Latitude 2016: Methyl Ethel

It’s a flurry of excitement that greets Methyl Ethel as they take to the Sunrise Arena today. Intertwining their songs together with eerie echoes and discordant guitars, the group sew a tapestry of sound it’s impossible to tear away from.

“Hey hey hey, we’re called Methyl Ethel,” frontman Jake Webb tells the crowd for the umpteenth time mid set. “This is a big ass forest. We really like it.” Between songs, their performance seems a little eccentric - Jake’s announcement of “we might play two more if that’s okay…” has barely left his lips before he responds to himself with “great, fantastic!” - but that’s all a part of their charm.

Cut loose in the woodlands, the group are almost dizzied by their own refrains, and it’s a spectacle to behold. Savage refrains emanate from the stage as if they were always meant to be there, whilst vocals glide from a softly whispered dream to animalistic cries.

They might not be ones for conversation under the stage lights, but they certainly know how to impress.