Words by Willow Shield and Apolline Hachelouf-Grane, Photographs by Rosie Carne, Apolline Hachelouf-Grane and Willow Shields

Beside all the brighton-city-multi-venue festivals, Mutations has all the heart in the world. Thought up, marketed and produced by a team of people who truly care about the music they're showcasting. It leans towards a punkier, grittier end of the spectrum, where its festival peers focus on indie rock or a jazzier twang. Mutations feels grassroots to it’s core, teaming up with Brighton local’s favourite haunts to bring together some of the best new and upcoming artists spanning the UK and the globe.

Where the festival and its artists were looked upon with great love throughout our time at the festival, something began to nag at me from the very beginning. “It’s about who can afford it,” voices echoed around me during my two days at Mutations. From the very first set of the festival, through to the last, I witnessed some of the most chatty and disrespectful crowds I have ever seen or heard. “Guys right in front of me chatting about work, only here so they have something to chat about at work,” my friend shows me her phone of her partner keeping her updated from his spot in Revenge. The crowd where we are, we realise, the exact same. While the band in front of them are on stage.

There’s a lot of discourse in the wider music space about ‘gig etiquette’ with a particular focus on how younger Gen-Z and Gen-Alpha 'don't know how to behave at shows’. There’s a clear and definitive cause for this. Being that they never had those formative experiences at shows, due to - you know - being isolated from their peers due to a global pandemic. However the same cannot be said for the Gen-x’ers and Millennials in attendance at Mutations Festival. They have, presumably, been to a gig, live show or even a play before. They know better. And their behaviour is something I cannot begin to wrap my head around. There are of course different factors to the cause of this phenomenon, perhaps they’re parents ‘getting away’ from the stresses of their everyday life, a friend suggested to me. Maybe because they believe in the psychology behind paying a certain amount of money for something, therefore they may act as disrespectfully as they please. Perhaps, they subscribe to the narrative of high vs low art and they've come to check out some ‘low art’. Just for the weekend. Just for fun. Just to get drunk and shout over artists who are struggling to make their art in an economy and world that proves again and again that it hates them. In a time where we need to be supporting grassroots artists, venues and promoters more than ever, the majority of Mutations Festival was filled with 35-50 year old men disrespecting the music and musicians they claim to champion at every single turn.

Despite that, we were still able to find our new favourite bands, and catch up with some old faithfuls. Here lies (almost) every set we saw at Mutations Festival 2025.

FRIDAY

My First Time - Revenge | by Apolline

My First Time engaged with the crowd at every oppertunity creating a real connection. They lifted up the energy to high and with the up beat rhythms, they’re a band that captures your attention from A to Z.

The Orielles - Chalk | by Willow

Curating a soundscape that speaks to a new era for The Orielles, “we’ve got a baby on the way” announces Henry Carlyl Wade to a packed out Chalk on a Friday afternoon. He follows up by clarifying that their 5th studio album will be out on March 13th ‘26. These new songs veer in a more experimental, enchanting direction for the group. I remember speaking to them via zoom in 2021 and I recall they spoke to me about wanting to expand their legacy, in the context of their debut short film. With the snippets of the new tracks heard at mutations festival, the band are born anew and The Orielles are definitively expanding their legacy.

Mandrake Handshake - Revenge | by Apolline

Mandrake Handshake bought their classic psychedelic vibes. Their transcendent presence hypnotising the crowd at Revenge. Special mention to one of the guy wearing a PowerPlant tee shirt. It was incredible and fascinating to see so many instruments being played in harmony.

*photograph by Apolline Hachelouf-Grane*

Divorce - Chalk | by Rosie

photographs by Rosie Carne

Domina - Folklore Rooms | by Willow

Domina are a synth led and insanely promising trio hailing from London (right now), made up of Jude (organ), Liv (bass) and Anders (synth). With each of the group waiting politely for their turn on lead vocals, they enchanted the audience infront of them at Folklore Rooms. Each time they switched lead vocals, it was as if they turned into different bands. With Jude at the helm Domina sounded like a reincarnation of a late 80s electro-punk band, with a stage presence of boredom that skyrocketed them to the charts. When Anders led, they were reminiscent of The Doors playing at The Whiskey GoGo, an early stage but about to take the world by storm. Then, when Liv began to sing they transformed once again. Incomparable to anything, the closest match in my memory might be the early days of Drug Store Romeos, there’s something softer and otherworldly when Liv leads the band.

In between sets at Folklore Rooms, I stood on the stairs above the gig room and witnessed a maybe-45 year old man having a go at the person on the door because he’d shown up 7 minutes before PollyFromTheDirt’s set and had a full pint and no wristband - not his fault apparently and “now I’m going to miss the set.” A mindset those of us who have worked in any customer facing role, or hospitality are all too familiar with. I have to admit that I enjoyed when he had to concede, admit defeat and drink his pint downstairs.

pollyfromthedirt - Folklore Rooms | by Willow

When pollyfromthedirt arrived I was stood alone in a corner and I watched them walk in. When they finally took to the stage and donned their iconic hand painted butterfly mask, my face lit up, finally something interesting. “This might get a bit weird but we’ll bring it home” or something to that affect. Then screams, screeches and gargles into the loop mic and transformed into something beautiful.

