Afternoon Delight, Leith Depot 05/07/26
- Danny C
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
According to the Seventies classic, if Saturday nights alright for fighting then Sunday afternoons are right for delighting. And this SheBeat-curated afternoon of music fits that bill perfectly.
It's been a while since my last proper gig blog, but I've not been staying away from gigs there's just been a lot going on outside my world of music keeping me busy that reminds me how much good gigging and seeing live music does for you. That said, this was my first gig for over a month (zero gigs in the whole of June shocker!) and a pleasant Sunday Afternoon Delight showcase to get back into the swing of it at the always enjoyable Leith Depot.
This collection of young promising acts was excellently curated by Jodie White – aka SheBeat - rightly thanked by all acts during each if their own sets and afterwards, who emcee’d the day expertly and effortlessly. I got there part-way through Jodie’s own solo mini-set of a few songs from her album From Liverpool to Leith in her unmistakeable Merseybeat-meets-Leith Indiepop style, which set the relaxed, upbeat vibe for the day.
Frankie Morrow was up first-proper with a set of songs from her recently released debut album Way Out West. Even as a solo performance her sound filled the room easily enough and the mix of Americana, folk and Celtic layers played well with an thread of sixties protest anthems energy running through the tunes. As well as great guitarwork and songs, her vocals impressed, and if I'd heard her before seeing the show would have expected to have been coming from a more experienced singer. In between songs, chatting with the crowd was relaxed and engaging. I've been listening to the copy of the album I bought a few times since the gig, and it gets better with every listen. I expect there's a lot more to come from Frankie in the years ahead.
Leith local Shears (Rebecca Shearing), was up next and again solo and keeping herself busy throughout the set by covering an assortment of roles; singer (and songwriter), keys, drums (including an unusual spiral cymbal, which came into play on quite a few songs) and brought a summer rave vibe to the afternoon with her poppy dance tunes. I did see Shears as part of the amazing Hen Hoose Collective gig at the Queen's Hall a few weeks back (worth checking that out if you haven’t already) and this afternoons set was a great chance to hear her work through a fantastic set of her own material. Another similarity to Frankie, it was a chance to hear songs from a new release album We Are But Chemicals (released end of last year) as well as a few new - and revitalised - old tracks. Having also given it a few plays since the show Feel It and Dive Feet First are standouts for me, although the whole album is a perfect soundtrack for the good weather we're having just now and wouldn’t be out of place floating through the speakers of a chillout Mediterranean beach bar.
Comedy moment of the day was the most perfectly timed heckle from baby (with parents, and gigging responsibly with ear defenders on), who let out a scream just as Shears explained the next song was written about birth control! Immaculate irony!
Third on the bill were a lively bunch, The New Routines, a four-piece Indie outfit from the North East of Scotland. A little slow to get started with a few tech issues but soon got into their groove with back-to-back energetic, loud and melodic songs for most of their set. I could hear quite a few big influences on their sound coming through (The Strokes, Vampire Weekend, even The Pigeon Detectives on one track) and they mix all of these into their own sound superbly, come together as a tight well-practiced unit. Their set of neat original material also had a couple of cover versions (although I couldn’t and still can’t place what they were!). Their lead singer bantered well with the crowd (they had a fair number of fans in supporting), engaging with a couple of light-hearted heckles, played a fan-requested song, joking over song titles and occasionally over-sharing the realities of musicianship ("we can't do another song, I've got work in the morning!" and how the glamour of being in a band is "mostly tuning guitars"). All in all, a great way to end over two and a half hours non-stop entertainment. Loved it!
Afternoon Delight isn’t just; a trio of brilliant sets; a warm and welcoming atmosphere; held in Leith’s coolest venue; timed so you can get home at a reasonable hour, but also excellent value at about only £15 a ticket! So keep your eyes peeled for the next one and check out all of these artists' music, and live shows, if you get the chance.
@frankiemorrowmusic
@imshears
@thenewroutines
@shebeatmusic
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