Thistle Capture the Chaos and Catharsis of Modern Alt-Rock [07.05.26]

Photography: Lili Mansoury

Writing: Lili Mansoury

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Thistle performing at Clwb Ifor Bach [Photo Credit: Lili Mansoury/FOCUSED Magazine]

Fresh off the launch of their spring tour in the heart of Wales, Thistle are proving themselves to be far more tha

n just another rising alternative band. Made up of Cameron (lead vocals and guitar), Lewis (drums), and Judwyn (vocals and bass), the Northamptonshire three-piece carry an indie-punk ferocity that instantly brings to mind the raw distortion and melodic grit of ‘90s alt-rock. Comparisons to Nirvana feel unavoidable at first, but it doesn’t take long before Thistle carve out something that feels completely their own.

With their new EP Backflip arriving on 29 May, the trio kicked off their seven-date tour in Cardiff alongside support acts Maeve Cymru and Ugly Ozo, setting the tone for what already feels like a huge moment for the band. They’ll also be joining Citizen on selected UK dates later this year.

Opening the night, Maeve Cymru wasted no time pulling the crowd in. Their frontman threw himself straight into the audience, weaving through people while delivering hypnotic, emotionally charged tracks with total commitment. Beyond the music, everything about the band felt carefully considered without seeming overdone. Their chemistry on stage was effortless, the kind that can’t really be faked. ‘Sacrifice’ stood out in particular, balancing sharp melodies with immersive, almost trance-like instrumentation that completely filled the room.

Ugly Ozo followed with a set that balanced chaos and control in equal measure. Their vocals cut sharply through pounding rhythms and emotionally charged lyrics exploring fear, heartbreak, and relationships. There’s a self-awareness running through the band that keeps their set from feeling overly heavy, while their understated, effortlessly cool style added even more personality to the performance.

Thistle performing at Clwb Ifor Bach [Photo Credit: Lili Mansoury/FOCUSED Magazine]

Then came Thistle, and calling them simply a rock band somehow feels like underselling it. Every part of their performance felt completely alive, from the way they moved around the stage to the sheer force behind the vocals. Even technical issues became part of the experience, handled with enough humour and charm that the crowd only seemed to warm to them more.

There’s this idea that bands somehow need four members to sound “complete”, but Thistle completely tear that apart. The three-piece setup feels so natural that you stop thinking about it almost immediately. They play with the kind of instinctive understanding that only comes from musicians who genuinely know each other inside out, and the result is a sound far bigger than you’d expect from three people on stage.

Their set moved through waves of emotionally charged alt-rock, the sort of music that makes you want to walk through empty streets at midnight with headphones on just to sit in the feeling a bit longer. That’s probably Thistle’s biggest strength, they place you directly inside their own emotions through their craft.

The setlist itself was paced brilliantly. Explosive moments of distortion and pounding percussion would give way to quieter, more reflective sections, letting the atmosphere settle before building everything back up again. Nothing felt repetitive or dragged out. Some tracks arrived with frantic, almost chaotic energy built for shouting every lyric back at the stage, while others carried a softer sadness that lingered long after they ended. Thistle seem to understand exactly when to push everything to its limit and when to pull back just enough to let the emotion underneath really hit.

Thistle performing at Clwb Ifor Bach [Photo Credit: Lili Mansoury/FOCUSED Magazine]

A lot of people will probably label them 'shoegaze' and leave it at that, but that description feels far too narrow. There are traces of ‘80s and ‘90s alternative rock throughout their sound, sure, but there’s something sharper and far more personal sitting underneath it all. By the end of the night, the crowd were fully absorbed, headbanging through every chorus and hanging onto every word.

By the time the set ended, the room felt strangely heavy, not because the performance was bleak, but because Thistle are incredibly good at making people feel something real. Once their music gets under your skin, it’s difficult to want to listen to anything else.

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Photography & Text Copyright 2026 © Lili Mansoury/FOCUSED Magazine.