Live Review: Acres - Leeds - The Razor's Edge

Live Gallery: Acres – The Key Club, Leeds

Live Review: Acres – The Key Club, Leeds

15th October 2026
Support: Wayside and Lifespark
Words & Photos: Martin Hingley

Leeds welcomes Portsmouth rockers Acres for the second night of The Host tour as they kick off their winter run of shows.

First up are German metalcore outfit Lifespark, bringing their riff-driven blend of post-hardcore and pop to the UK for only the second time. Using Wheatus’Teenage Dirtbag to introduce themselves, the band take to the stage with their 2025 release Bloom, its pulsing intro and catchy chorus setting the tone. They bring a fresh approach to post-hardcore, throwing in a rousing cover of Natasha Bedingfield’s Unwrittenbefore vocalist David Lukacs introduces the next song as being by the best boyband of all time. The band then put their own spin on Take That’s Patience. Lifespark provide a fun and energetic start to the night.

Unfortunately, What Lies Below have to announce that they can’t perform due to technical issues with their computer.

Melbourne post-grunge trio Wayside are a welcome addition for a crowd that’s been waiting a while to hear some live music. Bathed in blue light and surrounded by fog, the band create an ethereal atmosphere as they move through a melodic and intricate set. Tracks such as Room 22 and Parallax Error showcase their sound, keeping the audience engaged despite the earlier delay.

With three albums behind them, Acres have become a staple of the UK post-hardcore scene. Opening with three tracks from their latest release, The Host, they get straight down to business as the thumping beats of Not So Different hit the crowd. The pits open early, and the band clearly thrive on seeing fans enjoying themselves.

Although Acres have explored different sounds throughout their nearly fifteen year career, tonight’s set focuses on their more recent post-hardcore era. The songs have been worked on with The Plot In You frontman Landon Tewers as producer, and you can certainly hear his influence in their sound. Halfway through, they turn to their previous album with the punchier Into Flames and Nothing. For me, this is where the band really excel, with vocalist Ben Lumber showcasing just how versatile his voice can be. That range comes through again later in the set with the slower, more ballad-like Around Again.

One of the night’s standout tracks is Staring At The Sun, which has everything you’d want from a song in this genre, from catchy sing-along sections and heavy breakdowns to raw emotion and more fantastic screams from Ben. The band’s energy and musicianship are impressive throughout, although I’d have liked to see the drum kit pushed further back on stage to give the other members more room to move around.

As the evening comes to a close, Acres throw it back a couple of years with Lost, from their EP What It’s Like To Feel Worthless, which goes down a storm with the crowd.

From pulsing lights and thumping riffs to great vocals and through-the-roof energy, Acres have put on one heck of a show tonight. I’d love to see what they could do with a bigger stage and production.