Sunday evening saw me head down to The Bird for a gig to raise funds for local band Heytesburg so they can get back into the studio and record the follow up to their debut EP From the River I Come To the Desert I Go. The gig also saw them debuting their new drummer and showing off their culinary expertise. With, unconfirmed reports that the band’s sausage sizzle featured the best onions outside of Masterchef. Joined by some superb supporting bands, the band put on a great evening of entertainment that will hopefully have aided the funding of the new EP.

Sean O’Neill from local band Hang on St Christopher opened up proceedings in solo mode. O’Neill has the ability to craft mesmerising and engrossing songs from the barest of beginnings, building them layer upon layer, bringing his audience along for the ride. His set alternated between ambient instrumentals and some thoughtful lyrical tracks; he also through in a fantastic cover of Neil Young’s Helpless which was a real delight. Whilst the crowd was still small at this point of the night, it was a great set, and those that got down early certainly were on the receiving end of a spellbinding performance.

Up next was Place of Indigo, who launched straight into a set of atmospheric rock. There was an appealing rawness to the performance, with some driving and solid drumming and edgy guitar flourishes. The highlight perhaps was the vocal performance that was somewhat reminiscent of The National; dark and haunting vocals that really helped give the lyrics an added edge. Though somewhat static on stage the band never really lost the attention of the growing crowd. All in all it was a solid performance, filled with some enjoyable songs, which left me wanting to hear more from them in the future.

It was then time for Heytesburg to take the stage, the first time since gaining a new drummer. They immediately launched into a great rocking track from their forthcoming EP. You’d be forgiven for thinking that the new drummer had been playing with them for a while, given the ease with which he slotted seamlessly into the mix. The band peppered their set with a mixture of new tracks from the forthcoming EP and tracks from their debut From the River I Come, To the Desert I Go. Whilst the new tracks have a slightly more straightforward rock feel to them, they still have the same epic cinematic quality that the debut boasted. Those new tracks that were given an airing were promising and were received well by the crowd. Likewise “The Watcher” and “Once Were Kings” sounded great live, and gave singer Nick Gardiner a chance to show off his impressive vocal range.

Given the intimate nature of The Bird, there was an obvious intensity to the performance, which even a few minor technical difficulties couldn’t dampen. All in all it was a fantastic performance from the band, though a little too brief for my liking, I could happily have listened to more. Ultimately though the sheer quality of the performance made up for short set; and I suppose its better to have the audience wanting more, rather than wishing you stopped five or six tracks earlier. Overall it was a enjoyable set with some solid and skilful individual performances from the band, and has certainly left me eager to hear the new EP once it’s been released.