KEYSIDE: LIVERPOOL’S NEXT WAVE HITS CARDIFF

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Written by Lili Mansoury

Keyside performing at The Globe [Photo Credit: Lili Mansoury/FOCUSED Magazine]

KEYSIDE are one of those bands that seem to arrive with momentum already attached. Formed in 2022, the Liverpool-based four-piece fronted by Dani-Lee Parker alongside lead guitarist Ben Cassidy, bassist Max Gibson, and drummer Oisin McAvoy make good feeling jangle-indie-rock with a sound that still carries that unmistakable Scouser bite. They have already been championed by BBC Radio 1, BBC 6 Music and BBC Introducing, which feels about right for a band that already sounds bigger than the rooms they play in.

Keyside have already turned hometown buzz into proper results, including sold-out shows at Liverpool’s Arts Club Loft in 2024 and Liverpool’s O2 Academy as apart of their 2025 UK tour. Festival and support-slot appearances have helped push them beyond the usual ‘one to watch’ label. They are at the point where they have stopped feeling like a local secret and started looking like a real up-coming force.

Keyside performing at The Globe [Photo Credit: Lili Mansoury/FOCUSED Magazine]

Right now, they are on the road with The Clause as main support on the UK tour dates listed through March-April 2026, which is a decent snapshot of where they sit at the moment: still rising, but trusted to hold their own in front of bigger crowds. For a band that formed only four years ago, that is a seriously good run already

Last night, supporting The Clause on 9 April, Keyside gave a set that felt like a proper snapshot of where they are right now, The crowd got the favourites - ‘Michael (What’s Your Call?)’. ‘Nikita’ and “Angeline”. All of which landed like songs the audience had already claimed as their own. But the real lift came from the newer material. ‘Rock My Love’, their latest release, sat comfortably alongside the older tracks, while unreleased ‘Lemon & Lime’ offered a glimpse of what is still to come, giving the room that very good feeling of hearing something before everyone else does. It was the kind of set that reminded you why support slots matter - it leaves you wanting more. Lucky for us, their new single ‘Lemon & Lime’ releases 22 April!