The Hunna at The Engine Rooms, Southampton 2.11.2022 with Kid Kapichi and Lucy Deakin supporting.
A Wednesday night drive over to Southampton as we enter the new early darkness season: leaving the house just at the moment I might think about wrapping it all up for the day and sticking the kettle on. No – there’s a gig to see. Rock on 😎
I first saw The Hunna in Bristol at the O2 Academy in January 2018: a very lively sold out event which was a recommendation. Not sure I would have found them otherwise. I was double the age of the average crowd member then and it’s the same tonight.
Their first album 100 (released 2016) is the one I am most familiar with but the second, Dare, gets quite a bit of in-car play with wife Sally. (She’s here tonight and son Ben – he found ’em for us.) The third album passed me by and the eponymous fourth was out last week so just a few Spotify plays for that one. Sounds promising.
The Hunna are from Watford. A four piece fronted by Ryan Potter – guitar and vocals – plus guitar, bass and drums. Indie rock is quite a broad term but that’s where they are and tonight it’s up the rockier end. First time I saw them I remember it being more indie-pop with power. A more rocky edge now.
We got in intentionally late – Engine Rooms detail in my venue blog – just catching the enthusiastic last Lucy Deakin song. The next band, Kid Kapichi, from Hastings, kept the attention with a short set of poppy rocky punky tunes.
Then shortly after 9pm – it’s time. A roaring welcome for The Hunna. Ryan Potter comments between songs to say where it’s going. He’s upbeat and talkative throughout. He is clearly relieved that the fourth album has appeared at last and is so pleased with it that he wants us to hear it all…now. The crowd seem pretty well versed in the lyrics already judging by the first few songs – it was only out last week!
He thanks the audience for being so cool and hearing out the album and he seems to have got away with playing the whole thing. There’s no frustration – just euphoria. The best of the new ones to my ears are Circles and Take a Ride (Official video on YouTube.)
It is hot in here and it doesn’t take long for the rock’n’roll stripped-to-the-waist look to appear. Very good sound: loud without pushing it over the edge – it does the album justice. I’m sold on it.
Potter mentions the producer of this latest album, Gil Norton and that he’s in the venue seeing his first Hunna gig. He’s worked on albums for the likes of The Foo Fighters, Jimmy Eat World and The Pixies. Wow. This explains the rocking up of the sound to emphasise the band’s extra power or rock-edge.
After the fourth album feast they disappear for a little bit. Ryan Potter returns alone to play a slower version of Lover from second album Dare. Great stuff.
The key crowd pleasers are Babe, Can I Call You? (Dare album) and the big one off the first album, She’s Casual. I grab a few videos – the new pocket camera copes better than my phone with the sound. That’s nearly it. Two more to end a fab Wednesday night out with largely the youth of Southampton… lot of students in I’m supposing.
One lad is moved to ask us what we are doing here and is quite taken by our gig activity and enthusiasm – he’s been to two gigs this year. Be careful young man…don’t grow up too soon. Enjoy yourself.
(As ever, all photos taken by me on the night. Two videos linked also this evening.)
Gigs with Ivan 
“One lad is moved to ask us what we are doing here” – damn cheek these kids! I was asked by a presumtuous youth at a gig recently if I was “with the band” !!
LikeLike