Onto day two and we’re starting to realise how far afield the festival organisers have looked for this year’s line-up: there’s a band from Bulgaria, at least two acts from Norway and others from Melbourne and Nashville. Already we’ve found some new favourites in Spring King, Monica Heldal and Bully.

Spring King, Dome Studio
It’s an early show on Friday and there are plenty of peaky faces in the Dome Studio as Spring King tune up. Luckily they don’t disappoint in blowing the cobwebs away. It’s a furious set of soaring shout-along melodies and prickly King Tuff guitar grooves. “This shit is so ratchet right now,” jokes vocalist and drummer Tarek Musa who’s been unimpressed with the sound so far. It sounds a treat from where we’re standing and the Manchester five-piece have filled the Studio to capacity. ‘City’ and ‘Mumma’ feature a couple of the most hideously infectious choruses you’re likely to hear this year with the latter closing the set in colossal fashion. Ears ringing we’re sure we’ve seen indie’s new kings. All hail. (AB)

Mariann Rosa, Black Lion
It’s only Friday lunchtime, so what better to go with your dinner at The Black Lion than a side order of OTT Scandinavian pop? The irrepressible Mariann Rosa whips up a storm at the back of the bar, whirling around in a glittering silver jacket, grabbing hold of fearful bystanders and zapping out ridiculously brilliant rave-rock tunes like ‘Banjo For My Bitches’ in a blur of high-kicking colour and attitude. File between Ida Maria and Minnie-Oh and book us a one-way ticket to Norway, now. (SH)

Yung, Haunt
Things are running late at The Haunt when power punks Yung take to the stage, so the four-piece get their heads down and rattle through a thrillingly tuneful set with the barest of acknowledgment to the crowd. Their tight, trebly sound rings out like a grunge pop cousin of the early Wedding Present, while singer Yung Shord has the throaty rasp of the great Frankie Stubbs from cult heroes Leatherface. All references that probably mean nothing to these young Danes, but lovelorn howls like ‘Don’t Cry’ strike all the right chords in the room. (SH)

Jeremy?, Patterns
From the shady lands of the Balkan peninsula to the English south coast, Jeremy?’s spirited indie rock has landed them gigs across Europe and the UK. The only Bulgarian band to ever feature at TGE showcased their new material – rousing modern riff-rock songs with strong male vocals similar to the sound of Kings of Leon and Editors – at Patterns and again on Saturday at The Hope & Ruin. Jeremy?’s energetic Brit rock set finished with their acclaimed single ‘Fake Fruits’ which recently gained airplay on MTV Adria. The track’s tenderness explodes into a pleading chorus to end in a whirl of guitar loops and raw emotion. (TL)

Pins, Dome Studio Theatre
Pins make sure everyone’s paying attention by giving their gear an introductory thrashing. “Look at us,” screams their entry, “We’re really going to get in your faces.” And at first they do, with some Sleater Kinney-style punk. Unfortunately, from there on it gets progressively less banging and more Bangles. Admittedly they go down well, and there must be a market for their brand of 80s/90s all-girl power pop. But the C86 tag that’s been slapped on them is misleading – at least, they sound much less lo-fi tonight than they do recorded. Lyrically they’re also not great, and like most of the bands that play the Dome Studio Theatre, they’re a bit, well… polished. They’ll probably go-go a long long way. (GR)

Twerps, The Prince Albert
Melbourne’s Twerps turn out to be every bit as self-effacing as their name suggests. “Don’t worry, we’ll be out of your way in about 20 minutes,” the singer promises shortly after taking the stage. But behind their deadpan cynicism lurks some timeless songwriting along the lines of The Go-betweens and The Clean, with an occasional splash of The Babies/Vivian Girls when the female vocals are prominent. After a series of long queues on Friday, their set is exactly the sort of feel-good refreshment we need – in one of our favourite venues too. More underdog than underground, Twerps know they’re not ‘hip’, but they also know they’re better than most of the other bands here. (GR)

Shopping, Paganini Ballroom
Is a revival of the post punk revival already on the cards? The last one was only about ten years ago, wasn’t it? It’s certainly in full swing at the Old Ship Hotel’s Paganini Ballroom on Friday – a likeable but decidedly un-post punk venue if ever there was one. East London three-piece Shopping are essentially Delta 5, Liliput and ESG rolled into a taut, retro parcel. But their lack of originality isn’t an issue because they’re just so damn fun to watch. It’s all pleasingly minimal, with plenty of space between the notes and a beat that makes even the most reluctant dancers shimmer around in semicircular arcs. Everyone at the front is moving eightiesly, splattering the room with acute angles and polka dots, shaking the chandeliers like it’s 1981. “We’re only playing ballrooms from now on,” the band claim triumphantly. (GR)

