After five days of sounds from around the world at SXSW London, we can think of few acts less apt to close out the music programme than Shame. The group’s show at Shoreditch’s Village Underground on Friday (June 5) was an ode to a home-grown story, and just what can be achieved by group of mates who simply love creating together.
The five-piece got their start practicing in their local south London pub (before they were old enough to buy a drink) where the regulars introduced the teenagers to the musical greats that had come before them: The Fall, The Stooges and Tom Waits, to name a few.
That inspired their 2018 debut album, Songs Of Praise, a snotty, anxiety-ridden update on post-punk that helped revive the genre alongside Idles’ Brutalism and Fontaines D.C.’s Dogrel. Frequent gigs at the 150-capacity Brixton Windmill were so exciting, they kickstarted an entire ‘South London scene’ that influenced everyone from Goat Girl and Black Midi to The Last Dinner Party. It wasn’t long before they were touring the world and supporting big name acts such as Foo Fighters.
Three albums later and Shame — vocalist Charlie Steen, guitarists Eddie Green and Sean Coyle-Smith, bassist Josh Finerty and drummer Charlie Forbes — are still one of the most exciting British guitar bands around. 2025’s Cutthroat saw the five-piece return to character play and rock ‘n’ roll theatrics after two introspective records about mental health, changing friendships, break-ups and addiction while their homecoming gig at SXSW London happened between headline tours of Asia and South America.
If you wanted to see who was truly “shaping the future” at SXSW, as per the festival’s mission statement, Shame at Village Underground was the place to be. These were the best moments from the show.
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