Angine de Poitrine kicked off the opening night of The Great Escape 2026 with an in-demand headline set at the opening party presented by NME.
Stepping in to play the TGE Beach site tent after The Kooks were forced to pull out due to injury, the buzzy Canadian math-rock duo capped off the first night of the legendary Brighton new music showcase festival on Wednesday, May 13.
With a huge crowd gathering during the opening set from buzzy Irish/Cornish indie outfit Girl In The Year Above – fresh from their celebrated Massive Attack cover on the soundtrack to Peaky Blinders: The Immortal Man – the venue was deemed full to capacity by the time Montreal grunge band Ribbon Skirt took to the stage.
Girl in the Year Above being SUPERB as always. Spellbinding set. pic.twitter.com/iKExbR6CR2
— Milo (@Milo_AFC) May 13, 2026
A long queue stretched out of the tent as fans braved the weather to gain entry to the venue, with the golden glowing sunset and torrential rain matching Ribbon Skirt’s blend of pop-leaning desert rock met with a dark gothic shadow.
The packed tent keenly received cuts from their 2025 debut album ‘Bite Down’ and the EP ‘PENSACOLA’, as they paid tribute to their fellow Canadians and tonight’s headliners throughout their animated performance, complete with Tashiina Buswa’s howling banshee scream. A voiceover over the PA offered that “we have so much to give and we have the responsibility to give”, but it felt like Ribbon Skirt left it all on the stage.
The tent was packed to capacity with a one-in-one-out queuing system and fans gathering outside to catch a glimpse as Angine de Poitrine took to the stage.
Arguably the most hyped act of the week in midst of a sold-out UK and European tour after the Dave Grohl-approved band’s 2026 KEXP live session went viral and amassed millions of views as well as inspiring countless memes, the anonymous alien alter-ego duo of guitarist Khn de Poitrine and drummer Klek de Poitrine performed in their now iconic papier-mâché masks with giant floppy noses, black-and-white polka dot costumes and flashing LED lights, inspiring a cult devotion as their fans raised triangle symbols with their hands.
Rocking through cuts from 2024 debut ‘Vol. 1’ and the recent acclaimed ‘Vol II’, the duo delivered an absurd but enthralling spectacle, with their microtonal song structures defying all convention but still inspiring mass sing-alongs to riffs and feral reactions to the likes of ‘Fabienk’, ‘Sarniez’, ‘Sherpa’ and ‘Mata Zyklek’.
Naturally, stage banter only came in the form of robotic alien growls, with the duo letting their sound do the talking, one that lands somewhere between the menace of Primus and the intricacy of Battles. The first major set of The Great Escape 2026 was one so engrossing, it’ll be hard to top.
The Great Escape continues till Saturday May 16 with performances from rising acts including Madra Salach, Villanelle, Westside Cowboy, The Itch and Blue Bendy, as well as appearances from The Lottery Winners, Peaches, Heartworms and Working Men’s Club.
Mandy, Indiana, Girl Scout, Chanpan and Any Young Mechanic will be performing on the NME stage at The Old Market on Friday May 15. Check out our NME 100 gig guide: The Great Escape edition, which collects artists on our annual NME 100 list, past and present, who are playing Brighton this week.
Yesterday also saw The Great Escape offer a statement of condolence after the deaths of three women in an incident off the coast of Brighton.