For music fans, Brighton in May means one thing: The Great Escape. Since launching in 2006, the festival has built a reputation as one of the world’s most important showcases for emerging talent, turning the city’s pubs, clubs, theatres and seafront venues into a sprawling celebration of new music. It brings together hundreds of artists from across the globe, giving audiences the chance to discover tomorrow’s headline acts before the rest of the world catches on.

Over the years, The Great Escape has developed an impressive track record for spotting future stars. Artists including Charli XCX, The 1975, Adele, The Vampire Weekend and Bon Iver all appeared at the festival before going on to achieve global success, while countless others have used Brighton as a launchpad to bigger stages and wider audiences. That sense of discovery remains at the heart of the event and is a huge part of its appeal.

This year’s festival once again transformed Brighton into a giant musical playground, with every corner of the city buzzing from lunchtime until the early hours. Whether you arrived armed with a carefully planned schedule or simply followed the sound of the next promising act, The Great Escape offered plenty of opportunities to stumble across something special.

We kicked off our Great Escape weekend at The Deep End, the festival’s temporary beachfront venue which once again proved to be one of the most talked about locations on the programme. Sitting right on Brighton seafront, the purpose built space offered the perfect setting for an evening of discovery, with anticipation building throughout the day for a headline set that many festival-goers had circled on their schedules weeks in advance.

That excitement was impossible to miss. Headliners Angine de Poitrine were making their first ever appearance at a UK festival and queues for The Deep End began forming several hours before they were due on stage. As the evening progressed, the crowd only continued to grow, highlighting just how much buzz surrounded the band’s long awaited UK debut.

Before the headline act arrived, the audience was treated to a pair of impressive support performances. First up were Girl in the Year Above, the emerging Irish Cornish group whose sound combines atmospheric Celtic storytelling with a fierce and emotionally charged indie rock edge. Their set struck a fine balance between haunting melodies and powerful crescendos, immediately capturing the attention of the steadily growing crowd.

Next came Ribbon Skirt, the acclaimed Anishinaabe led indie rock and post punk duo from Montreal. Bringing a darker and more urgent energy to the stage, they delivered a confident performance packed with driving rhythms and raw emotion. Their powerful stage presence ensured the audience remained fully engaged and helped maintain the momentum as The Deep End filled to capacity ahead of the evening’s much anticipated headline performance.

By the time Angine de Poitrine took to the stage, The Deep End was absolutely packed. Every available space inside the tent had been claimed and those who had joined the queue hours earlier were rewarded with one of the most memorable performances of the weekend.

The Quebec duo’s rise has been remarkably rapid. Despite playing highly technical instrumental math rock with no lyrics whatsoever, Angine de Poitrine have built a devoted global following thanks to their unique sound and distinctive visual identity. Wearing their trademark cartoonish papier mâché masks and matching black and white polka dot suits, the pair cut an instantly recognisable figure as they emerged to a huge reception from the Brighton crowd.

What followed was one of the most unusual sights of the festival. Although none of the songs featured any words, audience members somehow managed to sing along throughout the set, mimicking the complex rhythms, melodies and patterns with their own voices. It created an atmosphere that felt part gig and part communal celebration, with fans demonstrating just how familiar they had become with the duo’s intricate catalogue.

The connection between band and audience extended beyond the music. Across the tent, hundreds of fans could be seen holding their hands in the shape of a triangle while bobbing up and down in unison, faithfully recreating the signature dance move performed by the two musicians on stage. It was a surreal yet strangely heartwarming spectacle that perfectly captured the sense of community that has formed around the group in such a short space of time.

Musically, the performance was every bit as impressive as expected. Switching effortlessly between a double necked guitar and a thunderous drum kit, the duo delivered a masterclass in precision, weaving together dizzying microtonal passages and impossibly tight rhythmic patterns. For a band making their UK festival debut, it felt less like an introduction and more like the arrival of an act already destined for much bigger stages.