Living It Up With The Invention – Independent Venue Week 2026
Image credit: @theinventionband on Instagram.
January may be a bleak month for most, but the highlight definitely comes in the form of Independent Venue Week. It’s the perfect opportunity to show love to local spaces and support the artists. Oporto Bar exemplifies the values of independent venue week, with some of Leeds’ finest Guinness, may I add! Oporto hosted an all-Leeds trio of bands affair, celebrating the continued return of The Invention after a long hiatus in between their first and second albums.
First to the stage in this trio of Leeds bands were alternative indie rock band, Sisterly. A band that features dual frontmen who seamlessly switch roles throughout each track, coming together to produce a raspy and higher pitched contrasting chorus. Not only do they compliment each other vocally, it could be seen throughout the set that they drew upon a huge variety of influences to create their distinct sound. Ranging from metal-style vocal screams, to Courteeners guitar riffs in ‘Big Wheel’, and punkier riffs in ‘Sunday Dress’, Sisterly’s influences patchwork their own unique music. Another important aspect of Independent Venue Week is the fostering of community amongst live music which was evidenced across each set as loyal fans danced and sung to every word. Sisterly closed their set with ‘End Of The World’ and got the fans involved by pausing every time the crowd sang “except for me.”
Next up were The Bermudas who are very new to the scene, but you definitely need to get to know. These guys were right up my street with classic indie rock and Britpop influences. With scratchy vocals, simple chord formulae and colossal drums they made huge reverberating waves throughout the room. These are the kind of tracks you would listen to to get you pumped up and the crowd already knew every word despite all but one of their original tracks being unreleased! They also drew from fellow bands in the indie scene with upbeat melodies reminiscent of The Kairos and early Arctic Monkeys sounds in ‘Overthrown’ and ‘Lately’. I wouldn’t be a diehard Oasis fan if I didn’t mention their brilliant cover of ‘Some Might Say’ which was incredible and definitely won me over as a new fan of theirs!
To close the night, The Invention came in with gospel dreamy sounds which felt appropriate given the past half a year had been their epic comeback to music. The music made you feel as if they were descending onto the stage. Opening with ‘Look Alive’ was the way to grab attention and command the room. The Invention were truly back, and it was like they had never left. Their set featured a complete ratio of their debut album tracks released all the way back in 2007 and the other half their progressive indie-dance electro-pop sophomore album, ‘Tomorrow Took Everything’ (2025). I never witnessed as much dancing as I did that night, collectively from the crowd and from the frontman, as everyone really felt the grooves and energy.
Each track showed how The Invention have evolved over this time from the classic indie sounds characterised by slide guitars and bouncing drum rhythms to the dominating electronic sounds prominent in their newer material. Emotions ran higher in songs such as ‘A Minute Here’ and ‘Day Follows Night’ as the vocals reached impressive heights and jangly guitar riffs danced throughout the crowd. You could feel the appreciation from the fans who made it clear how grateful they were to be watching The Invention again. A standout moment in the set was when they played ‘Silence Breaks’ featuring moving guitar riffs and anthemic choruses as vocals intertwined over layered guitar riffs and dramatic drumming.
The use of cymbal melodies in the set was an effective feature and built the foundation for smooth transitions in the bridges such as in ‘Sandiacre’ and provided the background for a shoegaze style transition into their final track ‘Voltage’ which made the fans go electric! Everyone immediately shot up onto the seats lining the sides of the room and danced around as if there was no risk of them falling at all! This was a brilliant anthem to end the set as everyone’s joy radiated and shone brighter than any of the strobe lights. It’s wonderful to see The Invention are back after so many years and each gig they’ve done in Leeds since their return has been a huge success and tonight was no different.
Independent Venue Week always brings communities together to support local acts and spaces, and it was a special night to see The Invention play for so many adoring fans with a new album full of new electronic indie anthems.
Words by Ruby Macklin