SHTËPI + KITCHEN LOVER + CHITCHAT + NAGASAKI DOG – THE HOPE & RUIN, BRIGHTON 1.4.26
Hidden Herd turned up the volume at its showcase event this month, with a punchy, rock‑leaning line‑up that still felt smartly curated. Nagasaki Dog kicked off with raw grit, ChitChat drove the room into headbanging release, and Kitchen Lover sent bodies flying in a good‑natured mosh. Headliners Shtëpi flipped the script with dance‑leaning art‑punk that had the crowd dancing. Four bands, four lively reactions resulting in one brilliantly unhinged night at The Hope & Ruin.
Brighton-based Nagasaki Dog is the music‑art project founded by brothers Amos and Zephi Pakpahan, performed here as a four‑piece. They delivered a lively, high‑voltage start to the Hidden Herd bill, immediately pulling the room into their raw, DIY world.
The set opened with the post‑punk abrasion of ‘On Patrol’, Amos’ vocals carrying a sharp, bitten edge that cut clean through the room. ‘Empire Movements’ kept that grit intact before the band briefly shifted gear with the more melodic ‘Cauterise’, its calmer opening giving the crowd a moment to breathe. That respite didn’t last long: ‘Stake Out’ snapped the energy back into fast, punk‑leaning territory, Amos darting across the stage, guitar in hand, almost shadow‑boxing while playing.
The audience responded in kind, with early dancing at the front becoming a running theme for the night. Later, ‘Officer Down’ offered a surprising mellow turn, before the new‑wave‑tinged ‘Wire Tap’ closed the set with an enthusiastic dancer jumping onstage for backing vocals.
Nagasaki Dog:
Amos Pakpahan – vocals, guitar
Louis Sibley – ?
Matt Braldds – ?
Bobby Simmons – ?
Nagasaki Dog setlist:
‘On Patrol’ (from 2020 ‘P.I.G.’ album)
‘Empire Movements’ (a 2021 single)
‘Cauterise’ (from 2020 ‘The Nagasaki Dog Files’ EP)
‘Stake Out’ (from 2020 ‘P.I.G.’ album)
‘Daily Ditch’ (from 2023 ‘Frogman’s Debt’ album)
‘Officer Down’ (from 2020 ‘P.I.G.’ album)
‘Undercover Bacon’ (from 2020 ‘P.I.G.’ album)
‘Wire Tap’ (from 2020 ‘P.I.G.’ album)
ChitChat, an exciting five‑piece alt‑rock outfit from Brighton, delivered sharp melodies and no‑nonsense noise, driven by the fierce presence of vocalist Rosie Crowhurst. From the opening blast of ‘Hallow’, they came out loud, direct and emotionally unfiltered.
‘Under My Skin’, taken from their ‘You Bark, I Bite’ EP, landed with a striking call‑and‑response feel as Elliot Clark fired off tight, explosive drum bursts that Rosie answered with equally forceful vocal hits. Across the set she shifted between one‑knee intensity, angry shouts and moments of softer, more controlled delivery. After ‘Cuts Deep’, Rosie impulsively reshuffled the set, leading into ‘You’d Know I Win’, a track with a slight bluesy edge and strong dual vocals.
The crowd mirrored the band’s energy, from headbanging to looser dancing. ‘Frail’ built from restraint to a shouted release, before ‘Hand It Over’. Rosie, foot on the monitor as she sang, matched the fire of their opening on that closing song.
ChitChat:
Rosie Crowhurst – vocals
Elliot Clark– drums
Kyle Griffin – rhythm guitar
Dylan Peroni – lead guitar
Ted Egan Welch – bass
ChitChat setlist:
‘Hallow’ (from 2025 ‘You Bark, I Bite’ EP)
‘Under My Skin’ (from 2025 ‘You Bark, I Bite’ EP)
‘Cuts Deep’ (unreleased)
‘You’d Know I Win’ (unreleased)
‘Alibi’ (unreleased)
‘Spiked’ (unreleased)
‘Frail’ (from 2025 ‘You Bark, I Bite’ EP)
‘Hand It Over’ (from 2025 ‘You Bark, I Bite’ EP)
Kitchen Lover brought a burst of irreverent garage‑punk energy, even before they played a note. During the changeover they covered the stage floor with a shiny sheet, then appeared in PE‑kit‑style outfits that gave the whole thing a playful, chaotic edge. They launched straight into the fast, punky hit of ‘Monkey Down’, with Lars leading the vocals but all four members contributing to a tight, shout‑along dynamic.
