About

Back by popular demand, Goth Legends The March Violets return to Leeds playing the Warehouse this Summer.

45 years on since they first formed Yorkshire post punk icons play a show on home turf. Following a rapturous reception to what were their first live shows in nearly a decade in 2023, plus high praise for their new studio output including 2024 album ‘Crocodile Promises’ and a reappraisal of their classic works in a series of reissues on the Jungle Records label; the cult band are clearly revelling in their recent revival and hungry to go back out to finish what they started almost half a century ago.

Especially for the occasion, The March Violets will be amply supported by Very Special Guests… HEATHEN APOSTLES, who return following rapturously received performances at Tomorrow’s Ghost Festival and with Fields of the Nephilim last Autumn. Influenced equally by Bauhaus as they are Howlin’ Wolf; messrs Mather Louth (Radio Noir) and Chopper Franklin (The Cramps, Mau Maus), with the addition of Thomas Lorioux (Kings of Nuthin’, Legendary Shack Shakers) and Luis Mascaro on violin have brewed an intoxicating sonic blend. Audiences are invited to get down early and experience the heady sounds and dark narratives of their distinctly Gothic Americana of their 7 majestic albums to date.

With their first incarnation described by Sounds magazine as “slinky, savage yet warmly delicate [with a] thirst for mystery, magic and brutal darkness”, The March Violets were a post/punk band cut from a different cloth. Founded in Leeds in 1981, from there the band would initiate an impressive career that would see them navigating all corners of the alternative scene and accrue a longstanding cult following. With their debut EP ‘Religious As Hell’ released by Andrew Eldritch (frontman of fellow Leeds scene band The Sisters of Mercy), TMV would tally a total of seven successful Indie Chart singles including “Grooving in Green”, “Snake Dance”, “Deep”, and “Walk Into The Sun”, plus their ‘Radiant Boys’ EP, at the height of their powers. With an impeccable John Peel Session also under their belts, the band released two compilation albums ‘Natural History’ (which peaked at No.3 in the Indie Charts) and ‘Electric Shades’, before signing a major deal in 1985 with London Records. Releasing the poppier charms of the hit single “Turn to the Sky”, the track would notably feature in the John Hughes movie Some Kind of Wonderful in 1987, before the band eventually split later that year.

Reforming for a one-off hometown gig two decades later, their 2007 reunion would lead to a flurry of activity in the 21st Century including festival headline slots across Europe & the USA, the brand new studio albums ‘Made Glorious’ (2013) and ‘Mortality’ (2015), plus a storming Record Store Day release in 2021’s sell-out double album: ‘Big Soul Kiss’. In 2023, The March Violets confirmed the release of their full back catalogue via Jungle Records for the first time, while releasing two new compilations ‘Play Loud Play Purple’ and ‘The Palace of Infinite Darkness’ in the run up. Taking their creative spurt into the studio, the band have also been working on new material and released a new record ‘Crocodile Promises’ in 2024, via the Metropolis Records imprint.

Now comprising founding members Rosie Garland (performer, poet and author) and Tom Ashton (Guitarist, producer and studio owner), plus Mat Thorpe, the band are intending the shows to be a celebration of The March Violets’ legacy, while also honouring the irreplaceable contribution of friend and founding member Simon Denbigh.

Most recently, the TMV have been taking their gothic majesties stateside and have completed a triumphant tour of the USA, while also impressing UK audiences last summer with major festival appearances at the likes of Rebellion Festival, Bearded Theory, and a pulverising hometown show at Leeds Warehouse.

Returning to the latter in 2026, The March Violets will be back with a vengeance for what promises to be a very special hometown show strewn with classics and new cuts, surprises and more.