Monica Heldal, Unitarian Church
Oh my. Monica Heldal. Tall, beautiful, Scandinavian. We imagine some of the audience who walked in on this gig unprepared might think she was a model attempting a pop career. But then she sits down and starts finger-picking some of the most delicate and precise guitar parts we’ve ever heard. Then her voice appears, in a cool, desolate Norwegian bluesy cloud and suddenly a whole room is spellbound. Nick Drake is perhaps an obvious reference point but this is music that’s both familiar and startlingly original. We knew her album ‘Boy From The North Country’ was great, but from start to finish Monica Heldal blew us away. (JS)

Bully, The Haunt
It’s heaving in The Haunt for one of the most hyped bands of festival. Stood poised, the Nashville four-piece waste no time before striking with a set of sonic thrills. ‘Milkman’ starts a hysteric pit and an array of drinks fill the air like a mist above crashing waves of fans. Singer Alicia Bognanno appears shy and softly spoken but transforms into a banshee on cue. Obvious comparisons have been made to Brody Dalle but it’s not without reason. The way she holds a note and wails over the shredding garage guitars creates an anthemic racket. ‘Brainfreeze’ is nostalgically 90s and reaches dizzying heights when the chorus drops. Life affirming garage punk; Bully have just played one of the sets of the festival. With an album dawning in June they’re set to soundtrack a lot of people’s Summer. (AB)

Tobias Jesso Jr, Dome Studio
“When I’m singing it I try and look away,” jokes Tobias Jesso Jr after heart wrenching ‘Goon’ highlight ‘Without You’. It’s just as affecting for everyone in attendance and you could hear a pin drop in the Dome Studio tonight, if someone had thought to bring one. Sat in front of a grand piano, the towering songwriter plays through an intense set of break-up songs bathed under golden lights. ‘Hollywood’ sounds as chokingly confessional live as it does on record and ‘How Could You Babe’ incites a lively singalong from the crowd. He picks up an acoustic guitar for ‘The Wait’ and apologies with a smile halfway through as he realises it’s out of tune. You could hardly tell though – he’s been on majestic form. (AB)

H09909, Patterns
H09909 – or ‘horror’ – are a duo (Eaddy and OGM) from New Jersey, cut very much from the same confrontational cloth as Death Grips. And with Pattern’s newly installed killer soundsytem (we’ll say nothing about the unfinished nature of the rest of the venue!), their brutal assault on the senses was totally shocking. Coming on dressed in gasmasks and wedding dresses, before gradually stripping off, the pair somehow fused classic early 80s US punk with rap in a way that made both genres seem fresh again. The volume was such that it was tricky to discern exactly which axe was being ground, but this was one of those concerts that stays scorched on the back of your eyes for hours after. And don’t mention the eardrums…. (JK)

Alabama Shakes, Brighton Dome
Three years after they played at Komedia in front of 400-odd people, Alabama Shakes hit The Great Escape’s largest venue as the sought-after headliners. The band played an enthralling set of songs promoting new material off their second album, ‘Sound & Color’ with an added grittiness from their debut record ‘Boys & Girls’. With plenty of melancholy and heartbreaking honesty, Howard and co. proved going low-key hadn’t taken away the band’s explosiveness. Tracks like ‘Be Mine’, ‘Rise To The Sun’ and ‘The Greatest’ raised the festival spirit while the deeply emotional ‘Over My Head’, ‘Gimme All Your Love’ and ‘You Ain’t Alone’ sent tingles down the spine. The only let-down was the omission of the band’s hit single ‘Hold On’. (TL)

The Cribs, Wagner Hall
The queue to Wagner Hall is testament to the popularity of indie veterans The Cribs. The show jolts triumphantly into life with a blistering version of ‘Our Bovine Public’ which immediately gets the crowd going. Ryan Jarman covers every inch of the stage, and almost gets pulled into the crowd throughout the set. The Cribs play a mix of songs from ‘For All My Sisters’, through to early favourite ‘Mirror Kissers’. By the time they roll out ‘Men’s Needs’ the mosh is in full, twisted glory. The band sign off with their customary finale of throwing everything at the amps/drummer/any part of the stage that is asking for it. The Cribs provide a quality benchmark for the many new acts that are tearing up Brighton this weekend. (AL)

The Great Escape, Friday 15th May 2015
Words by Andy Baker, Ashley Laurence, Gary Rose, Jake Kennedy, Jon Southcoasting, Stuart Huggett and Teodora Lyubomirova
Photos by Ashley Laurence, Jon Southcoasting and Teodora Lyubomirova

The SOURCE team covered all three days of The Great Escape 2015: check out our reviews from Thursday and Saturday.