Live Review: Focus Wales International Showcase Festival 2026 (Part 2)

 

As we all know, it's getting increasingly difficult to live in the moment. Distractions are everywhere and we're increasingly likely to fall into a zombie-like state of consciousness, led by the machinations of our phones, the addictive nature of social media and the seemingly endless need for self validation. You can't just meet someone in the alley by the railway station these days you know.. 

By the time, FOCUS Wales 2026 is running out of time, I'm in the Rockin' Chair in Wrexham at 4.30am, dancing and watching my old friend Laura Leigh Dickinson dj the closing party, and it feels like living in the moment again. I didn't want to go home and I sure as hell didn't want the inevitable three day hangover coming my way, but this is how it SHOULD be. I'm so late getting out, there are no taxis available and living 14 miles away means I have to hang around until 7am to get one - c'est la vie.

In part 1 of our Focus Wales 2026 review, we talked about some our live highlights of the festival, mostly from the touring acts from other parts of the world. In Part 2, we keep it closer to home.

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Trial Tapes are a Liverpool band based around the music of front man Jack McNally. After moving to Brighton in his 20s' and returning to his Liverpool home after a decade, McNally was keen to form a band to flesh out the songs he'd written along the way. In this time, he came out as Gay, and this acceptance of who he is was the catalyst for the songs on display here. The band play at The Parish in a late slot and the room is getting full as they come on stage.

 Playing songs from their Five Notes E.P, the band are tight and really allow McNally to shine on stage. His presence and self effacing sense of humour are a charming addition to the quality of the songwriting. 'Coughing Fits' is leftfield synth-led pop; the sound of blooming confidence with a hint of Perfume Genius about it. They're not afraid to turn up the amps though with the likes of '42' a much scuzzier affair live than on the recording. More of this kind of thing please.

                                  

South Wallians Only Fools & Corpses not only have the best name of any act at the festival this year, but they also have a bank of weird noise rock songs that land with a resounding thud at The Penny Black. The trio reside in the no-man's land between mclusky, The Jesus Lizard and Shellac, and the live show setting is where they shine most. This kind of band is not always going to have everyone on board from the get go, but they win The Penny Black crowd by battering them over the head. There are discordant riffs, scuzzy bass lines, and the kind of relentless drumming that makes you tired just watching. Even hecklers at the front can't stop them lay waste to an excellent half hour set.

If familiarity breeds contempt, then I really should be starting to hate Campfire Social by now. Having played at FOCUS Wales multiple times - as well as New Colossus in New York and SXSW in Austin in 2025 - the band were back in 2026 on the main stage tent at Llwyn Isaf. The fact is, they're practically impossible to show any form of disdain towards. The songs they have are sheer guitar pop perfection, sounding huge on the bigger stage. Even technical issues to Carrie's keyboard can't bring them down, as they produce another finely balanced set. I'm not ashamed to admit they made me cry during set finale 'Breathe Out Slowly', so much so that a Samaritans volunteer checks up on me to see if I'm okay; I think that might be a first.

CAMPFIRE SOCIAL

Another band who are regulars here at FOCUS Wales are riff-rock duo Sustinere. After playing on the big stage last year, the band play early on the Thursday in the Rockin' Chair to a sizeable crowd looking to get their weekend off to the best possible start. Thankfully, Rob and Mikey are a safe pair of hands. Not only are there some great rock songs here, but there's passion in abundance which positively radiates from the stage. Singer and guitarist Rob is also a solo artist who performs two further sets throughout the weekend of acoustic ballads from his Sad Songs collection. Inevitably it hits completely different from the band's material, but it showcases just how he's equally adept in writing in a minor key as he is in a major.

Cardiff's Slate have been on the lips of many as a band to keep on eye on for a few years now. Their appearance at FOCUS Wales a couple of years back cemented their reputation as a buzz band on the back of their excellent debut E.P Deathless. This year the band were placed on to the Llwyn Isaf stage as main support for Idlewild; a massive upgrade from their 2024 show when they were in the intimate confines of Hope Street Church. It's a real test for any band to play on such a large P.A and it's a test that the band pass with flying colours. 'Deathless' is simply stunning and 'Shade in Me' hits harder than they could possibly have imagined. Closing with near 8-minute epic 'Remoter Heaven' and leaving with a wall of feedback, it feels like a mic-drop moment they'll look back on for years to come. 

Elsewhere there are one or two minor frustrations as I find it difficult to get into several of the acts I had wanted to see. I go to see Martha O'Brien in The Fat Boar, but the bouncer is not letting anyone else down to the stage area. Serbian's Koi Koi have been tipped plenty of times over the course of the three days, but it's impossible to get anywhere near their show at The Parish; likewise for Chinese group Kyoyoko. Them's the breaks at any festival of these sort and those punches have to be rolled with a smile. 

It's impossible not to smile at FOCUS Wales though. Festivals like this serve as a perfect reminder that the music machine moves on, and that art will always be a uniting force in a time when divisive agents are having their way. There is hope and positivity on the streets of Wrexham, and the power of living in the moment is at the forefront of everyone's mind as we find our new favourite music time and time again. Until next year.

Listen to our FOCUS Wales 2026 playlist below. Applications to perform and early bird tickets for 2027 are now available from Focuswales.com.