Live Review: My First Time + Theatre + Lemonsuckr - The Lexington, London 16/01/2026
My First Time, Lemonsuckr and Theatre light up the Lexington on a wet, cold evening in January to show punters why they’re the future of the industry and get the year started the right way.
Across the week, Five Day Forecast has lit up Lexington. We’ve seen bands like Truthpaste, Madra Salach and Glasshouse Red Spider Mite play in the venue and now it’s time for Lemonsuckr; a band from Brighton that a lot of people are going to be talking about in 2026 if you haven’t seen them already, and to catch them at their hometown show in Mutations at the end of last year was something of a moment. This pairing of Lemonsuckr and My First Time is uniquely gifted; two rising stars and the best bands out of Brighton and Bristol right now. The bonus of Irish outfit Theatre mean you’re in for a good night indeed.
It's a short setlist for Lemonsuckr who get the crowd started in full effect by leaping in and encouraging a mosh. Everyone who’s here to see them wants to be engaged; and we have circle pits and Macarena dancing for the opening act. Good vibes all round – and it’s the music that keeps the fans coming back for more; Lemonsuckr have a unique way of being assuredly confident in their approach and casting a spell on the audience. Almost every band member takes his time in the pit – bringing their instruments in tow – and you can tell this is a band that are appreciative of their fans. Deadletter fans will instantly recognise the mayhem that Lemonsuckr can cast over the audience – mixing in with a cowbell to encourage dancing in a way that takes risks with what the genre is known for.
These risks help Lemonsuckr stand out – Dead Disco, set opener – is my favourite; a track that promises that Disco is anything but dead and has guitairist Ollie walking through the crowd from the off. It’s Disco and it’s Dead; frontman Elliot Hall demonstrates his charisma from the off. The band encourage you to turn up the H.E.A.T. instantly with the title track of their first EP being deployed in grand fashion – and it’s a statement piece that makes everyone aware you’re watching a very special band with the makings of great things to come. Their single Instant Kings is another highlight as the band come for the immediate instant sense of gratification that comes with the online age; and feels more like a spiritual successor to the likes of Fat Dog and Getdown Services than you’d expect. 2000 Trees looks like the natural next step for a festival for them.
Theatre are next up; a quieter and more subdued shoegaze-esque outfit from Ireland who have come all the way to London for this gig. They’ve already destined for big things; like with every act here – having supported Gurriers in London in 2025. The Limerick five-piece band echo His Father’s Voice in style – and have deliberately avoided putting their music on streaming services to create an air of intrigue about their performance. You don’t do that unless you’re confident that you’re going to be good; and any doubts Theatre are, are quickly quashed. Their grunge-sounding guitars compliment the ethereal; haunting vocals that almost feel akin to being wrapped up in a ghost story.
The headliner are Bristol outfit My First Time; who I saw all the way back in Ritual Union at the start of the year on a same billing as Getdown Services and Gurriers and they’ve only gone places since. Their influences are readily apparent from the moment they set on stage – echoes of Blur and Mariana and the Diamonds with shades of The Streets guide their powerful; post-punk sound that has seen them already rise to Mad Cool festival fame – not bad in a few years as an outfit. Isaac Stroud-Allen has that confidence that is exactly what you want in a frontman; fearless and capable of guiding the crowd with his tongue in cheek; self-aware lyrics – Wind-Up Merchant, deployed mid-set as a classic, incredibly fun to sing along to: “please uncle Sam/I’ve had enough/Of Your backward views” taking potshots at the character who makes fun of you because his own life is so miserable. To see “This world’s gone crazy / this generation are lazy” on the rabble-rousing lyrics is a reminder that this band of upstarts are anything but.
It’s a perfect pairing with Man of Ill Repute, spotlighting on a similar type of laddish stereotype who admires Ben Shapiro because “he’s not afraid to stray away from all you liberal scum”. The band have this kind of magnetic pull on the audience so when Strout-Allen does his bit about getting everyone to get down on their knees for some audience participation; the entire Lexington obeys. It isn’t long before he too; heads into the pit – with bassist Naia Jones, guitarist James Mellen and drummer Jordanna Forsey dancing on strings. Their biggest influence – beyond the bands mentioned above; is perhaps IDLES in the way they interact with the crowd and what they stand for as a post-punk band, latching onto their fellow Bristolians. It’s a special kind of city where creativity thrives and we are looking very much at the next great Bristol band right here.
This Five Day Forecast always does a good job at spotlighting the next generation of ready-made superstar bands and Lemonsuckr; Theatre and My First Time are all there for the taking. Whaat a belter of a night that was; more of those please – you have three of the best bands in the industry at the moment all on the same evening.
Words by Miles Milton Jefferies