The front rows quickly morphed into a lively mosh pit as ‘Red Coat’ shifted the pace, mixing slower, heavier bursts with a more mischievous tone in Lars’ delivery. ‘All Dog, You Dog, We Dog’ leaned into surf‑rock psychedelia, even hinting at B‑52s‑style quirks, before new track ‘Projection’ snapped back into punk‑leaning territory with dramatic drop‑outs and sudden explosions.
‘Oregano Richardo’ followed with soft‑to‑loud swings, and closer ‘Goat’ saw drummer George teasing the intro while bassist Edson jumped into the pit. The tempo surged faster and faster delivering a wild, breathless finale to a hugely fun set.
Kitchen Lover:
Lars – vocals
George – drums
Edson – bass
Hayden – guitar
Kitchen Lover setlist:
‘Monkey Down’ (unreleased)
‘Shakori’ (unreleased)
‘El Toad Johnson’ (unreleased)
‘Red Coat’ (unreleased)
‘All Dog, You Dog, We Dog’ (unreleased)
‘There Goes My Brains’ (from 2025 ‘The Circus Sideshow Dream’ album)
‘Black Hole Heart’ (from 2025 ‘The Circus Sideshow Dream’ album)
‘Projection’ (unreleased)
‘Oregano Richardo’ (from 2025 ‘The Circus Sideshow Dream’ album)
‘Goat’ (unreleased)
Headliners Shtëpi, a five‑piece art‑punk outfit from London, pushed the night into stranger, more exploratory territory, blending post‑punk guitar bite with noisy electronics and a restless emotional core. While each of the earlier bands had carved out their own angle on punk and alt‑rock, Shtëpi immediately signalled a different direction with the funk‑leaning opener ‘Holy Smokes’. Frontman Ioan sang through an old telephone microphone, its warped, saturated effect adding a distinctive edge as he switched between vocals and bursts of harmonica.
Dance‑leaning rhythms continued into ‘Leather’, the dancing crowd filling the space left by the earlier moshers. The set moved between stark minimalism and sudden noise surges, guitars and keys screeching through a new untitled track before ‘Always On’ was introduced as “taking things down a notch”, only to erupt into a prog‑rock‑style explosion moments later. ‘Missile Maracas’ brought almost-whispered vocals and a trippy psychedelic drift, matched by the band’s playful onstage banter.
During a cover of ‘Mountain Energy’ Ioan left the stage, tambourine in hand, weaving through the room, and returning with a cowbell during ‘Mrs Andrews’. Back on the telephone microphone, ‘Mrs Andrews’ leaned into a 1960s‑tinged psychedelic groove, before they closed with ‘Slaughterhouse Motion’, a rock‑funk sprint that accelerated to a chaotic, exhilarating finish. If you missed them, don’t worry, Shtëpi are back for The Great Escape in May.
Shtëpi:
Ioan – vocals, guitar
Tom – drums
James – key
Harvey – guitar
Harry – bass
Shtëpi setlist:
‘Holy Smokes’ (from 2025 ‘Ctrl + Alt + Rock’ EP)
‘Leather’ (a 2022 single)
‘Yacht Rock’ (from 2025 ‘Ctrl + Alt +Rock’ EP)
“Untitled” (unreleased)
‘Always On’ (unreleased)
‘Missile Maracas’ (unreleased)
‘The Well’ (from 2025 ‘Ctrl + Alt + Rock’ EP)
‘Mountain Energy’ (a cover)
‘Mrs Andrews’ (from 2025 ‘Ctrl + Alt +Rock’ EP)
‘Slaughterhouse Motion’ (a 2022 single)
News of Hidden Herd’s forthcoming shows and tickets is available HERE.
