Melbourne indie rocker Stella Bridie stopped off at The Bodega in Nottingham last night as part of her EU/UK tour. The cosy setting downstairs at the venue made for a lovely intimate vibe which really allowed the 3-piece band to shine (Stella joked that she would be able to lock eyes with everyone in the room, and recalled a time where this happened with a man in the audience during the hard-hitting ‘He Didn’t Mean It’, resulting in him covering his ears for the second half).
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits 
Photos by Natasha Winge @badpicsbadedits
(Photos from London date of the tour)
Opening for Stella was Nottinghamshire local singer-songwriter Cara Flynn, whose soft effortless melodies and bright guitar tone captured everyone’s full attention. A highlight of her set for me was ‘the crescent moon’, with some really beautiful chords.
All of her set list, bar upcoming unreleased song ‘Outer Space’ and a cover of ‘Better’ by another Australian artist Gretta Ray, is available on streaming – definitely check her out.
Stella then took to the stage, accompanied by guitarist (also named) Stella and drummer Soren. As a band they were very tight, and really filled the room. Stella’s repetoire is an equal amount of tender and cutting – ‘He Didn’t Mean It’ from last year’s EP Speaking Terms delves into the exploitative nature of true crime shows on the second verse. A personal favourite lyric of mine:
That night we almost came to blows
I hate those fucking murder shows
Girls get stripped for parts
As background noise in people’s cars
Quite a few of her unreleased songs were played, including a track called ‘Well Behaved’ where the drums really stole the show. Stella’s music is reminiscent of Phoebe Bridgers and Blondshell – guitar-heavy and able to really pick up momentum with her strong vocals.
The set came to a close with ‘Dog Bite’, a deceptively upbeat song which is about ‘how being nineteen is being in the trenches – but it does end’.
Stella continues her EU/UK tour in Manchester, Brighton, Amsterdam and Brussels – find all tickets on her website. Don’t miss out on seeing her while she’s over here!
Follow Stella Bridie Instagram | spotify