ROAR’s annual summer fundraiser was once again a brilliant success, with a superb line-up of bands throughout the evening and a selection of goods and services masterfully auctioned off by John Copland. Just under £2300 was raised with all proceeds going to Women’s Aid Orkney.
Young volunteer Lee Taylor reviewed the evening:
The annual event, arranged by young folk in the community with the help of Voluntary Action Orkney, took in a great audience for a fantastic night of music showcasing the wealth of young musical talent in the Islands, with all money raised from this year’s event going to Women’s Aid Orkney.
Kicking off the night’s proceedings were Lucy and Magnus. This was their first appearance as a duo, and each of their individual talents as musicians were readily apparent as they took on a set of well-loved covers. Lucy’s crystal-clear vocals accompanied by Magnus’ guitar was an early highlight of the night and earned a well-deserved ovation from the audience.
Next up were Josie and Eilidh, another extremely talented duo, who took a taste of the Eras tour to the Sailing Club, opening with a great rendition of Taylor Swift’s No Body, No Crime. Their love and appreciation for the songs they chose for their set really shone through, with some fantastic renditions of modern pop classics.
Coming off the back of gigs at Celtic Connections in Glasgow and the Orkney Folk Festival earlier in the year, Auskerry may have been a member down for the night but were very much still in full swing, delivering a set of tunes which had the whole room stomping along.
The Burray Blues Club then took to the stage, featuring an all-elite cast of weel-kent faces in the Orkney music scene. Their performance featured some heavy blues jams, as well as guest appearances from Lucy Cromarty and Marie Montgomery which brought the first half of the night to a close in style.
Following on from the raffle draw and auction, expertly handled by John Copland and featuring some great items donated by local businesses, the chairs were cleared away and the second half of the night began – the “loud” part of Loud n’ Live!
Noise n Confusion were the first of the young rock acts to take to the stage. You would hardly believe that this was one of the first few gigs for the group, following appearances at the Finstown Gala and the Youth Café earlier in the summer. Their choice of covers was immaculate, kicking off with Queens of the Stone Age’s Go With The Flow, and their version of Oasis’ Don’t Look Back in Anger had the whole room singing along. Their performance was a major hit with the crowd, and it was clear to see that the band have a bright future ahead of them.
Representing the continuing spirit of the grunge scene, Absinthe were the penultimate band of the night. One of the youngest rock acts in Orkney, the group showed a lot of promise, their original material mixed in with a solid helping of Nirvana covers as well as an excellent version of Celebrity Skin by Hole. The set was brought to a climax with some decidedly Cobain-inspired guitar-destruction-feedback chaos.
Bringing the night to a close were Dogspawn. Having formed to play at Loud n’ Live two years previous, the newest incarnation of the band treated the remaining crowd to a set of all-new, heavy, prog-rock inspired originals, ahead of their appearance at the Orkney Rock Festival in September. One highlight of their set was the song Orexis, which led to what may just be the first ever “waltz-pit” to happen in Kirkwall.
And with that, the show came to a close, and Loud n’ Live was finished for another year. With next year’s concert being the tenth edition of the event, ROAR continues to be a fantastic platform for young people in Orkney to show off their musical skills and raise money for great local causes.
