Lime Garden Live Review By Rob Johnson
Lime Garden, a self-described “wonk pop” group from Brighton, are made up of Chloe Howard on vocals and guitar, Leila Deeley also on guitar, Annabel Whittle on drums and Tippi Morgan on bass. They are currently riding the crest of a wave after the success of their 2026 sophomore record Maybe Not Tonight and a series of sold out shows.
Due to one of the worst car parking situations this side of Mad Max, we actually miss the first four songs of the set and arrive during non-album track ‘Bitter’. The band sound sharp with the crisp sonic texture of their songs somehow fitting snugly in this old working men’s club. Howard then introduces ‘Always Talking About You’ as a song about the perils of her dating life, a song with the frighteningly brilliant opening line, “I wanna f**k all my friends right here in the dark, but I’ll probably leave out that part…” – it’s woozy, irresistible fare that demonstrates the band’s ability to write a memorable hook and then hit you over the head with it.
‘I Want to Be You’, one of only three tracks from their lauded debut album, One More Thing, is up next, before an excellent rendition of early single ‘Clockwork’ has the crowd moving. ‘Maybe Not Tonight’ with its insistent, nu-rave bassline keeps the party going before ‘All Bad Parts’, one of the most purely catchy songs of the year, explodes through Crookes Social Club in all its three-minute-pop-song glory. That being said, while some of their studio stuff is a little overproduced, Lime Garden sound like a rock band when playing live. Howard even takes a moment to acknowledge the legacy of Sheffield metal heroes Def Leppard who played some of their earliest shows at this very venue.
It’s ironic that Howard sports a t-shirt that reads SCARED TO DANCE throughout the set considering how much of Lime Garden’s music is underpinned by a classic pop groove, and this is never more apparent than on ‘Love Song’, the band’s calling card and the song that inspires the biggest reaction tonight. The short and sweet set finishes up with the one-two punch of ‘Cross My Heart’ and an extended version of ’23’ and while there is no encore, this feels more like a demonstration that the band only need 14 songs to prove their mettle rather than the crowd being short-changed. Everyone leaves happy.
Given their current trajectory, this tour is probably the last time anyone will see Lime Garden in a venue of this size for a long time. This is a band that is going places. They may be scared to dance but they know how to bring the party.
Comments are closed.