Why Haus Show Fest Matters

WHY HAUS SHOW FEST MATTERS

The DIY underworld is still thriving

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Words & Photos by Caitlin Taylor & Eli Callingham

21 September 2026

On the 26th June 2026 James Moss of the band The Wheel 2! posted a festival lineup on Instagram. It boasted “6 stages! 3 days! 2 many bands!” but gave no location. We were on it immediately, sliding into his DMs to ask for more info and learned that it would take place across a handful of South London venues, all either belonging to people involved or public spaces.

One stage sat a short stroll away from the Millwall stadium along a route that would feel familiar to any Venue MOT or Avalon Cafe frequenter. A performance space had been created under a bridge which featured a humming generator and a backdrop of hanging vines, framed by the arch of the bridge itself.

There was no doorman here, no one collecting tickets or limiting numbers, and so the crowd spilled out onto the road and across the street. Occasionally a delivery driver would speed by on a moped or kids would come by on their bikes, curious as to what all the noise was about.

We arrived here first on Saturday evening to catch the enigmatic half band/half performance troupe Dura Mater. Using the most of the space they were given, they were accompanied by dancers holding puppets who provided multiple costume changes. An issue with the generator resulted in a brief acoustic set, but at no point did the energy drop. They make music to dance to, with catchy beats and playful lyrics that will have you nodding along.

Afterwards we wormed our way through Bermondsey backstreets, guided by an address we’d received through DM and the distant sound of heavy guitars, ending up in the carpark of a warehouse complex littered with art school graduates and cans of beer. Some didn’t even seem to be there for the music, with a couple of groups sitting in exactly the same place from when we arrived to when we left. The set-up felt the most official of the ones we saw, with dedicated individuals manning the door and constructed bar respectively.

This is where we caught the majority of the bands we managed to see, spending the entirety of our Saturday evening. First up was the tailend of Omertà, an abrasive band who put the noise in noise rock. We barely managed to get a glimpse as the living space was packed shoulder-to-shoulder (and remained so for the majority of the night).

Next was the effervescent Platonica Erotica. She sat solo on stage in a white nightgown with flowing hair, resembling a Victorian water nymph. Full of emotion, she moved from behind the keyboard to sprawling herself on the floor, keeping the attention of an enthralled crowd.

Trio gegenpress were recommended to us by Silkarmour back in March, where he described them as “a very powerful noise rock band”. They’re a formidable live act, a sentiment that appeared to be shared by the crowd as we heard whispers of how excited people were for their set long before they took to the stage. Despite switching things up by having a violin and cello string duo accompany them on stage, their sound was no less unforgiving with the strings adding extra bed and dynamics for breakdowns and quieter interludes.

A mosh pit formed and as we were positioned to the front, we had to physically brace our bodies to prevent people falling on top of the sound guy who sat crouched to our right. This resulted in multiple crushed toes and beer soaked clothing but those are the battlescars that gigs like this bring.

Adjourning outside for a cigarette – the other stages had concluded by this time, now in the throngs of night the warehouse illuminated as a beacon for all attendees to come through. The numbers had grown.

A large crowd formed to see James Moss’s own band, the wheel 2! and we ended up squished against the sofa, with someone even climbing on top of the fridge to get a better look.

The rest of the night went by in a blur, as the beers kept flowing and attendees ebbed and flowed. After nipping out for some fresh air and hearing a car windscreen get smashed, we decided it was time to turn in for the night, aware there was another day of music to follow.

Due to prior commitments, we only managed to catch the latter end of Sunday and arrived once again under the bridge to quickly realise they were running almost an hour late. This meant we managed to catch Rhizocorp deliver an unexpected “wyrd disco” set. It was almost like being transported to a club in a sci-fi film and definitely something we’d look to see again in the future.

Following was lttl mort, an act we missed during The Great Escape this year but who our friends had raved about. The solo project of Opus Kink’s Jazz Pope, with Velvetine‘s Nate Wicks on drums. Pope’s energy as he jumped around, fuelled on by the return of energy he was receiving from the crowd, made this feel worthy of a headline set.

It was an intense couple of days, and we could only imagine how exhausted we’d been if we did all 3 – but that didn’t stop us wishing that we did. It felt like a truly special weekend, full of “you had to be there” moments and exciting performances.

In the words of Platonica Erotica, who later posted this to her Instagram page:

“I wanted to PREACH a little about just how alive these performances felt in a space full of engaged people sharing art with each other. Because it can feel so much like a rat race of who’s playing what when and why, and it’s so deeply BORING and it’s sure not for our benefit! I think I am bowled over by the fact that we can, in fact, be extremely ROCK AND ROLL without the cloutmoneyhandoffate that we’ve been told will validate us as artists by an industry famous for exploiting artists. And we fucking well should!”

There’s been a lot of debate over what London’s underground scene even is anymore, with some claiming there isn’t one. When the “Windmill Scene” is still being touted as the cutting edge of what the capital has to offer, things can start to feel a little tired. But what Moss (and all the artists/promoters) proved this weekend is that the DIY underworld is still thriving.

Everything is expensive now and it often feels like music is no longer viable as a career to those without mummy and daddy’s money. The idea that if you’re simply passionate and in touch with your community, it’s possible to construct a 3 day festival full of some of the best talent around is something that should motivate all of us in the grassroots music scene to keep trying. If we’re all being forced to pay hundreds more in rent than we really should each month, why not use your space as a festival stage once a year? It’s the definition of DIY.