Deap Vally at EartH Hackney

It’s not that rock music is dead, it’s that, in 2024, one must seek it. Unlike Deap Vally’s 20^th-century predecessors, a time when rock was not only a mainstream chart hogger, but also a lifestyle, the genre is now an underground marvel, which is both alarming in terms of the mind-expanding benefits it can have on social development and charming in terms of its exclusivity. This was evident as Hackney Evolutionary Arts welcomed a predominantly baby boomer crowd, whose identities were formed on rock ‘n’ roll. The support acts were two notable bands that primed the herds of people for a night of heavy rage-releasing alternative rock. Dosiopath opened the show with five tracks, four of which cannot be found on any music streaming platform. Their song Humans R Depressed was an aggressive, yet meditative score that spoke an uncomfortable truth; a concept that has been lost in modern music.

HotWax are essentially the love children of Deap Vally. The frenzied Hastings-born trio wrapped up with Rip it Out, a menacing song about female hysteria linked to contraception, as lead-vocalist Tallulah explained. Just when the crowd had reclaimed their eardrums, Deap Vally finally made their appearance in hooded cloaks as the blinding strobe lights and thumping tear of the guitar riff from their song End of the World startled fans from the lagging interval. A sound reminiscent of a bluesy Jimi Hendrix and the audacious White Stripes, the Los Angeles-based duo treated their fans to a delightfully deafening night of headbanging.

Whilst playing a mixture of esteemed songs from their impressive archives that include three studio albums, Sistrionix, Femejism and Deap Lips, these “working mums” have been rocking out and selling out in a male-dominated arena since they formed in 2011. Every modern female rocker seems to be in a binding contractual agreement to be compared to Courtney Love, however, these hellraisers are far too bluesy and classical to fit the mould. Aside from having maintained a league of their own, they truly encapsulate the rawness of their male counterparts who ruled rock and roll during the glory days of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. As they played one great banger after the next, including feminist anthems Smile More and Grung Blood, Troy dived into the crowd for a final surf.

The band were celebrating 14 years of music as well as the final night of their European farewell tour; a truly emotional moment for these rock goddesses, Lindsey Troy and Julie Edwards. Troy expressed her gratitude to their loyal London fans, the first city to believe in their music, right before they ended with the last song of the night, Royal Jelly. A remarkable end to a night of true musicianship and artistry.