Indeed, as the tote bag emblazoned by a quote from former Brighton resident and local \u2018Saint\u2019 Nick Cave currently on sale in the shop, states, Resident is \u201cThe Best F*cking record shop in Britain The World\u201d. You can ask anyone, not just me or a Brighton resident, it\u2019s a fact that Resident has grown to become THE place to go!<\/p>\n
Tonight, we were here for a live performance (and signing) of the new album \u2018Cannonball\u2019 (which for anyone of a certain age will bring to the forefront the classic track of the same name by the Breeders), from the band Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw<\/a>. These events at Resident have become something of an institution and a hot ticket.<\/p>\n It is not often that you come across a new band that you at once resonate with, even rarer still do you find that their music has been your earworm for a little while. I had kept on meaning to look up who was producing the new songs that were pricking my ears up, but we\u2019ve all been busy with back-to-back gigs and festivals during what I like to refer to as the \u2018silly season\u2019 so, well I\u2019d put it to the back of my mind to look up that band that kept on creeping into my peripheries. Imagine my joy when I realised that I was finally going to be reviewing Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw, THAT band with the songs that I kept on meaning to find time to sit down and listen to.<\/p>\n I am an art rock\/ post-punk kid at heart. Born in 1976 my preferred list on rotation features everything either created or released during the long scorching summer of \u201876. Taking that into consideration you can see why I at once took to Man\/Woman\/ Chainsaw\u2019s post-punk\/art rock sound. Moving between looming threat and heartfelt tenderness the band combines orchestral instruments with synths, and my absolute push button of grungy guitars.<\/p>\n They formed at secondary school. Starting out with a revolving line of bandmates, they have now gelled into a slick and tight outfit, releasing their first single in 2020, \u2018Any Given Sunday\u2019. The first track from them that many, including myself, heard and grabbed our attention by the scruff of the neck as soon as it hit the airways. The debut EP, 2024\u2019s \u2018Easy Peazy\u2019, produced by the hugely talented Gilla Band\u2019s Daniel Fox, marked the start of that new and exciting band we are all looking for and everyone talks about.<\/p>\n There was a tangible buzz outside Resident Records as the city\u2019s musos, photographers, reviewers and stone-cold music fans gathered near 6pm to make sure they could get pole position to both see and hear the new phenomenon. A combination of personable charm and so fizzing with exuberance and the sheer joy of music that not one of them is able to keep still, so wound up that they just have to play is, well as rare as \u2026the proverbial whatever. Watching a band loving what they do and doing it well, so well that they themselves get to dance along with the music is one of the great joys in life. There is nothing, NOTHING worse than watching an act just going through the motions for the money, but it can come to any performer, usually when they least expect it and usually at the time that it can do the most damage. There is in all honesty not a bad track on this eleven-track album. There are also some genuine absolute bangers, (as the old folks say), hiding in the mix of better than anyone else average tracks. They resonate with broken hearts, yearning un-requited love and absolute frustration, in short with the human experience. Not unlike Bowie, who has a track for every human emotion and experience from A-Z this album does it in one. Not that I am saying they are better than Bowie, I would not put that pressure on anyone. However, there are six of them, so I think they can collectively handle it.<\/p>\n One of my favourite things to see a band doing is swapping instruments, and better still vocal duties. There is a sense of collective unity, an understanding of each other that comes, they fundamentally understand each other, their vocal strengths and each others\u2019 instruments. There was also a clear camaraderie between all the members of the band. Not only with each other, but also with the staff at Resident and the audience that gave the whole night a feel that we were all in this together and for the love of performance and obviously music.<\/p>\n To the album itself, well it\u2019s hard to separate the tracks, but I will start with telling you what the absolute bangers are. Stand out for everyone is \u2018Goddamn, Lizard Man!\u2019 Nearly all the audience mentioned it while we chatted amongst ourselves prior to the gig, listening to the soundcheck, which was also flawless, again a rare thing, even from accomplished performers twice their age. Why this track resonated with the audience so much is because the guitarist and vocalist Billy Ward sounds more than a little like \u2018Saint\u2019 Nick Cave, at least this is what I thought on a first listen to the album.<\/p>\n Given that Cave had played only a week before to mass city excrement and a thoroughly excited audience it\u2019s no wonder that it was a hit. His deep timbre is a huge asset and offsets the vocal pitches of both Vera Lepp\u00e4nen, who has the widest range and most \u2018commercial\u2019 voice of the three, deeper when compared to Emmie-Mae Avery\u2019s lighter folk\/ country style. When singing together in harmonies, gang, or group vox, well its pure magic, they quite literally cast a spell.