Gig review: Mercy Girl at Headrow House, Leeds

Mercy Girl have become one of those bands who keep turning up in your socials with the caption “imagine you go to a gig and catch this support”. It’s almost always a blast of Closer, their 80s-leaning darkwave calling card, all neon gloom and club ready highlights.

At Headrow House they finally got the promotion they deserve, elevated to top billing by the ever adventurous SuperFriendz and flanked by a Leeds-centric undercard in La Rissa and Pick The Flowers.

The venue level of Headrow House was filling up nicely for Pick The Flowers who describe themselves as a ‘miserable alt-pop’ band. The three-piece are at the more indie/shoegazey end of the bill tonight and deliver a short set which culminates with Chloe (lead vocals) taking a trip into the crowd.

La Rissa are a more adjacent fit with the headliner as the synth-driven sounds hit the spot and lead gently in the direction of Mercy Girl. Larissa drifts adjusting synth duties, capturing loops and leaves the controls to deliver soaring vocals. She takes a moment to say hello to the Leeds Goths who gathered to take in the performance.

Mercy Girl have become a hit on the darker dance-floors. On stage they feel tightly defined, like they already know exactly what they want to be. The line-up is simple and effective: Daisy Miles up front on vocals, Craig Harkness on drums, Davey Purdie on keys and Kylie MacNaughton on guitar. It’s a clever hybrid that brings a dark club vibe to a live set, drums and guitar for impact, synths and programming to keep everything locked to the pulse.

They appear in variously coloured haze with the occasional burst of strobe. Daisy plays in the shadows with the occasional appearance through the clouds. Her breathy vocal meandering through the pulsing beats.

Having only formed in 2024, the recorded catalogue is still slim. They opened with The Serpent, an unreleased track that works as a mission statement: slow burning, serpentine synth lines wrapping around Craig’s tom heavy groove before the whole thing snaps into a driving, four to the floor rush.

From there, the set served up two of the released tracks. No Sound and I’m In Love brought in more overt hooks, Daisy leaning into soaring choruses while Kylie’s guitar carved out icy melodies around Davey’s keys. Ghost and Shadow (another unreleased cut) pushed the mood darker, flirting with post punk and industrial sounds without ever losing that emotional core.

The middle of the set was where they really hit their stride. Heaven felt like their softest moment, but live it bloomed into a bittersweet anthem, Craig opening up the drums and giving the track a satisfying, almost rock show lift. Punisher, Choke and Zyborg, all still unreleased, showed just how much depth they have in reserve: heavier bass, harsher edges, and a sense of play with dynamics that had the room swaying one minute and surging the next.

Closer, inevitably, was saved for the end, and it landed exactly as you’d hope. Those who already knew it from club nights reacted like they’d been waiting all evening; those who didn’t looked like they’d just found their new favourite band. It crystallised what the whole show had been hinting at: Mercy Girl might still be in their early years, but on a small stage in a packed room, they already feel like they can bring the club night vibe to life as a live band.