Piston Damp
We’re sad to report that Piston Damp have cancelled all of their shows for 2025, including their UK debut at Infest, due to family illness. Everyone at Infest Festival wishes them the best, and we are very hopeful that we will be able to host them at Infest 2026.
The Royal Ritual
We are pleased to announce a very special early-doors show on Friday by The Royal Ritual, to mark the release of their ‘Live at Infest’ album, commemorating their appearance at St Georges Hall in Bradford, as part of Infest 2024.
Live Album Launch Party
This will be a very special one-off solo show, with completely reimagined arrangements. Everything in the set will be a premiere!
Make sure you are at the venue early to enjoy this special show, and don’t forget to take advantage of an Infest special offer, when you pre-order your copy of ‘Live at Infest’ using the code INFEST2025 – Pre-Order Now at www.theroyalritual.com
Read The Royal Ritual Live at Infest press release, below:
The Royal Ritual commemorate their appearance at the legendary Infest Festival with a captivating live album
Following on from their 2024 studio album and subsequent EP – and a collaboration with labelmate Kat Bryan – The Royal Ritual return with a live recording of their performance at the iconic UK industrial music festival, Infest.
As disruptive as it was, the pandemic didn’t stop The Royal Ritual – the dark/alternative outfit fronted by UK-born musician, composer and producer David Lawrie – from making a dramatic impact on the alternative music scene with their debut album, MARTYRS, and follow-up Pleasure Hides Your Needs.
Producer and frontman David trained as a classical pianist from the age of 7 and has worked in the music industry for many years, but The Royal Ritual was born just before the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Royal Ritual was initially a studio-based project, with their debut album MARTYRS being produced in complete isolation in Lawrie’s private studio in Northern California. By contrast, Pleasure Hides Your Needs was a transatlantic endeavour, though again with David the driving force behind the LP.
Blending harsh synthetic tones, dark, percussive sound design, and traditional world instruments, The Royal Ritual has already garnered a dedicated following, finding favour with fans of artists like IAMX, Gary Numan, Nine Inch Nails, Skinny Puppy, New Model Army and HEALTH.
Just as the albums marked a sonic progression and evolution, they also were the catalyst for the project venturing from the studio to stages in the UK and the USA. Another change saw the introduction of Dan Kentley as a live member of the band.
Reveals David about this evolution, “Because the project started out as a studio-based affair during the pandemic, it still feels unusual to be performing it live, but ultimately it is very liberating. Since everything is so instant and present when performing live, the energy of the songs feels heightened, and there is a really positive feedback loop between us and the audience.”
“We currently perform live as a duo, so we have to get quite creative. We try to perform as much of the music live as we can – but with that being said, we rely on looping and MIDI to be able to control everything.”
“I think it is futile to try to translate exactly the studio versions of the songs to the stage, and, ultimately, I don’t think an audience wants that either. I love it when people tell me what they loved about the live set and when they noticed changes. It really shows that people are actively listening, and that is the most rewarding thing.”
Making the album and committing tracks from this particular performance to vinyl has a major significance for David: “The team that runs Infest has been so incredibly supportive of The Royal Ritual, and performing at the festival had been a conversation for a while,” he says. “It’s one of those festivals that is so ingrained into the scene that performing at it is such an honour.”
He continues, “With 2024 being the final year of Infest at St George’s Hall – a venue I have long coveted – it felt so poignant that we were given the opportunity. We soaked up every moment of the atmosphere before, during, and after our performance.”
The album is a vividly coloured showcase for the band’s live set, which increasingly features live performances from David and Dan, with drums, guitar, and synths bringing the selected tracks from The Royal Ritual’s back catalogue to life.
Live at Infest features material from the albums Pews in a Pandemic, MARTYRS, and Pleasure Hides Your Needs. It also marks the band spending more time on the road, connecting with fans, and bringing the music of The Royal Ritual to new places and new audiences.
“It’s an exciting summer and autumn on the horizon,” discloses David. “We’re joining the Glōm Fest tour in September. The line-up is amazing, and the performance spaces are dream venues, too.”
“We’ll be in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Portland, and Vancouver for that. When we return to the UK, we have a bit of a break before we join The Awakening on the UK portion of their Haunting tour. We’re still finalising plans, but I imagine there will be more shows to come, as well…”
Live at Infest is set for release on the 8th of August via Todmorden-based record label AnalogueTrash in digital and vinyl formats.
Reviews of The Royal Ritual at Infest 2024
“It isn’t often you see an opening act and are so struck by their originality, and this was executed brilliantly. The hair on the back of my neck was standing up for the epic closing track Coma.” – DSO Audio
“David Lawrie has quite the résumé – a noted sound designer and producer, he’s returned from time in California back to the UK – and this musical project is one that takes in proggy electronics, fierce industrial rock and a melodic edge that certainly stands out.” – amodelofcontrol.com.