PLATFORMING INDEPENDENT ARTISTS BRICK BY BRICK: YOUTH SWARM TO THE BRICKYARD FOR APHID

LIVE REVIEW | APHID w/ Ziplok and Dejected | THE BRICKYARD, CARLISLE | 21st August 2026 by Jasmin Savage

On Friday, The Brickyard hosted three local upcoming hard rock and metal artists in the foundations of their music careers. I ventured to ‘Cumbria’s longest running independent live music venue’ to support local artists and catch a glimpse into the future of music culture in the North West.

Kicking things off at 7:30pm was youth metal band Ziplok. This was actually their very first official gig, but you’d have never been able to tell. Vocalist George has the ‘fry scream’ vocal technique aced, and being on stage seemed like it came naturally to him, encouraging the crowd to freely mosh and headbang. It quickly became apparent to me that I was one of the oldest people there, but seeing a room of young alternative fans really embrace the music and express themselves freely was a truly special moment. 

Ziplok opened their set with ‘Surveillance Of Self’, which was the only original that they played. Afterwards, their set consisted of several hard rock covers: beginning with gritty yet melodic shoegaze inspired elements of ‘Be Quiet And Drive’ by Deftones and ‘Head In The Ceiling Fan’ by Title Fight; developing into sludgier metal with tracks from Crowbar and Electric Wizard. However, it didn’t feel like the band were covering the songs in a usual sense, but rather developing their own versions that stuck to their heavier sound. By doing this, Ziplok have already established their intentions with music right from their first performance.

ZIPLOK – SETLIST

1. Surveillance Of Self
2. I Hate It Too (Hum cover)
3. Be Quiet And Drive (Deftones cover)
4. Head In The Ceiling Fan (Title Fight cover)
5. And The Sunlight Spoke (Concealer cover)
6. Repulsive In Its Splendid Beauty (Crowbar cover)
7. Vinnum Sabbathi (Electric Wizard cover)
8. Funeralopolis (Electric Wizard cover)

Next on the bill, Dejected made their Brickyard debut around 8:30pm. I previously watched the Whitehaven based band perform at Kendal Calling on the Roots stage at the beginning of August, so going into this I already knew I would enjoy their set – but I underestimated the difference that an indoor venue stage would make. Their set at the festival was great, but The Brickyard elevated the experience massively.

Alternative fusions of nu metal and post-hardcore rock filled Dejected’s 8 song set. From the moment that the band stepped on stage, they had a clear mission – get the people moving. Frontman James Pattinson rolled in with a confident stride, leaving no space unoccupied. He began by shouting “BRICKYARD” before continuing into the opening lyrics of ‘Bulls On The Parade’ by Rage Against The Machine. If I didn’t already know the song, I’d have believed it was an original.

Dejected continued with an original song ‘Liberty’, which already had people singing along despite being currently unreleased; followed by a cover of George Michael’s ‘Faith’ (the Limp Bizkit version, of course). For this song, James passed the mic over to guitarist Lewis Poole, who really nailed both the nasally and aggressive lines of the song.

More originals of ‘Shadows’ and ‘What You Said’ were supported with well executed covers. A gritty cover of Basement’s ‘Covet’ held the crowd’s full attention, leading perfectly into a strong finale with their debut single ‘Itch’. Since hearing this song at Kendal Calling, it has seeped its way into the ridges of my brain. As they played, I could feel myself singing along despite never intentionally learning the lyrics, and headbanging until my neck was sore. The crowd clearly had the same idea, with a sea of heads all bopping in unison.

DEJECTED – SETLIST

1. Bulls On The Parade (Rage Against The Machine cover)
2. Liberty
3. Echoes (Sundazer cover)
4. Faith (Limp Bizkit cover, originally George Michael)
5. What You Said
6. Shadows
7. Covet (Basement cover)
8. Itch

Finally, Carlisle band Aphid took the stage just after 9:30pm. Based on the previous two bands, I was expecting their music to sound much heavier. That’s not to say that they weren’t good, of course. At such a young age, the band have recently supported Mouth Culture for their show at The Brickyard, as well as playing plenty of supporting shows dotted around the local area. This, however, marks their first headline appearance – a huge stepping stone into the evolution of the band.

Aphid had a rather mysterious aura around them: no introduction, little crowd interaction, just knuckling down on the music. Surprisingly, this seemed to work well with their overall dynamic; however, it did become rather difficult to distinguish between the songs at times. Their set began with a 7 minute cover of Hum‘s ‘Isle Of The Cheetah‘, which created this sense of catharsis that had the crowd in a fluid freestyle of movement. Pumping drums and scratchy guitars from ‘Interplanetary Doom‘ and ‘A Quiet Room For Violent Thoughts‘ brought an edge to their performance, which was complimented with a gritty cover of ‘Hummer‘ by The Smashing Pumpkins. Improvised interludes ‘For Neil‘ transitioned the tracks seamlessly.

Their closing song, ‘Lilium Gazed At The Stars‘ was a personal favourite of mine. The distorted melodies and muffled vocals reminded me of My Bloody Valentine, but not like they were trying to copy the band. Applying elements from the aforementioned artists whilst also incorporating their own style and techniques made for an impressive end to the night.

SETLIST

1. Isle Of The Cheetah (Hum cover)
2. Interplanetary Doom 
3. Spoilt
4. For Neil (1) Interlude
5. Wonton
6. Hummer (The Smashing Pumpkins cover)
7. For Neil (2) Interlude
8. Gnaw
9. A Quiet Room For Violent Thoughts
10.  Unnamed
11. Mint Black Peppermint
12. Lithium Gazed At The Stars