Childhood live at Spanky Van Dykes - Photo by Dan Highwood
Even the florescent lights that drown the stage room in Spanky's cannot detract attention from Childhood's glowing talent. Headlining an all-dayer that has seen local talent including I Am Lono and Great British Weather player earlier in the day, the indie fuzz-pop of single Blue Velvet opens the set and the audience can't help buy bob their heads in unison to the crooning hooks Ben Romans Hopcraft delivers.
Childhood live at Spanky Van Dykes - Photo by Dan Highwood
On stage, the band are tightly knit in their playing, and refuse to break concentration for the majority of their performance. Singer Romans Hopcraft seems to drift away with their music, humbly stating, “we’re Childhood, thanks for coming” in-between songs two and three; while Mount Chiliad is the sound of summer wrapped in 80’s synthpop soul, it is a song so beautiful you could just sink into it.
Childhood live at Spanky Van Dykes - Photo by Dan Highwood
The crowd comes alive to the melody of Solemn Skies and everyone seems to enjoy the baggy spaced out guitar riffs of the closing song making Spanky Van Dykes seem a world away from a gloomy evening in the midlands.
Childhood’s Californian esque psych sounds are thrilling, if of the moment - not that there is anything wrong with that, I would take their dreamy and hypnotic sounds any day.
Childhood played at Spanky Van Dykes on Saturday 19 April 2014.
We have a favour to ask
LeftLion is Nottingham’s meeting point for information about what’s going on in our city, from the established organisations to the grassroots. We want to keep what we do free to all to access, but increasingly we are relying on revenue from our readers to continue. Can you spare a few quid each month to support us?
