LIVE REVIEW: Kid Kapichi @ Rough Trade, Liverpool

Punk Rock duo Kid Kapichi returned to Liverpool last week to give us a laidback, acoustic introduction to their new era. After the departure of guitarist Ben Beetham and drummer George Macdonald last year, the two-piece have released the perfect send off with new album ‘Fearless Nature’. With a sold out crowd at Rough Trade, they embodied the intimacy of the introspective album, telling anecdotes on creating the album together as a final farewell. 

The short set gave us just a taste of what to expect going forward, teasing a return to Liverpool later this year, which we’re sure will be full of the rowdy energy we can always expect at a Kid Kapichi gig. However, this stripped-down set showed a different side. In between brand new songs, frontman Jack Wilson began telling the crowd how his anger conveyed in previous albums felt more like anxiety about the future of not just the band, but the state of the world. Whilst the Hastings group has never shied away from speaking their mind, it was clear from this set that we should expect the unexpected. 

We heard lead single ‘Stainless Steel’ which had elements of the classic Kapichi sound with gritty riffs before a change of pace with ‘Patience’, one of the last songs Wilson wrote with Beetham before moving on to a new chapter. It feels upbeat, like the boys are embracing the change and celebrating how far they’ve come. A full-circle moment happened when Wilson noticed a familiar face in the crowd who helped set them up their very first Liverpool gig and came to support. To wrap up the night, the band went all in on the nostalgia, playing a few old favourites such as ‘Working Man’s Town’ from their first album ‘This Time Next Year’. 

After the set, fans queued up to chat and get their albums signed, with the length of the queue reinforcing how happy we are to see them back and being authentically themselves. We’re looking forward to seeing their new songs live up to their full potential when they return later in 2026.