The end of the year means different things to different people, but for me the final weeks of the year always seem to be the ones most devoid of live music. This though provides an opportunity to look back on what has happened over the past twelve months, with the second annual AlexReviewsGigs Awards of the year!
Best Big Gig of the Year Award
I make no bones about the fact that I’d much rather be in a small club seeing a band that I love than stuck in a cavernous arena watching a group of ants perform on a far distant stage, but of the four large gigs I went to in 2025 three of them were absolute crackers. Whilst it may be sacrilegious in some places to say that I found Bruce Springsteen marginally disappointing, both Pulp and Wolf Alice put on shows that managed to create a level of intimacy and performance that in any other year would have seen them walk off with this category’s number one spot. But unfortunately for them a certain band from Manchester decided 2025 was the year for their reunion.
Whilst some may say that Oasis‘ come back shows were simply nostalgia monetised, those who were there frankly didn’t care. Yes, they may have almost exclusively performed material from the band’s first two albums (and associated b-sides), but to see the reception they received was to realise how engrained those songs have become in British culture. There was no need for flashy choreography, costume changes or over the top staging, just six men on a stage performing the songs the world had waited a decade and a half to hear again. In some ways the reunion tour would prove to be a perfect finale for the band, returned to their full glory after fading at the end of their initial run, but instead it feels like a new and exciting chapter for the Gallaghers.
Read the full review of Oasis from Heaton Park here.
Best Medium Sized Gig of the Year Award
As might be expected, the medium sized gig of the year category comprises a huge number of concerts from a variety of up coming and established acts. Whilst plenty were memorable for many different reasons the sheer joy and infectious energy of The Last Dinner Party‘s performance at Sheffield’s The Octagon Centre had me grinning from ear to ear for the duration of their set as well as for days afterwards.
With a unique and iconic debut album to their name the band didn’t just stare the difficult second album curse in the eyes but forced it to do the blinking. Thankfully the new material enhanced rather than diluted their live show that they have honed since the interception and with guitarist Emily Roberts’ genius shining through even more strongly the future looks bright for the UK’s most popular baroque rockers.
Read the full review of The Last Dinner Party at The Octagon Centre here.
Best Small Gig of the Year Award
I’m going to have to make a ruling here… any gig publicised as being an album launch show has been disqualified from this category. But even with this clarification it’s still a hard pick with several artists such as Desperate Journalist, Girl Scout and Blondshell putting on great performances in venues where musicianship is far more important than the expensive production values often seen at larger venues. But after careful consideration Swim School‘s performance at Sheffield’s Sydney and Matilda takes away this prize.
Performing in the afterglow of the release of their long awaited debut album, the Edinburgh quartet performed a stunning set which showcased why they’ve developed a cult following around the country. In the two years since I’d stumbled upon them as they supported The Amazons the band have grown in confidence and showmanship and now look set to gain the rewards of years honing their craft on the UK live circuit.
Read the full review of Swim School from Sheffield’s Sydney and Matilda here.
Best Glad I got here for the Support Act of the Year Award
In a slightly unexpected turn of events, despite getting to fifty seven concerts there were only two occasions when a support act I hadn’t heard of turned out to be worth significant further investigation. Overpass (seen supporting both Wunderhorse and The Amazons) and Westside Cowboy (seen supporting Blondshell) both put in performances that saw punters grabbing their phones straight after their sets were complete to learn more about their new favourites. But it’s the latter of these groups that claim this award, with their self styled ‘Britainicana’ evidence of a band not afraid to try and create a soundscape different to anything else on the live music circuit. An early 2026 tour will see them returning to the venues they performed at in 2025, albeit this time as the headliners.
Best New Venue Visited of the Year Award
Of the thirty eight music venues I attended in 2025 twenty two were new to me – a number bloated by visits to half a dozen venues scattered around Germany. Of these Sheffield’s Sydney and Matilda established itself as a favourite to visit, with a courtyard facing bar then leading off to one of those basement venues that seems more steeped in rock and roll history than it should having only opened in 2018. Both Chloe Slater and Swim School put in performances that distracted from the minimalist feel of where they were performing.
A shout out also needs to go Heaton Park; whilst the venue itself may not have felt nice rather than exception, the organisation for Oasis‘ reunion tickets, not to mention how eighty thousand fans were looked after and got out of the venue at the end of the evening was expertly done by all involved.
