Scene Queen, In Her Own Words & Delilah Bon, Stylus, Leeds, 03.10.23
I arrived about half an hour after doors to find the venue pretty much at capacity already which is refreshing to see (always see the support acts at gigs!!).
Not long after comes act one of the night, Delilah Bon. The pro-feminist message and ongoing discussion of the war against women are the songs main themes of her set. She brought an energetic performance to Leeds but, with the crowd already being near capacity it was a shame they weren't as lively as her performance deserved.
Los Angeles based In Her Own Words were next up with their incredibly early 2010’s pop punk sound. They brought some great energy to warm up for the headliner..
Now for the reason we were all there, Scene Queen. The stage was adorned with paddling pools and empty beer cups. The kit is housed behind a House of Bimbo Beta Pi sorority front. The backdrop giving off early 2000’s core hot pink with diamante hearts and Scene Queen written in that stereotypical heavy metal font you’d find on word art.
She’s not walked on stage yet but the scene is already set for heavy metal barbie. While we’re on the topic of barbie, as the lights go down and pink washes over the crowd we are told “you are about to experience bimbocore” as a cheesy remix of Barbie Girl welcomes the band to the stage. Again fitting for the night.
A highlight of the night for me came four songs into the set with their controversial song 18+. Although their most controversial it had the loudest reaction from the whole room. After her song Pink Hotel, Scene Queen brought up two fans to induct them into her sorority. She told the crowd of how the values of this sorority are to be inclusive to all and to start a community where we all feel welcome in this scene. Now it's time for something infamous, the twerkle pit.
Nearing the end of the set Scene Queen debuts an unreleased song, MILF (Man I Love Fucking). She explains that her cowgirl outfit was because of this song but realised we don’t have cowgirls in the UK. What came next with this debut was an odd but captivating mix of country and beat down.
Definitely one to listen to when it's released. Arguably even more popular in the metal community due to the film coming out this year, Scene Queen brought out Joey Fleming of In Her Own Words to perform Barbie & Ken.
Scene Queen brought their unique brand of music to the stage, captivating the crowd with their high-energy performance. The band's precision and tightness were impressive, as they delivered one song after another with ease.
Only a year ago Scene Queen were supporting Wargasm in this exact venue. She’s had a meteoric rise in the past 12 months, I can’t wait to see the next year of her rise. 9/10