Show Review: Seraphine’s Cleaver & Grandma - Gold Sounds 1/11/26
Show flyer
One of my favorite things about going out to local shows is that you truly never know what you’re going to see that night. Whether or not you know the bands you’re seeing, or if you’ve seen them already, it seems like every time you go to any of these shows, anything could happen. The cold Sunday night of January 11th was definitely one of those nights.
When I walked into Gold Sounds in Brooklyn, I felt the warm embrace of the bar, which was small but not too crowded, with a homey vibe. There was a bar with seating towards the front, to the right as you walk in. Then, it opens up to a pool table with cushioned seats on the left. The entire night, the pool table was occupied by a group. All the way in the back was the door to the venue, which was more spacious than it let on. Walls on both sides were adorned with graffiti tags, slap tags, and band stickers and logos. There was a mix of rock bands and experimental electronic musicians on the bill, which is always fun to see musicians from different genres on the same night.
Grandma - Photo by Sofia Lisena
Audience laying down during Grandma’s set - Photo by Sofia Lisena
Nothing could prepare me for the second set of the night, Grandma. They had a whole setup of synths ready to go with a sun hat on and guillotine earrings. The front of their setup was decorated with a quilt, fitting for their name. However, despite their name, their music could keep you dancing all night. Each song was built up piece by piece by them, starting with a simple beat loop and then looping and layering their vocals and synths. Grandma could really fuck it up in the club. It was one of the most interesting and enjoyable sets I’ve seen in a while. They would also provide a lot of amusing commentary throughout the set, even at one point commenting on how we should all be able to lie down during a show, inviting a lot of the audience members to lie down during their last song. Definitely a memorable show, and I will be trying to go to another Grandma set ASAP!
Grandma - Photo by Sofia Lisena
Seraphine’s Cleaver - Photo by Karen Larkin
The third and last set I saw was Seraphine’s Cleaver. I was introduced to them over the summer at a show I was commissioned to take photos of, and fell in love with their sound. They have a moody, angsty, post-punk, and dark-wave sound to them. They are woman-fronted with a woman bassist as well. The guitarist also provides vocals as well, usually in a call-and-response way. Each song they played was unreleased, and I only recognized one song from the last time I saw them. Each new song showcased their sound from their first set of singles, Preludes, but in a much more mature way. They played around with tempo, going from more slow stripped down parts in certain sounds and then going into louder, guitar-heavy sounds in others. The guitar tone is also cleaner in these songs and utilizes more delay effects. It definitely expanded on the more rhythmic elements of their melodies. Each member of the group gave so much power and passion into each song they played. They were each constantly shifting around, inviting the audience into their world. One part of the show that directly interacts with the crowd is when the lead singer writes a poem on stage with her typewriter and gives it out to an audience member. Seraphine’s Cleaver always knows how to put on a show.
Writing poem mid-set - Photo by Karen Larkin
Seraphine’s Cleaver - Photo by Karen Larkin
Both Grandma and Seraphine’s Cleaver are artists you need to go see, especially if you’re located in the Brooklyn area. Both offer such diverse sounds and performances that you won’t get anywhere else. You can follow them on Instagram to keep up with them @hi.im.grandma and @seraphinescleaver.
Poem given to audience member - Photo by Karen Larkin
