Image courtesy of Miranda Merchant.

Hit The Deck is back for it’s second year and has astounded us with it’s talent yet again! Here at SP:UI (Scorpio Promotions: Unsigned and Independent – that’s a mouthful!) we took the time to go and check out some of the best underground and up and coming bands that Hit The Deck has to offer; we were not disappointed!

Main Stage: Opening up the main stage today are Autumn In Disguise. These Scots have a big task ahead of them, as streams of people make their way to the front; finding the spot they will no likely be keeping for the remainder of the day. Luck is on their side though, as everyone jumps around and claps along to the unfamiliar but enjoyable songs. They warm up the crowd nicely, ahead of the surely hectic sets that the likes of Kids In Glass Houses and Of Mice & Men will bring later. The music Autumn In Disguise play is enjoyable, but I can’t help feeling that the set seemed a little long winded.

Up next are local Derby lads Violet, who’s short five song set keeps the pace up brilliantly. The showcase of new song Daydreamers show the large crowd what the boys are made of, and gives the fans a taste of what’s to come. Fan favourites The Brightside and Perspectives whip the audience up into a frenzy, as the lyrics to both songs are shouted back at the band with much conviction. Today was a big day for Violet, and they showed Rock City exactly why they are going to rise and rise through out the next year.

The Basement: After that performance we make our way down to The Basement to catch the end of Campus’ set. Hailing from Belgium, what we see of Campus we most definitely like! From the chugging heavy guitars down to lead singer Martijn Leenaers heading into the pit – mic stand and all – these guys are worth your time.

After a short change over the room pack together for Bath boys Decade. If you like your music heavy and your vocals catchy as hell then Decade are certainly the band for you. Lungs throughout the room are at bursting point as the band storm through a brilliant set including old favourite It’s Good To Be A Vampire as well as almost the entirety of the recent self titled ep. Stand out song for me, and surely contender for ‘catchiest song ever’ would have to be The Doctor Called (Turns Out I’m Sick As Fuck).

Next up are Essex heavyweights Shadows Chasing Ghosts, who are greeted with a (drunken) heroes welcome. They play a solid set of tracks from debut album The Golden Ratio, as well as new tracks such as recent single Lose The Attitude. The audience love every minute of it, embracing frontman Trey Tremain as he effortlessly throws himself into the awaiting arms of the crowd.

We have a short breather to take the time to really embrace the small festival city that has taken up roots on the closed off road out front. Clothing stalls full of band merch and brands such as local lads Hype and sponsors of The Basement stage Big Deal are scattered along the pavement; along with food stalls, a signing tent and dj on a raised rig – showing just how far Hit The Deck has come in the short year since it’s formation.

Stealth: We make our way around the corner to it’s sister site (or is it cousin?) Stealth to get our angry on. We enter to Silent Screams, with the cave like room ram packed from wall to wall; leaving just the pit opened up in the middle of the floor. Silent Screams put on a great performance, the melodic lilt of Tom Craig’s voice compliments the aggressive screams of James Ryan perfectly, these are definitely ones to watch out for in the near future.

Up next are genre bending London mob TRC, who fuse together chav swag with hardcore beats, thrown over an old school punk philosophy – and boy do they do it well! The crowd crush together and songs such as Define Cocky (boasting the line ‘Is it really cocky if you know that it’s true?’) and new single #TeamUK go down a storm. The tiny room becomes a mass of flailing sweaty limbs and shouted voices, making tonight’s set a definite success.

Heights are the next band to try their hand at ripping Stealth a new one. These Streets and Gold Coast, which are up for free download, curse through the room sending the packed out venue into a frenzy as vocalist Thomas Debaere leans out into the crowd and beckons for more. Words are shouted back with equal conviction by the majority of the crowd, while those who are unfamiliar will be sure to check out Heights when they get back home.

The Basement: We head back to The Basement to wait for the highly anticipated (by us at least) arrival of Don Broco. The band kick straight into Top Of The World and the crowd are loving it. These guys are the perfect climax to a day jam packed with some of the best up and coming talent the music world has to offer. New single Priorities goes down a storm (not least because of the infamous Walk) and old favourite Thug Workout breaths even more life into the already hectic crowd, who are joined by frontman Rob Damiani for a customary Wall of Death. Set closer Dreamboy ends the night on a literal high, with a never ending stream of crowd surfers hurtling through the air for the entirety of the song.

Tonight has shown that day festivals such as Hit The Deck and Slam Dunk have a place in today’s music scene; bringing together great headline acts and showing off the brilliant talent of the next generation. It seems that Hit The Deck is set to continue to grow bigger and better for years to come, we are just glad to be along for the ride.

Have your say: We caught up with a handful of gig goers to get the lowdown on how it was for you.

‘I thought it was an all round ace show, good atmosphere and a great laugh. Highlight of my day was seeing Violet play, they got the crowd going and sounded amazing – all the people in other bands were really friendly, plus I got to meet some pretty sick people. Would definitely go next year!’ – Conor Raikes

‘Hit The Deck was great! Stood up to expectations from last year. Decade and Autumn In Disguise were both awesome performances.’ – Daniel Polak

‘Basically I thought the whole atmosphere was awesome. I had never been to Hit The Deck before but I will definitely be going again! Btw Violet (from what I saw) were awesome! Even after a 5 hour journey!’ – Kyle Dowling

‘Don Broco were pretty good. Rob knows how to entertain a crowd. Despite being placed in The Basement he worked with the amount he had and dragged as many into the pit as possible – quite literally as he dived in himself a few times!‘ – Sam Revill

‘Violet were absolutely amazing! I’ve seen them before but nothing will match the atmosphere they created at Hit The Deck!’ – Robert Featherstone