SEXTILE + SPIKE – DUST, BRIGHTON 30.5.25
I’ve seriously been looking forward to catching Los Angeles-based duo Sextile for almost 7 years now. They comprise Melissa Scaduto and Brady Keehn and they last played live in Brighton back in 2018, where they totally blew me away at both The Hope & Ruin on 19th September 2018 (Review HERE) and at The Prince Albert on 27th January 2018 (Review HERE). Three months ago they announced 11 North American concert dates, 9 UK dates, and 17 European performances. Thankfully one of the UK one’s was to take place here in Brighton at the Dust venue on East Street on Friday 30th May courtesy of FORM promoters.
The reason for the tour is to get the word out on their latest album ‘Yes, Please.‘ which is their fourth long-player and one which came out on 2nd May on the Sacred Bones imprint. This follows on from 2023’s ‘Push’, as well as their pre-covid releases of 2017’s ‘Albeit Living’ and 2015’s ‘ A Thousand Hands’. Also of note is their 2018 ‘3’ 5-track EP.
Some bands find their groove and stick to it while others choose to reinvent themselves and keep on moving. Sextile can attest to the thrill of an ever-changing road map and ply their trade with a lust for life and a love of everything from no wave to hardstyle, having merged some of these influences on 2023’s ‘Push’ album. Whereas new LP, ‘Yes, Please.’, fuses anarchic electro fire with raw personal recollections —and enough beefed-up bass to bust a speaker or two. ‘Yes, Please.’ is an album of contrasts: a vulnerable record that bares its soul as much as it revels in excess, showing just how far you can push your sound when you shake off your inhibitions. Together, the pair betray a confidence that never wavers, making a bold splash on the speedy intro with a rave siren cut from a ‘00s New York house party. ‘yes, please.’ is an action-packed dance record stuffed with wild, heady roof-raisers but is in the same breath a testament to living, and never looking back.
The heady roof-raisers are indeed very much the staple for this evening’s 50 minute 16 song set at Dust. As you can probably work out, none of Sextile’s material outstays its welcome, with the longest of the 12 (of the 13) cuts performed from their latest record coming in at 3 minutes 54 seconds.
The band take to the stage at 9:10pm and this time around are accompanied by Callum Brown on Roland drumpad presets – which with a tap of a drumstick commences the music – plus two drums and two cymbals for which he plays in a standing position, which I always think looks really cool. Brady and Melissa utilize the same instruments but at different times, as well as offering lead vocals and backing vocals when required. There’s a Arturia KeyStep keyboard, as well as a magic box of electronics with a host of wires and knobs to twiddle. After a technical hitch at the beginning, they are eventually away with the new album opener, which is accurately titled ‘Intro’ and comes in at around a mere minute before segueing into an update of their classic ‘Disco’ single, which has Brady on lead vocals and immediately he’s into the crowd. This track gives me the tingles, which is a regular occurrence throughout the set.
Tune three is the bouncy jumping beat of ‘Freak Eyes’ with its metallic sounding cowbell beat and Benny Benassi ‘Satisfaction’ style electronics. It’s impossible not to jump up and down on this number and indeed that’s what Brady does as he again comes into the crowd. It’s now over to rainbow-haired Melissa for lead vocals on ‘No Fun’, which is not a cover of The Stooges song, but an acid house bleeps style banger. There’s so much energy hitting us this evening, something which doesn’t ease off for the whole duration. Their ‘S Is For’ earworm is next with its repeated “Sex, shit, swell, stiff, slag, snap, shut” lyrics, which Melissa delivers with aplomb.
Lead vocal duties are handed back to Brady for ‘Kiss’, which is not the Prince track, but a cut with a really deep bass keys till the halfway point, when it suddenly completely changes beat, as though it has segued into another song, which it hasn’t. This second half has a meaty EBM beat reminiscent of Nitzer Ebb’s ‘Murderous’ and ‘Join In The Chant’, or a dirty ‘I Feel Love’ (Donna Summer) which is fabulous. The unusually titled ‘99 Bongos’ is Sextile’s next offering and this has, what I presume, maybe samples at certain points throughout. It’s a slower chugger of a tune with Brady on lead vocals. After this it’s time for 2023’s ‘Push’ opener, namely ‘Contortion’ with its phat beats vibe as though it’s a slower mix of their ‘Disco’ single.
There’s barely a few seconds in between each number before our bodies are dragged onto the dancefloor again, which at my age is a challenge, but extremely gratifying when I can. Song nine was the epic ‘Kids’, which I had anticipated as being the tune of the night! This begins with an almost U96 ‘Das Boot’ submarine sonar bleep, until a 100mph beat blasts out after a few seconds, which is then added to, before switching to an even better beat around 50 seconds mark, which is very similar to the European techno/dance beats of German happy hardcore duo Dune, who were prolific from mid to late 1990’s with songs including ‘Are You Ready To Fly’, ‘Can’t Stop Raving’, ‘Hardcore and ‘Rainbow To The Stars’. There’s elements of Scooter in there too.
We are then informed that the next track is “a new tune”, but it’s not an unreleased number, but one of the dozen cuts pleased from ‘Yes, Please.’, this time it’s ‘Hospital’, which isn’t a cover of The Modern Lovers haunting melody from the early 1970’s, but a tune half the beat of the previous number, but with an almost screaming keys backing, with Melissa’s hip-hop style vocals atop.