The Feels Like Home Award
Hidden away amongst student housing in the Hyde Park area of Leeds, the Brudenell Social Club doesn’t jump out as natural home for live music yet somehow has built up a reputation that now stretches around the world as the place to be for intimate performances. Across 2026 its excellent line up drew me in for eight different and varied shows – from upcoming new acts (Prima Queen, Blondshell), established acts wanting to see the whites of their audience’s eyes (Pete Doherty, Lauren Mayberry, Black Honey, Mercury Rev), the ideal place to perform a much anticipated reunion show after twenty years away (Gene) or simply for gigantic global megastars to do something a little special (Bryan Adams) the Brudenell covered a huge range of bases.
The only slight frustration is why the mini-supermarket next door closes just before shows finish, thus depriving hungry gig goers the opportunity of some of their fantastic samosas for the homeward journey.
Biggest Shambles of the Year Award
With how dependent artists are on income from live shows along with how quickly word can spread of poor live performances it’s no surprise that live music has lost a certain element of spontaneity in favour of safe reproducibility. On the one hand Evan Dando treating last summer’s The Lemonheads tour as a chance to frankly do whatever he wanted on stage (often seemingly to the bewilderment of his band mates) was slightly refreshing, but sadly the execution was such that many of those in attendance who made it to the end did so in a state of utter disbelief at what was occurring in front of them.
Whilst I try to be positive when I write my reviews, my write up of seeing the Lemonheads was as scathing as I believe the show merited and has since gone viral to the extent that I reckon it has had more views than pretty much all my other articles combined – a clear sign that being nice isn’t the way to get ahead on the internet. With Evan Dando and co announcing a fresh set of live dates for 2026 there is the possibility of a follow up piece… although for now tickets remain unpurchased.
Read the full review of The Lemonheads ‘performance’ at The Ritz in Manchester here.
Strangest Interlude of the Year Award
The internet era has largely seen the death of the home made fanzine, so it felt like stepping into the past when whilst queuing for Pete Doherty‘s solo show at Leeds’ Brudenell Social club a seller came round trying to sell a collection of writings by Pete himself. Things took a slightly more bizarre twist later in the evening when Pete paused his set to try to drum up more sales, gleefully handing across copies to punters who crossed his palm with a crisp ten pound note.
All good and well for a small venue performance, but when The Libertines performed at the far larger Halifax Piece Hall later in the summer the next edition was out and ready. This time Pete decided to try to increase sales by coming out and attempting to flog issues between support acts as well as pausing his headline set to instigating sales later in the evening. And in the space of three months prices had gone from ten to twenty pounds due to ‘printing costs’. Strangely the fanzine didn’t make a return at Babyshambles end of year reunion shows.
Most Seen Act of the Year Award
It wasn’t easy to decide how to split the four acts that I’ve managed to see three times in 2026 (or five if you consider I saw Pete Doherty as a solo artist, with The Libertines, and finally Babyshambles), Ash managed the trinity of being seen as a headliner, support act and at a festival, Swim School I managed to see three times in the space of five glorious days, whilst somehow I managed to pack in two album release shows for The Last Dinner Party into the same day. Which therefore means Desperate Journalist wins out in the category due to the three gigs of theirs I went to being spread across the year and always being full headline slots (as well as two different countries), their electric post-punk delighting on each occasion.
Read the full review of Desperate Journalist‘s show at Yes, Manchester here.
The Ones not to Miss for 2026 Award
It feels like Girl Scout have been bubbling away for a few years now, feeling like a lifetime since I first stumbled on them supporting Coach Party back in 2023. With a debut album set for release in the spring and a UK headline tour in May, will 2026 be the year that the Swedish outfit break through and capitalise on their hard work? Lead single Same Kids continues to build in the direction of their early eps and shows a band growing in confidence in their song writing ability.
Read the full review of Girl Scout‘s performance from Gulliver’s in Manchester here.
And so those were the highs and lows of what 2025 offered me for live music in 2025. Already 2026 is shaping up in exciting fashion with tickets secured for plenty of iconic acts at a range of dazzling venues, so please stay tuned for more gig reviews next year! In the meantime don’t forget to subscribe to the blog or follow us on Twitter for regular gig going updates and news.
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