X Factor - but Luke Friend very pleasantly surprised me.

The most delightful thing about Friend is his voice - his husky, yet boyish, vocals display an incredible range, and alongside an acoustic guitar the combination is wonderful to hear. Playing covers including Ben Howard, Jake Bugg and The 1975, he knew just how to capture the audience - the highlight for myself though was his closing song, One Day Like This by Elbow. Despite the snapping of a guitar string (which he coped with extraordinarily well), the song led a mesmerising performance and the atmosphere inside the venue was almost festival-like.

We say definitely keep your eye out for Luke Friend in the future and wish him all the best on X Factor. A great pick from Feast Your Ears.

Sam Mayo & The Tuesday Syndicate Sam Mayo, originally a solo singer/songwriter from Buckinghamshire, moved to North Devon and met the rest of the band who would soon be known as The Tuesday Syndicate. Together, they played the headline slot at the Feast Your Ears Launch and did a fantastic job of it, kicking off their set with an explosive cover of Maroon 5’s Harder To Breathe.

Throughout the set the crowd were completely rapt, with a good few rows of students rammed in at the front of Mama Stones eager to get a glimpse of the band. Mayo’s vocals were strong and punchy, and accompanied by tight vocals from the rest of the band. A personal highlight was the Two Door Cinema Club cover of What You Know - high-energy and perfect to top off the evening. Other crowd pleasers included a cover of Ben Howard, and Of Monsters and Men.

In the end the evening was a great success, a fantastic alternative for those who don’t feel like getting drunk or going clubbing, and the perfect place for those who have a passion for live music. The mix of acoustic and up-beat rock was very well done, and kept the audience engaged throughout the evening.