The short (sub three-minute) ‘Penny Rose’ is up next, which beat-wise and Brady’s vocal-wise reminds me very much of Lynks. Before we know it they are bouncing into the oldest song of the set, ‘Hazing’ from 2018’s ‘3’ EP, which takes them back into their EBM roots with its dirty gritty beat. They immediately bounce back with another ‘Yes, Please.’ cut, this time it’s the turn of ‘Rearrange’, which features joint vocals and another feeling of Benny Benassi material. After this Brady addresses the crowd and says “You’re all for real Brighton, thank you for opening it up on a Friday night”, and the ecstatic crowd heartily shouted and applauded.
Melissa took the lead and said “Women Respond To Bass” for the song of the same name. The speedy bouncy meaty beat followed and the euphoria was really let loose. It’s as though this cut is a Chemical Brothers or Leftfield tune, with a girl’s sampled vocals atop. Up until this point this track was the second best on the night behind ‘Kids’, but then….‘Resist’ arrived! I couldn’t resist as the Gary Numan style-keys rang out across the venue with an echoey System F ‘Out Of The Blue’, & Gouryella ‘Gouryella’ sound (both pseudonyms of Dutch musician Ferry Corsten). OMFG THIS IS THE BEST LIVE SONG I’VE HEARD ALL YEAR!! I went into overdrive, and thankfully for me, the song was only around three minutes long, which is to be honest criminal! It surely must be around the seven minute mark! Come on guys..extended version please!!!
It was now five-to-ten and according to their setlist there were no more songs and they had left us on a real high. But we persuaded them to play “one more song”, and after a brief conflab they settled on ‘Push Ups’ with Melissa on lead vocals. It has a head-bobbing heartbeat with backing electronics that sound akin to someone revving a car or motorbike. The trio seriously delivered tonight and were dutifully rewarded with whoops of joy! This evening has been special, very special, and will it be, come 31st December, a serious contender for my Gig Of The Year, as that’s where it’s sitting at this moment in time!!
Sextile:
Brady Keehn – lead vocals, backing vocals, Arturia KeyStep keyboard, electronics
Melissa Scaduto – lead vocals, backing vocals, Arturia KeyStep keyboard, electronics
Callum Brown – Roland presets, two drums and two cymbals
Sextile setlist:
‘Intro’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Disco (Remix)’ (from 2018 ‘3’ EP)
‘Freak Eyes’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘No Fun’ (from 2023 ‘Push’ album)
‘S Is For’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Kiss’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘99 Bongos’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Contortion’ (from 2023 ‘Push’ album)
‘Kids’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Hospital’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Penny Rose’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Hazing’ (from 2018 ‘3’ EP)
‘Rearrange’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Women Respond To Bass’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
‘Resist’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
(encore)
‘Push Ups’ (from 2025 ‘Yes, Please.’ album)
Support this evening came from a Brighton born-London based artist which I wasn’t previously aware of, this being Hannah McLoughlin and her synth-pop project which goes under the guise of Spike. On 25th February she released her debut 5 song cassette which is titled ‘S/T’. This dropped on Gob Nation Records, which is also the home of The Tubs, PC World, and Sniffany & The Nits.
This evening we are treated to a half dozen compositions, three of which can be found on her cassette release and I believe the other three are currently unreleased. This is a short 20 minute taster performance, which ran from 8:18pm to 8:38pm. Hannah takes to the stage and it’s solely her on the microphone, along with a compact Korg keyboard, and a laptop with her pre-recorded backing tracks. Another unusual instrument will be utilized during the performance. Sadly for the opening number, ‘Eye On The Prize’, Hannah’s vocals are a tad down in the mix. Musically, the tune reminds me of the work of the obscure early 1980’s New Romantic/Synth-pop quartet Poeme Electronique, which comprised of Dave Hewson on synths and production with brother Les on bass, and lead and backing vocals came from Sharon Abbbott and Julie Ruler. At the time, their sole release was a single out on Carrere Records in 1982 titled ‘The Echoes Fade’.
The second Spike track was the unreleased ‘Disappear’ which too benefits from the same kinda uplifting beats found in the opening number. After this Hannah informs us that the next tune is “a Warren Zevon cover”. Of course it’s ‘Werewolves Of London’ and the first of three tunes from 2025’s ‘S/T’ EP. Hannah has reworked the track with some great success. After this, Hannah tells us that the next track is “about a hotel in Paris”, and interestingly it samples Andrea Bocelli’s performance of ‘Con Te Partirò’ (‘Time To Say Goodbye’) from his lullaby to Elmo on Sesame Street. Spike has titled this song ‘Tiquetonne’ and before we know it, the synth-pop beat kicks in and then Hannah plays the Korg keys of ‘Con Te Partirò’ on top of the beat. It’s an interesting clash of styles.
Hannah’s penultimate selection is a synth-pop earworm going by the name of ‘You’re Missing’. Fans of tunes like Laura Branigan’s 1982 ‘Gloria’ hit and the like will enjoy this song. She signs off with the unreleased ‘Second Sight’ and for this she suddenly produces an Akai EWI USB is an electronic wind instrument which looked very cool indeed. This track was the best of the set with its Eurobeat-Hi-NRG backing and certainly left the punters wanting more! I’m certain Hannah was extremely pleased with the crowd reaction to her compositions this evening. Hopefully our paths will cross in the future.
Spike:
Hannah McLoughlin – vocals, keys, electronic wind instrument, laptop
Spike setlist:
‘Eye On The Prize’ (unreleased)
‘Disappear’ (unreleased)
‘Werewolves Of London’ (from 2025 ‘S/T’ EP)
‘Tiquetonne’ (from 2025 ‘S/T’ EP)
‘You’re Missing’ (from 2025 ‘S/T’ EP)
‘Second Sight’ (unreleased)
https://gobnation.bandcamp.com/album/s-t-4
Sextile & Spike fans might like to note that there are 19 different photos on our sister website Brighton & Hove News – which you can find HERE.
