I arrived at the Corporation Nightclub in Sheffield on a pleasant sunny Friday evening just before 7 pm. The venue was a little quiet, however, there was a nice group of chaps outside whom were having a conversation, about an event held at the Corporation earlier that week. I also found out that tonight’s show would be in room three.
Room three is a nice smaller room, with a good high stage, and enough capacity to hold a nice intimate show. However, my only complaint is that I found the lighting very poor and extremely backlit, I had someone saying it was rather blinding. I have seen shows in this room where the lighting was much better. Anyway, let’s put aside the only negative aspect of the evening and concentrate on what a great night this was.
Who are Soap Girls?
They are two French-born sisters Millie and Mie, as children they were street performers, who sang and sold homemade bars of soap to tourists—donating the proceeds to hospitals. That’s how the band got their name.
What about their music?
The Soap Girls’ music is a fusion of New Wave/Post Punk, with a slashing of Grunge and Grind Core. Delivered so that it hits you hard, especially when coming at you live.
Instrumentally, Millie’s Bass and vocals are influenced by Napalm Death and L7, and Mie’s powerful guitar riffs, are punk-influenced.
How did the Show go?
There was a friendly and pleasant vibe in the room, drinks were flowing, and people were having a preshow chat, as the venue slowly began to fill to nearly capacity. There were two support acts, The 39th Gate of hell, and X2 FAST.
The 39th Gate of hell came on stage around 7.30. They are an alternative rock/punk rock band based in Sheffield. Their performance was full of energy, and the band was very charismatic. The lead vocalist was captivating, pulling poses and using the stage well. The guitar playing and drums were great and gelled together to create a great wall of sound. My favorite song was Wiggle, the band had great fun playing it, and the audience loved it too.
Next up was X2 FAST, a five-piece band that played a nice set of punk rock covers, and originals. They had a great time on stage and were well-received by the audience. The stand-out performance song was All Alone in the Dark, which shows that the band can write good music, I think they need to grow, and find their feet a little. It was nice to see the headliners, and venue supporting younger bands.
The Soap Girls came on stage around 9ish and played through a ripping set of songs, containing some top-quality rock/punk classics. The drummer did a great job keeping time and looked to be enjoying himself, whilst Millie and Mie used the stage well, with Millie pulling insane contortions whilst playing bass, and Mie jumping around, smiling, and having great fun playing guitar. Later stating:
“Tonight, we played the Corporation we had an amazing night it was fun, crazy, wild and we look forward to coming back again”.
Millie and Mie looked great with big hair, wonderful platform knee-length boots, glitter makeup, and long coats with KISS on them, their image goes well with the type of music they perform.
The ladies have plenty to say and their songs such as “ENEMY” and “IN MY SKIN carry messages of anti-war profiteering, and Taboo associated with women’s breasts and nipples. I admire them for their no-nonsense approach. Mie shows her top half during “IN MY SKIN” and their addressing the audience against war in “ENEMY” shows that they are willing to act and not just talk.
Another standout song was “BREATH” which has a very nice catchy riff throughout, smooth vocals, and great harmonics, the song also went down well with their fans. I also enjoyed “PSYCHO” with the heavy grindcore influence vocal line, which makes this song a bit different, from the usual punk/rock sound.
The overall evening was great, the support bands performed well, and “The Soap Girls” were excellent, they put on a great show full of crazy fun antics which the audience loved. I would recommend going to see them on the current tour and giving them some well-deserved support. It’s great to see Lady fronted bands performing, in a very male-dominated music scene.
