Show Review: Screensaver, Piper Reef at the Shacklewell Arms, London.
May 28th, 2026.
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“what’s the difference between a lad and a geezer?”
May 29th, 2026
Day after day of record breaking heat in a country opposed to air conditioning had been excruciating. Thankfully, the fever consuming London finally broke as the Shacklewell Arms garden began to fill for a show. Daylight made the typical dark walk around the curved Shacklewell Lane feel different. First on the night's bill was Piper Reef, followed by Screensaver.
Piper Reef is a two-piece mix of electronic dance and fuzzy guitar. Together, they create a distorted and hypnotic dreamscape. Samples included Like a Prayer to open the set and a dance break for The Twist. In the garden, Piper and Julian met with me for a few questions. Julian explained, “Our hope is to merge rock and dance and noise” to make people “move not just stand there”. When space allows, performances typically include confetti, fake money, and ribbons. Since moving to London, the audience and scene are clearly different from back in Miami. Audiences come to shows for the music as an art form, not just to get drunk. Check out their Instagram for their next show to be announced, and listen to their album Take the Ticket.
Screensaver brings together elements of classic post-punk and minimal wave with fresh inspirations. Heavy synth and strong baselines get the audience dancing. They played through the set with a break to ask “what’s the difference between lads and geezers?”. An audience member explained to the Australian band the distinction is footwear. Once the stage was packed, I met with Krystal (vocals/synth). She described how screensaver was formed in 2019 and began gigging before the pandemic pushed them into songwriting. Krystal said they are “always listening to new artists” and getting “more dancey soon”. You can find their newest album released in November, Three Lens Approach, here.
This was the perfect two set lineup. Sometimes bands who are too similar get paired together just for having the same buzz words in their bios, but Piper Reef was the perfect band to be followed by Screensaver. Both were completely unique but with the same desired outcome, to move the crowd.
| Keywords: | London | Screensaver | Piper Reef |
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