Editor’s Note: Welcome to The Last Show, a new Vanyaland series where we talk to performers about their last traditional live appearance before the pandemic hit. As we slowly make our way out of this mess, and a return to stages appears to be coming (eventually), here are the stories of bands, artists, comedians and others who performed their last live gig in front of an audience around this time last year. These are their shows, their stories, their memories.
VC Pines [London, England]
Vanyaland: When and where was your last show before the pandemic?
VC Pines: The last show I played was at Colours Hoxton, London on the January 28, 2020.
Who else was on the bill?
Alfie Templeman and Olivia Dean.
What was notable about the show?
The crowd energy was wicked, the show sold out and everyone there was there simply to discover good live music. I’m not sure how many people had heard my music before but there’s definitely a load of people from that show that continue to support me.
What do you remember the most about the show?
It was the first time I’d played “Cracks” live, it hadn’t come out yet so it was good to suss the crowd out and see if they were gonna dig it.
If someone told you live music would be going away for at least the next year, what would you have thought?
Fuck. Then I’d have booked myself into an isolated studio far away and stayed there for a year.
If someone told you live music would be going away for at least the next year, what would you have done differently?
I’m not sure I’d have changed anything, you know. I think I got pretty lucky during 2020. I don’t have much to complain about. I got straight into writing and production and was then offered a publishing deal so things definitely went better than I thought they would. Being locked down made me focus on the core of what I do and helped me forget about things that really aren’t important.
What do you have coming up or coming out:
I have a new EP coming out in May and plan to release more and more music later this year, along with a handful of shows in the autumn!
Read about VC Pines’ cover of Lionel Richie’s “Hello” here, and follow him on Instagram @vcpines.