Little Grim tear up Hackney’s Paper Dress Vintage

This was only the second time I’ve ever been to Hackney and the Paper Dress Vintage has to be one of the coolest London venues I’ve been to.

Once all of the clothes rails were tucked away under a red velvet cloth, voila, you have a neat looking, fully fledged bar. Upstairs was where all the action took place last night for Little Grim’s EP launch party.

Kicking off the night was The Paisley Daze. Four young teenagers, who didn’t even look 18, were looking a bit nervous as they went into their first song. Their vibrant guitar rock was amazing to watch. The lads’ enthusiasm throughout their set was always at 110 per cent. Even when the guitarist broke a string and the had to borrow a guitar from Little Grim, they still managed to entertain the crowd with some jazzy improvisations.

Their only flaw was that they seemed to be a bit nervous and jittery in between songs. You could sense the awkwardness as they were struggling to know what to say – just chatting absolute sh*t instead. If they knuckled down and got on with it, there’s some potential in this band.

Beautiful Things were up next. Alt Soul five-piece from Hertfordshire certainly brought a different spin to the indie-alternative genre but personally, it wasn’t my cup of tea. Elements in the guitars was a throwback to the 70s and the lead singers Queen inspired haircut made them look the part. If you’re a fan of a slow-moving, groovy track, then Beautiful Things are the band for you.

The venue is now rammed for the main attraction as Little Grim get up on stage to a big raw before going into their first song off the EP ‘Infectious’. The London boys so eloquently played the EP in order with the crowd singing along to all the songs. My personal favourite ‘Silence‘ (receiving a 9.5/10 by ICM) was a big hit with the crowd. Catchy guitar flicks and the stomping drum beat got everyone hyped for what came ahead.

Ending it nicely on their remastered version of ‘Hoodie’, the band’s encore included a sweet cover of Destiny’s Child ‘Say My Name’. I thought it was a weird choice at first but it worked! It went down well with friends and fans of the band who I’m sure have heard it many times before from the instant reaction they got.

Overall a great night for Little Grim and the support acts who played to a full house at the Paper Dress Vintage in Hackney. To listen to the EP in full, check out our EP review of ‘Pink Skin / Blue Bruise’.