Backyard Festival at Bodega 2025

Happy New Year to all NottsRocks readers! Backyard Festival was my first gig of 2025, and all I can say is wow. This was the perfect blast of fuzzed-out rock to kick off the year and a spectacular sold-out showcase of incredible bands from the ever-thriving Nottingham music scene, all of whom were clearly having just as good a time as the packed-out, moshing crowd. Louis G was the man who put it all together, and he can be proud to know he’s now successfully created a twice-sold-out day festival that puts the Nottingham music scene on the map and even raises funds for charity. This is no small feat, and I can’t wait to see how this festival continues to evolve over the coming years.

Sex Toy Vending Machine

This was the first band I saw of the day. These guys have been one of my favourite bands in the local scene since I saw them play their first shows at Kofuku, and it’s been amazing to see their evolution since then. They definitely have the most unique band name I’ve heard of for a while too! For this show, they were a three-piece, as their bass player is currently in Thailand, with second guitarist Fred switching with frontman Finn on bass and guitar between songs. This really added a cool twist to their usual show and even allowed for certain melodies and bass riffs to shine through more. They had a relaxed yet focused attitude to performing, playing standout tunes "Long in the Tooth" and "Ortolan" with huge passion and power. Both of these tracks encapsulate Sex Toy Vending Machine’s unique sound, pulling in a wide range of influences to create something new. Fred’s vocals on the last song were brilliant, and the tune itself sounded intriguingly psychedelic. The crowd really got into their set and cheered loudly throughout. I look forward to hearing more tunes from these guys, and they definitely have a bright future ahead of them.

Skitz Wizards

Next up were Skitz Wizards, who brought 100% pure power to the stage from the second they stepped foot on it, causing a huge circle pit to form early on, with endless moshing from the audience throughout what was a totally mind-blowing show. Their unique two-bass guitars and a drum kit setup definitely stood them out sonically as one of the heaviest bands I’ve ever had the pleasure to see, and the ferocious energy from their frontman was infectious and inspiring, charging up the rest of the band to become increasingly powerful as they rolled through songs like a steamroller on speed. Standout song "You’ll Never Fight Alone" was a brilliantly powerful moment in the set, adding huge weight to the already ear-drum-explodingly loud atmosphere they created. Seeing this made me want to go to more hardcore shows. They definitely have something special going on, and I can’t wait to see them again at the next chance I get. Special mention goes to the bass player and his speedo swimming goggles!

Skitz Wizards

PASTE

PASTE. are the kind of band you never tire of watching; they seem to always bring their own energy and have a sound that manages to touch on everything from jangly riffs and slower shoegaze fuzzed-out songs to early Bleach-era Nirvana-esque grunge tunes that never fail to get the crowd jumping around. Frontman Dan Dibbs has great confidence on stage and an ability to make the audience laugh as he cracks jokes and tells hilarious off-the-wall stories between songs—something that seems to come naturally to him. The band were certainly loving the show, and it rubbed off on everyone else in the room. This was one of the best shows I’ve seen them play, and they managed to make their mark and stand out on what was one of the most stacked lineups of well-chosen local bands I’ve ever seen.

Soaphead

I had somehow always managed to unfortunately miss previous Soaphead shows, despite hearing great things about them from friends. This was the first one I’ve ever managed to watch, and funnily enough, it’s the last one they’ll ever play, so I felt extra lucky that I got to watch it. They really put their full force into this set, making it one big blast of a finale show. Louis G, who came up with and organised the whole of Backyard Festival, sang and played bass, something I always find impressive as it’s particularly difficult to do, and he certainly pulled it off. The whole crowd loved their set, with huge cheers and moshing throughout. Their guitarist shredded so hard, his face-melting solos were intricate masterpieces of sonic intensity. This was a perfect ending to a brilliant band that will be sorely missed.

Soaphead

Marvin’s Revenge

Marvin’s Revenge are one of my favourite local bands and have been for years now. They have well-written anthems and grunge-inspired tunes that are played with a power and presence that’s guaranteed to get the whole room moving. Their shows are consistently impressive, with each seeming better than the last. I can see there has been a pretty constant evolution of their sound in the perfect way, and they are clearly on top form, ripping through a packed setlist of belting tunes at breakneck speed, with the attitude and feeling of '90s grunge legends like Mudhoney or Subpop-era Nirvana. They fuse genres to create a new sonic path forward that’s entirely their own. My favourite song of the show has to be the super catchy "Hugs from Grandma," which has a super deceptive title and sounds much heavier than you’d think from reading it. This one really reminds me of some of Cobain’s best early hits, such as "Sliver," "About a Girl," or "Been a Son." I really can’t get enough of the great songwriting that they’ve packed into that song. It’s been a while since I felt the floor of The Bodega physically bounce up and down from the sheer weight of everyone jumping up and down like crazed rabbits possessed by the music. It was so great to see everyone having such a good time. After this, they flowed straight into "VR Porn," an amusingly titled recent single that gave a suitably massive ending to what was a stunning display of musical brilliance.

Marvins Revenge

Cucumaras

After what I’d say was the overall best day of music I’d seen in Nottingham for ages, with each band being perfectly selected and each proving their incredible talents, the headliner of this festival had to be pretty darn sensational, and who better to top the bill than the mighty Cucumaras! These guys might not have been as high-octane and distorted as the previous bands, but they definitely blew the room away with their super catchy indie rock songs and frontman Ollie Bowley’s charismatic singing style, which inspired huge applause from the room that now felt like being a sardine in a tin as the sold-out festival crowd gathered together to squeeze the last drops from this particularly delicious musical lemon. These guys have enough anthems to make a stadium singalong, and with time, I’m sure this one day will happen for this passionate and hardworking band, who brought a rock and roll attitude and laser-like focus to what was a brilliant closing show for Backyard.

Overall, this was one of the best day festivals I’ve ever been to in Nottingham. Well done to Louis G for making it happen and to all of the bands involved, as well as all the people who came together and moshed, sang along, and sold out this brilliant lineup of local artists, all of whom have huge potential and deserve great future success. After this festival, I feel confident that Nottingham is one of the greatest cities in the world for music right now, and I’m extremely excited to see what the rest of 2025 brings!