The Death of Kid Brunswick: Dead Forever Tour

The enigmatic genre-bending alt-rock/metal artist Kid Brunswick is working with the Music Venue Trust (MVT) for their first-ever ‘cohorts’ UK tour. According to a press release, the MVT Cohorts is a new initiative which aims to combat the shrinking tour circuit and bring live music back to some forgotten cities. Kid Brunswick headed out on a 16-date UK tour ahead of the release of his forthcoming EP ‘Dead Forever’ and I had the pleasure of catching him at ‘The Sugarmill’ in Stoke-on-Trent.

The turnout for the venue seemed to be around 100 people which isn’t unsurprising when you consider the whole backing of the tour was surrounding playing less appreciated cities in the music scene. However, despite the smaller turnout both fans and the Kid Brunswick himself still brought the energy.

The headline set was a short but powerful one consisting of around 7 songs and a playtime of around 45 minutes but once again, like with the number of people in the venue, small can be rather mighty. The main man himself donned the stage with his head mummified in bandages, a look he has adorned in the come up of the ‘death of Kid Brunswick and opened with the energetic gritty “Heaven without you”.

The entire set has a syncopated feel to it as songs were blasted through one after another however despite the pulsating speed of the set which matched the blend of raw screams and aggressive vocals, Kid Brunswick still made sure to slow it down and have his moment with the crowd.

The whole concept of the ‘death of Kid Brunswick’ and why every night on stage Harry James, the man behind Brunswick, is that after years of singing songs about his battle with substance abuse, rehab, and tremulant upbrings, these songs no longer resonate with him and in a hope to heal, move on and keep his passion for music alive he has taken it upon himself to kill ‘Kid Brunswick’.

Now this does sound all very dramatic, especially as these small city tour dates have been branded as the last time fans will ever have the chance to see Brunswick perform that isn’t entirely the truth. Much to fans' relief Harry isn’t quitting music for good, but rather just embarking on a new project and he uses this tour as the perfect way to promote his new endeavour. Each night of the tour hyping and celebrates the band which performs behind him and will be behind him for the foreseeable music pursuit as he will no longer be a solo act but a group project.

In conclusion, I highly recommend catching Kid Brunswick on his “final ever tour” as you will not be disappointed. The experience of seeing such a dynamic and lively performer in such a small personal room is a special one for sure and it is a true celebration of the relationship between fans, the music and the artist which any music lover would adore.

Words: Georgina Richardson

Images: Jaw Midnight

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