Mamalarky - Prince Albert | by Willow

Finding our way to the other side of town, battling wind and rain, we arrived at The Prince Albert. Cozy and warm, we rush upstairs to catch US rockers Mamalarky. During their set they bridged the gap between jazz, indie pop and punk rock, “I wish this show could last forever but a lot of things last 40 minutes long” said front woman Livvy Bennett, followed by a giggle from the crowd. The genre bending set spoke to a band that have been playing together for years, so finding out that they formed in 2016 was not a surprising fact given the variety in their showcase. Aforementioned Livvy spoke on their upcoming shows including how excited they were for Pitchfork festival the following day, as the spotlight shines on her and the giant fan just below makes her hair whip and float, the crowd roars and she is an American angel. Their set ended with a larger than life jam session between all the members of the group (Dylan Hill: drums, Micheal Hunter - keys, Noor Khan - bass). One final Californian flavoured crescendo before we made our way back out into the British rain once again.

photographs by Willow Shields

Upchuck - Revenge | by Apolline

Upchuck were powerful and impactful. Hailing from Atlanta, Georgia (USA), they bear that with them in their work, the heavy violence currently going on in their home country. They captivated the crowd at revenge with being able to make their hurt, anger and their hunger for justice into truly moving punk.

Ditz - Revenge | by Willow

When I arrived at Revenge to see Ditz, the front of the stage was already packed out. The band hadn’t even started their line check. An older man - maybe 60 - then unapologetically pushed through me and company to get to the stage. Brilliant. When Ditz did begin to perform, it was with a (seemingly, and very charmingy) disinterested stare at the back of the room from vocalist Cal Francis and a ‘meh its okay’ from the rest of band. Then they just erupted. And so did the crowd. The band were so tight, so polished but in the grittiest most beautifully undone way. That’s the freedom you get with Ditz, everyone knows where everyone is and you move like water. The same, I found out, was happening behind me. A gigantic pit opened in the middle of the floor, filled with people of all ages, and when they came together it was like a whirlpool in the middle of the ocean. Cal then decided to swim atop the hands of the crowd, foot on ceiling they screamed the chorus, they were finally delivered safely back onto the stage. And we had to rip ourselves away to find our way out and towards the actual ocean.

Dry Cleaning - Chalk | by Apolline

Dry Cleaning were one of the headliners of this festival, although a studio based band in my opinion. They delivered a beautiful show, with their unique lyricism and those deep vocals that get you to your guts.

Vlure - Dust | by Willow

Descending into the darkness of Dust for the first time at Mutations felt like going into the club from the 2000 Brendan Fraser movie ‘Bedazzled’ staring Elizabeth Hurley, in the best way possible. The back room of Dust opened for the occasion, illuminated by tiny white neon signs, filled with fog and middle aged men. The band were line checking as we got drinks, and I - genuinely - jumped up and down with excitement. Vlure are one of those bands that are different from anything you’ve ever seen or heard before. They’re more than just a band, they’re more than just a group, they’re everything. They capture the grief of life and bottle it into something you can really move to, and it will move you. They felicitated one of the only mosh pits I saw for the entirety of the festival. It was filled with too-drunk middle aged men who kept elbowing onlookers and falling over, but a mosh pit nonetheless. The atmosphere that Vlure created made me feel something, it was a frenzy of strobe lights and pure soul. There was skin on skin, vocalist Hamish Hutcheson expertly falling into the crowd, then vocalist and synth player Alex Pearson snaking through bodies to ascend onto a ledge and preaching the poetry of grief during ‘This Is Not The End’. Alex then, overlooking the crowd, giggled and said, “that’s one you haven’t heard on six music.” If I were cursed to only be able to see one band for the rest of my existence, it would be Vlure. And I would love it every time.

SATURDAY

Lemonsuckr - Dust | by Willow

Lemonsuckr are going to take over the world. Made of only pinpoint precision and raw talent, they are one of the most promising bands to come out of Brighton in the last half-decade. Expecting the 2:30pm slot at Dust to be at most half-full was a gigantic mistake, with the venue reaching capacity before they even took to the stage. Walking in was walking into a wall of people, it felt as if all of Mutations had heard that Dust was the place to be first thing Saturday afternoon. They dazzled their crowd with sleek guitar riffs and catchy choruses, and even when everything went wrong - technical difficulties - they played on, and it was executed to perfection. I caught the man infront of me writing in his notes app, seemingly keeping track of all the bands he saw and the gear they used, he proceeded to note “very promising young band” following the notes on their pedals. I’m inclined to agree wholeheartedly.

Blood Wizard - Green Door Store | by Apolline

photograph by Apolline Hachelouf-Grane

Keo - Chalk | by Willow

Keo are well on their way to becoming one of the biggest bands in the UK, with a grudge edge and some lyrical genius to back them up. The first half of Keo’s set was where they came alive, bass forward and heavier guitars they really leant into their own world. A man held his mega-pint aloft as the band played their mega-hit “I Lied, Amber” as girls next to me sung their hearts out. Having just come off a run of sold out shows across the UK and Ireland the band were heavy in their stride, tight and precise in their effortless nonchalance. They packed out Mutations main stage at Chalk, and in the next year or so I’d bet the people who were lucky enough to get in will be bragging wherever they can that they were there.

photographs by Willow Shields (left, right) and Rosie Carne (middle)

Congratulations - Alphabet | by Apolline

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GoodHealthGoodWealth - Patterns | by Apolline

Straight from East London, Bruce will make you laugh in between two songs alongside his proud cockney accent, and Simon is sure to make your whole body dance with his riffs. Amazing and fun vibes, memorable show. Don't under estimate their capacity to also write songs with more severe lyrics about life struggles. Overall, 2 amazing guys with a big heart and a passion.

Courting - Hope & Ruin | by Rosie

Jeanie & The White Boys - Hope & Ruin | by Apolline

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photographs by Apolline Hachelouf-Grane

New Loves, Old Loves | Mutations Festival 2025

FRIDAY

SATURDAY

almost monday