Hello. At long last, here is the recap for an all-day shindig in Reading that happened on the Early May bank hol weekend!

The Shadow Shuffle, in its third annual instalment, was put on by the lovely team at Shadow Promotions, featuring a good mix of local outfits, newer bands from elsewhere and established skadjacent and punk scene stalwarts.

Previously held at The Butler, Shadow Shuffle 3 was promoted to the larger Face Bar, across two alternating stages.

Yeah, think that’s all there is to say about this. Let’s get into it!

Skinhawk

Kicking things off and getting people moshing early doors were one of many local-to-Reading acts in ‘monster punk’ band Skinhawk.

This lot delivered songs taking aim at big businesses, the woes of retail, and shitty AI “art”. Much of their output thematically explores metaphorical vampires and other paranormal stuff.

Combining a growly vocal style with skate punk sensibilities, their highly interactive energy – complete with ventures into the already plentiful crowd – set the tone for the day nicely.

Boys Ruin Everything

Next door, Boys Ruin Everything played their first ever gig.

Made up of current members of bands including Baldhead, Making Friends and Old Chase, they brought skate punk vibes while incorporating saxophone. Indeed, they sounded relatively tight while doing so, considering it was their first show together.

Short ditties about various misadventures, underpinned by zany spirit, made up the set. Here’s to a prosperous future for the project!

Xray Vez

Thirdly, there was Xray Vez, bringing indie pop tunes about romantic missteps and hope in a brutal world.

Among the set list in Reading were new(er) songs about hypochondria; and the juggalo culture spearheaded by the band Insane Clown Posse. These were joined by mainstay anthems Darren and Alkaline Trio Tattoo.

It’s great to have Véronique’s lovely act, spun off from Wonk Unit, on the blog again following the recap of Punkasaurus Wreck’d earlier this year.

Batwings

Next up was Batwings, a South London-based act belting out songs themed around resilience and redemption.

The self-described ‘melodic punk cabaret’ – usually a solo act but was joined by a friend on bass who kindly came along – stood in for W.O.R.M. on the day.

The project appeared to take inspiration from the likes of AFI and My Chemical Romance. While theatrical at times, an edge that portrayed an ongoing struggle remained prominent.

Launch Control

It was then time for another product of the Reading punk scene to take the stage, in Launch Control.

Having appeared in last year’s Shadow Shuffle as well, the hardcore/styled three-piece socio-political band appeared to relish the larger space, while jumping around on and off the stage.

Clean vocals backed by distinctive drum patterns and melodic riffs hit out at ongoing wealth inequality and malicious inaction among leaders. A delightful circle pit occurred during the set.

Hell Death Fury

Some dubby wubby goodness then arrived on stage in the form of Hell Death Fury, coming out East from Wiltshire.

Blending dub with skacore and metal influences, HDF reminded me of Hed PE in parts, while they seemed to more broadly take hints from the likes of Capdown and Sublime. The three-piece was subject to much anticipation among many in the lead-up – and I believe they matched it.

Growled and screamed vocals overlaid eccentrically fluctuating rhythms, covering topics including social media, hypercapitalism and consuming the old ‘devil’s lettuce’.

You know… ‘sinister minister’.

The ‘lean, green medic-een’.

Cannabis.

Fair Do’s

After a break involving peri peri chicken from a certain establishment that wasn’t Nando’s – apologies to the bands I’m unable to cover here – I was glad to get back in to see Fair Do’s again.

I was introduced to, and impressed by them when they came to The Ostrich, Peterborough with Redeemon around a year and a half ago. In Reading, the Manchester-based hardcore skate punkers were on fine form, delivering on melodic riffs and rapid, equally tuneful prose, along with meaty breakdowns that demanded energy from the floor.

It’s definitely worth checking this lot out if you’re into early Rise Against, A Wilhelm Scream and/or Black Dahlia Murder.

Tape It Shut

Another local band followed at Face Bar, in the form of Tape It Shut, who kept the melodic punk going while expressing frustration against austerity, social inequality and division caused by the powers that be.

Keen to get in amongst the crowd’s persistent energy, they blasted through a set of tracks that flew by. Special guests were invited on stage too to join in on the action, including Skinhawk’s vocalist, Chris from Rage DC, and Guy from the Shadow Promotions team putting the day on.

As well as participating in the previous year’s Shadow Shuffle (and probably the inaugural one as well – they do be shufflin’), Tape It Shut have been on the blog before too, with their latest album which you can see covered here!

Fidget and the Twitchers

Ska stuff resumed next, accompanied by a substantial brass section. Fidget and the Twitchers from Bristol are a troupe I’ve enjoyed seeing live for several years now, and excitingly they dedicated a part of their set to some new tracks that came across well.

All in all, the set brought their distinctive, hyperactive style of folky ska punk, with songs covering subjects including debaucherous shenanigans, shitty landlords, and self-proclaimed “aLpHa-MaLeS”.

It was also a relief to see the group there safe and sound, given it was touch and go on whether they’d make it due to issues with their van.

Redeemon

Redeemon are another skadjacent act I’ve followed for a while, yet had not written about until now. The Pookout Records stalwarts – somewhat of a successor to Beat The Red Light – blend offbeat aspects with trombone, sax and trash metal influences.

This so-called ‘Metalliska’ brand of music often stands them apart on whatever bill they’re on, and the band got the crowd moshing and skanking to the fast parts of songs.

Largely, the poetic and very (for want of a better term) ‘metal’ lyrics, were delivered with a range of clean and screamed vocals, and go deep into emotional pain, burnout and searches for hope.

The JB Conspiracy

Headlining this whole shebang were long-standing ska scene fixtures The JB Conspiracy. The London/Surrey outfit remained at the top of their game, and brought a party of keys-backed brassy goodness, serving as a more than fitting conclusion to the day.

Despite some technical difficulties during the set, the group ended up soldiering through with an enjoyable jam sesh.

Outside this, there was a great mix of newer stuff and classics enthusiastically received by the many long-time fans in attendance – particularly in the encore.

Closing Remarks

Overall, The Shadow Shuffle 3 was organised chaos personified – with an emphasis on both ‘organised‘ and ‘chaos‘, which I suppose cancels out that emphasis, but whatever.

Everything ran mostly smoothly from set to set regarding timing, with us attendees able to go between both rooms at Face Bar with ease.

It is never easy running an all-dayer with over 10 bands (SIXTEEN for this – again, apologies to the bands I’ve missed out due to either breaks or having little notes/footage to go on). But Guy, Zara, James and the rest of the Shadow/Face Bar crews nailed it, and I’ll be sure to look into attending Shuffle 4. If you’re able to get down to Reading on the 1st May 2027, I’d certainly recommend going!

Thanks very much for reading, and watching the footage compilation. Up the Posh, and up the Punx 🤘