The Pseudo Raft Foundation summon a fever dream of sound at YES Basement
The Manchester psych-rock outfit deliver a set that’s equal parts hypnotic and unhinged, proving that live music can still be an out of body experience.
Manchester’s underground scene is a breeding ground for the strange and spectacular, and The Pseudo Raft Foundation are fast becoming one of its most intriguing exports. At YES Basement, they didn’t just play a gig – they conjured an atmosphere, bending time and sound into something otherworldly.
Following on from the perfect accompanying acts of Scatter Child and Flat Stanley through two dynamic sets. The crowd pushed forwards as close to the stage as the band stepped on to run their sound check. The excitement in the room was palpable.
From the moment they stepped onstage, the five-piece had the crowd locked in a trance. Opening with a cover of John Barleycorn, sung by Jonny Blackburn, a slow burner that shapeshifted from delicate folk into something denser and more immersive, they made it clear this wasn’t going to be a straightforward ride.
Grace McVeigh (vocal, guitar) frolicked and sauntered around the stage, floating and swaying in time to the music. Passion filled the room, as the audience applauded moving into the first track Grace would perform.
The band was so tight. Feeding off the energy of the others and the audience, they indulged themselves on the raw atmosphere alone.
The venues low ceilings and dim lights worked in their favour, heightening the sense of intimacy and intensity. Geordie a traditional Scottish folk song, transformed into their whimsical, psychedelic style, was striking and soulful creating a dense atmosphere. The audience lightly swayed with the swirling soundscape, bodies moving as if guided by some unseen force,
The band infinity charming, cracked witty jokes making themselves and the audience chuckle. Letters In The Stream was a standout, its jagged rhythms and hypnotic melodies pulled the crowd deeper into their orbit. The bassline was groovy dancing between layers of reverb soaked- guitars and heavy strums of an acoustic.
By the time we reached closer Mr Mean the band has entrapped the audience into their performance – they invited for the audience to get lost in the noise. A perfect send off as sound danced of the walls and guided us towards the final lingering note before gorging on the applause that followed. The excited chatter of people who bore witness showed the passion that exuded from that stage that night.
The Pseudo Raft Foundation aren’t here to deliver polished, radio-friendly psych-rock. They’re here to unsettle, to transport, to remind you that live music at its best isn’t just heard- it’s felt, and at YES Basement, everyone in the room felt it.