<\/p>\n Back to the music. The first track on the album \u2018Only-Girl\u2019 really hits home for most of the audience. Speaking of which, the audience was an interesting mix, it always is at Resident, but on the night, there was a real mix of ages and tastes gathered in the crowd. The venue was at capacity and the gig sold out halfway through the day if my web searches were correct. It was one of Resident\u2019s \u2018Hot Ticket\u2019 events. OK not as HOT as Cave, but respectably sold-out which meant more passers-by surveying outside to see what was happening and who was playing. Enough of the superlatives. Just buy the album and get that ticket you will not regret it! It\u2019s available HERE <\/a>and HERE<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw are set to return to Brighton next month where they will be headlining at the Concorde 2<\/a> on Wednesday 30th September as part of their UK & Ireland tour. There are currently some tickets still available for this concert and they can be snapped up HERE<\/a>.<\/p>\n The full tour dates are listed below.<\/p>\n Man\/ Woman\/ Chainsaw: Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw live UK & Ireland tour dates: October![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Man-Woman-Chainsaw-pic-by-Mike-Burnell-3337.jpg\")
Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw at Resident, Brighton 8.8.26 (pic Mike Burnell<\/a>)<\/p>\n
Credentials, [check], musicality, [check], personality, [check], talent so much that it seems to be visibly bursting out of all of them [check]. This band are the original triple threat. They are also still young enough that we can expect to enjoy music from the collective and their inevitable side projects for years to come. If you were looking for a glimmer of light to get you through these challenging times, that break up, that suffocating cloud of blue that you have been hoping to shrug off? Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw is it.<\/p>\n
Luckily for us, and for them the band\u2019s youth and excitement ensure that it will be some time before the rot of the industry starts to set in, if ever.
Now to the album, which they decided to play in its entirety, but with one song switch at the end, just to confuse the mind and ear, cheeky; I like their style.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Man-Woman-Chainsaw-pic-by-Mike-Burnell-2661.jpg\")
Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw at Resident, Brighton 8.8.26 (pic Mike Burnell<\/a>)<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Man-Woman-Chainsaw-pic-by-Mike-Burnell-2938.jpg\")
Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw at Resident, Brighton 8.8.26 (pic Mike Burnell<\/a>)<\/p>\n
For me \u2018Canyons\u2019 is the weakest track on the album, followed by, well actually even the \u2018weakest\u2019 track still rocks. The album builds on every track becoming more aggressive and visibly boisterous until it reaches a crescendo with final track \u2018Something Else To Give.\u2019 Other standouts include, \u2018Get Up And Dance\u2019, \u2018Lighter\u2019, \u2018Nosedive\u2019 (transferred to the final track of the gig), \u2018Flick Of The Wrist\u2019\u2026 oh sod it after \u2018Canyons\u2019 it just goes from strength-to-strength.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Man-Woman-Chainsaw-pic-by-Mike-Burnell-2640.jpg\")
Man\/Woman\/Chainsaw at Resident, Brighton 8.8.26 (pic Mike Burnell<\/a>)<\/p>\n
Billy Ward \u2013 vocals and guitar
Vera Lepp\u00e4nen \u2013 vocals and bass guitar
Emmie-Mae Avery \u2013 vocals, piano, keys, and synths
Billy Doyle \u2013 guitar
Clio Starwood \u2013 violin
Lola Cherry \u2013 drum
Man\/ Woman\/ Chainsaw setlist:
\u2018Only Girl\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Canyons\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Goddamn, Lizard Man!\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Lighter\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Get Up And Dance\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Snakebite\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Flick Of The Wrist\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018The Thing\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Still Angry\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Something Else To Give\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)
\u2018Nosedive\u2019 (from 2026 \u2018Cannonball\u2019 album)<\/p>\n
September
Sat 19 \u2013 Belfast\u00a0 \u2013 Ulster Sports Club
Sun 20 \u2013 Dublin, Ireland \u2013 Whelan\u2019s
Tue 22 \u2013 Manchester \u2013 Gorilla
Wed 23 \u2013 Leeds\u00a0 \u2013 Brudenell Social Club
Thu 24 \u2013 Newcastle \u2013 The Grove
Fri 25 \u2013 Glasgow \u2013 King Tut\u2019s
Sat 26 \u2013 Sheffield \u2013 Float Along Festival
Tue 29 \u2013 Guildford \u2013 The Boileroom
Wed 30 \u2013 Brighton \u2013 Concorde 2<\/a><\/p>\n
Thu 1 \u2013 Portsmouth \u2013 The Wedgewood Rooms
Fri 2 \u2013 Bristol \u2013 Thekla
Sat 3 \u2013 Cardiff \u2013 The Globe
Mon 5 \u2013 Nottingham\u00a0 \u2013 Rescue Rooms
Tue 6 \u2013 Birmingham \u2013 Hare & Hounds
Wed 7 \u2013 London \u2013 Electric Ballroom<\/p>\n