An interview Laura Pacifici, the promoter behind the beloved gig series Lau's Birthday Party.
Photo: Lucas Edwards | Words: Hazel Blacher
Our 'Backstage with…' series aims to shine a light on the people working tirelessly behind the scenes to uphold our vibrant grassroots music community in London and throughout the UK. As tastemakers, people gatherers, and experts in purchasing the perfect number Red Stripes for the green room, promoters play a huge role in nurturing some of the most thrilling, cutting-edge artists emerging today. Kicking off the series, we caught up with Laura Pacifici, a veteran of East London's iconic venue The George Tavern. Making waves across the capital with her recently launched gig series 'Lau's Birthday Party', and with only a handful of shows under her belt, Lau has hosted the likes of Wunderhorse, RIP Magic, C Turtle and Deathcrash.
Tell us a bit about the origins of Lau's Birthday Party.
I guess it all started on my birthday in 2024 – I had just started organising gigs at The George Tavern, and wanted to throw my birthday bash there, so I started reaching out to friends that played in bands. I asked Jamie Staples if his band Teeth Machine (one of my favourite bands ever) could play. Unfortunately, the singers weren't available, but he proposed that his other band, Wunderhorse, played instead, as they wanted to test out some new material. What was supposed to be a regular birthday bash at The George turned out to be an incredible night that people would talk about for months, and after that gig, I started curating in-house shows at The George. Despite none of these events taking place on my birthday, bands I booked would post on Instagram saying "come down to The George to celebrate Lau's birthday party!". Eventually, I decided to just roll with it and make every gig I put on "my birthday party", and the official event series was launched on my actual birthday the following year, with a huge 8 band all-dayer.
Wunderhorse at the first Lau's Birthday Party by Lily Doidge
What would you say is the ethos of your shows - what are you trying to achieve?
For Lau's Birthday Party, my aim is to curate lineups that are a mix of more established acts and newer bands that have just started gigging. I wouldn't have been able to start this series without the support that The George gave me when I first moved to London from Rome. Despite having no previous experience, they trusted me to put on my first ever gig, which was an amazing opportunity for me, and I'd like to give something back to the grassroots scene and emerging bands and artists in the same way. Creating a space for these new projects to debut their music is something that I find really exciting. I know how special it can be for them and I feel honoured to support new artists.
Tell us about five up and coming bands that you're excited about right now who people absolutely need to catch live.
Truck Violence – Ah man, lemme tell you about Truck Violence. Oh my god! I'm absolutely obsessed with this band. They're from Montreal, CA, and toured the UK for the first time a few weeks ago – absolutely insane. They are a proper hardcore band, but they use additional folk/fiddle instruments to stay in touch with their smalltown Alberta roots (according to the singer Karsyn). Rumour has it they'll be back in the UK in autumn – I would definitely try and catch these guys if you get the chance.
Favourite Track: Drunk to Death
The Cowards – Possibly one of the most exciting new bands in London right now, there really is nothing else that sounds quite like The Cowards, despite them integrating lots of recognisable samples into their sets. If I were to try and pin down their sound, I would say that it's a mix of experimental, folk and noise music, but their set is constantly evolving, so even if you've seen them before, I would recommend catching them again, as your experience might be quite different to the last time.
Favourite Track: Armed (unreleased) / March of The Cow
Most Things – "…I'm off to the shop…is there anything you want… from the shops? The shops!" In stark contrast to the underground music scene right now, in which bands are bolstering their sound with increasingly more instrumentation that deviates into folk, classical and beyond, Most Things are cutting down to the bare essentials – drums, bass and vocals. They sing about Tesco meal deals and bus journeys, and they shoot a lot of their music videos in Honor Oak Park, which I can relate to as I live nearby. Most Things are proof that the saying "less is more" is actually real.
Favourite Track: Head & Shoulder
Tommy Barlow – Potentially the artist that I've seen the most this year and never grown tired of, Tommy Barlow creates the perfect music to listen to whilst staring out the window on a long train journey and romanticising those quiet, pensive moments with your thoughts. I once asked him how best to describe his music, and he said "farm grunge", which is a genre I'd never heard of but to be honest, I can think of no two better words to describe his sound.
Favourite Track: Taken Time
The New Eves – Freshly signed to Transgressive Records with just a few singles to their name, I would strongly recommend keeping an eye on this experimental-folk band from Brighton. I first saw them supporting YHWH Nailgun @ ICA and have been obsessed ever since. Dynamic and unconventional, their live set transports you to another dimension, and they're not your typical guitar band, combining folk instrumentation with rugged, DIY 60s garage-rock textures. For my undergrad thesis, I explored the artistic relationship between The Velvet Underground and Andy Warhol, and I watched basically every video of The Velvet Underground's 'Exploding Plastic Inevitable' performances. The New Eves made me feel like I was back in the sixties witnessing something that was gonna change our preconceptions of music as it is right now.
Favourite track: Rivers Run Red
What has been your favourite show you've put on so far, and what made it so great?
Probably the all-dayer I put on in March! 8 bands was a silly, stupid idea – I'll never do that again. But I got to see all my favourite bands play on one day, so it does have a special place in my heart.
C Turtle by Lucas Edwards
If you could put on a show with your dream lineup, who would you choose and which venue?
Knowing that John Frusciante playing an intimate solo set in my bedroom is not an option, it would probably have to be at my second home, The George Tavern. My dream lineup would probably be experimental / noise so would have YHWH Nailgun headlining, Moin as main support and Maria Somerville opening.
Seeing YHWH Nailgun was one of those life-changing experiences - I have friends that play in bands that claim seeing YHWH Nailgun live basically changed the way they make music; Moin is probably the best thing that happened to music in a while - I'm absolutely obsessed with Valentina Magaletti, one of the best musicians of our time. Maria Somerville is an amazing artist too; I discovered her through her NTS show before she released her album 'Luster'.
How did you first get into promoting shows?
It's quite a funny story, and the perfect example of 'fake it till you make it'. It all started in the smoking area at a gig chatting to this guy. He asked me what I did and I said that I put on gigs (even though I hadn't yet), and he turned out to be in a band who were keen to play at one of my (non-existent) shows. So I reached out to The George, started looking for some other bands to join the lineup, and it ended up being a sold out show! When I first moved to the UK, I wanted to become a tour manager, but then I fell in love with London and realised I couldn't have a job that meant being away from both my hometown and my favourite city, so I had to adjust and find something that I could do here.
Have you faced many challenges as a promoter - what advice do you have for people who are starting out?
Well, being a promoter is very tricky, as you're responsible for everything that goes wrong. My advice would be to do some shows where you are the main promoter and others where you are shadowing someone else. I think it's really useful to learn things the hard way, but also to get some guidance from someone who's done it a thousand times before. Also, I wouldn't recommend trying to cram too many bands onto your bill! It can be unfair to the bands that are on later, and audiences will want enough time to pop outside for a cig and a chat with their mates. The sound engineer will thank you too, if they aren't fighting for their lives trying to do changeover in less than 10 minutes.
What shows have you got coming up?
As of today, I've got a show coming up in July (and many more tba!!!)
The Sick Man Of Europe / Doom Club / Saint Izaure @ The George Tavern on Tuesday 8th July 2025
Hope to see you there!
Child3 by Lucas Edwards
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