Gig: Meryl Streek at Yellow Arch, Sheffield
Meryl Streek by Nic Howells
Yellow Arch Studios in Sheffield has quietly become one of the best venues for captivating performances from burgeoning artists. The most recent to light up the heart of Kelham Island was the transcendent punk from Ireland, Meryl Streek. Yellow Arch was packed out for a Tuesday night in Sheffield, here’s what we thought:
DUCK
Duck started off proceedings, being the hometown heroes as a Sheffield/Leeds duo. The noise pop blended well with the poppier elements of Streek’s recent ‘This is Life’. Duck recently transitioned from a three-piece to a duo, and have taken to the change like… a duck to water (Couldn’t not). They oozed gratitude in what was one of many Yorkshire experiences they’ve offered recently, and Yellow Arch was a great entry into that story. The ‘There Are No Normal Conversations Any More’ duo being a great fit to start off the night.
Scattered Ashes
Ireland’s Scattered Ashes took the stage next as main support for the majority of Streek’s dates on this tour. Fans of Joy Division would be right at home with these, and served well to offer up the other side of the coin to their fellow countryman’s music. Elements of their music touched on Placebo-esque with bass guitarist Gerry’s higher pitch, but frontman Rob does the majority of work on the mic. There’s a personal touch to the show, Rob saying how much more at home the group feel in Northern cities. Between their praise for their two nights in Sheffield the group tease an upcoming single, as well as the EP they have long been touting for release in 2024. Expect us to talk about Scattered Ashes again, soon.
Meryl Streek
Meryl Streek's time to shine ironically came in some very restricted lighting conditions. Yellow Arch Studios is excellent for more intimate experiences, the ‘If This Is Life’ star is a perfect example of it. Meryl Streek was absolutely commanding in their time on stage, under just two spotlights and their own strobe flashlight, this set was designed to both disorient and pull you in. There’s barely a moment that the Irish punk wasn’t in the crowd's faces, although the face of the act is very stoic, aggressive in places, and thoughtful, it's the small moments between tracks that show us who Meryl Streek really is.
Having chosen a medium that's very challenging, but also pioneering in some ways, Streek is such a gracious performer. Musically, the act is obviously very incendiary during tracks like show opener ‘Full of Grace’ and ‘Suicide’, but Streek almost constantly, at times almost jovially skipping around the stage with energy. Particularly around the unreleased track ‘Paddy’, devoted to their uncle, it’s clear that he cherishes the connection with the people more than anything.
As far as personal experiences go, Meryl Streek performing at Yellow Arch Studios has to be one of the best offerings to pass through their doors. For someone saying “I started out with nothing and still have most of it left” in ‘Matter of Fact’, Meryl Streek has the whole world in their hands.
