Portsmouth's Albert Road was its usual Saturday night's self; busy, loud and in motion. But inside the Wedgewood Rooms, that motion had a different edge. For the Creeper Cult faithful's, many of whom lined the streets from the early afternoon this wasn't just any old stop this was a homecoming ritual of sorts. Following the success of their Sanguivore II launch at Southampton's Engine Rooms in October, this was a continuation of that celebratory energy towards the Sanguivore era. This tour set in such intimate settings meant Creepers theatricality felt amplified, bringing a specific grit that you can only get when a performance this large is brought into a 400 cap room like the Wedge.
Support - The Howling
The Howling were the only support on the bill tasked with waking up the room, a job they took seriously. My Girlfriend pointed out that the frontman was channelling some serious Revenge Era Gerrard Way with the pinkish red eyeshadow and leather jacket. Which felt like the perfect visual lead in for Creeper. They did not treat it like a warm up, they went straight for the throat. The real switch flick moment was their raw reimagined cover of Madonna's 'Like a Prayer'. It was bold but it worked, shaking off the afternoon fatigue and got the room moving.
Having only formed in September of last year, they're still a very new name, but they've got a good sound. Definitely a band I'll be keeping a close eye on.
Creeper - October 2025 Engine Rooms
As 9pm approached the anticipation in the room was clear; you could see people checking their watches perhaps to see how much time they had left to get a drink at the bar. As the house lights faded Patricia Morrisons monologue 'A Shadow Stirs' echoes around the room as Creeper take to the stage. Hearing those familiar words from the start of Sanguivore II in such an intimate space made the whole thing feel exactly like the theatrical production Creeper are known for.
As the final words of the monologue trailed off the band rolled straight into 'Mistress of Death' with a heavy beat you can stomp along to, it only took a few seconds before the whole room were punching the air along with it, encouraged by Ian and Lawrie.
Will Ghould [Left] Lawrie Pattison [Right]
Will then tore off his eye-patch to reveal a bloodied eye, a clear nod to their gory short film [Watch Here] before rolling into 'Blood Magick' The momentum remained high through 'Lovers Led Astray' , 'Headstones' and 'Sacred Blasphemy' . Headstones even had a circle pit going right from the start! A highlight of this section was when Hannah stepped out from behind the keys and command the stage for the last chorus of Headstones before later giving a brilliant performance of Razor Wire displaying the wide breadth of their skills.
Turning down the tempo came 'The Ballard of Spook and Mercy' , where the crowd were encouraged to get their lighters and phone torches out. Looking around, I think I saw more lighters held aloft in that room than I did in some sets in Rock Im Park compared to phone torches. This completely changed the atmosphere of the room before picking back into their heavier material.
Then came Jake Forgarty‘s drum solo, tactically in place to allow the rest of the band to have a chance to recoup before launching headfirst into the remainder of the set. Kicking back off with ‘Chapel Gates’ , ‘The Crimson Bride’ the latter in which was dedicated to Will’s father who was in the crowd.
This tour see‘s the live debute of ‘Love and Pain’ which was a well received treat for those in the room which I personally hope to see featured more often. This I feel compliments my Live favourite ‘More Than Death’ as they explore different layers of grief.
The night concluded with the encore, bringing out two massive crow favourites the nine minute ‘Further than Forever‘ and ‘Cry to Heaven’. By the end of the night it’s clear that Creeper has perfected the balance between their cinematic lore and raw emotional songwriting. This tour proves that the Sanguivore era is their most ambitious and well executed to date.
Creeper @ The Wedgewood Rooms
~ Photos @cl.snapz archive from Engine Rooms October 2025
CREEPER SANGUI-TOUR @ THE WEDGEWOOD ROOMS