Echoes in the Nave
Eyre Llew’s Atmospheric Visit to St Mary’s, Clifton Village
Every so often, something unexpected happens in the village that makes you stop and smile.
One of those moments came last October when local Nottingham band Eyre Llew turned up at St Mary’s Church with guitars, cameras, lighting rigs - and even a smoke machine - to film a set of live performance videos.
If you’ve not come across them before, Eyre Llew are a three‑piece ambient‑rock group from Nottingham who’ve quietly built a loyal following both here and abroad. Their music is full of big echoes, slow builds, and cinematic swells - the sort of sound that seems to fill a room from floor to rafters. BBC Radio 6 Music once described them as “Britain’s answer to Sigur Rós,” which gives you a sense of the atmosphere they create.
Given that their style relies so much on mood and natural space, our historic village church turned out to be the perfect match.
Eyre Llew Line-up
- Sam Heaton Vocals & Guitar
- Jack Bennett Guitar / Effects
- Jack Clark Piano & Drums
A Bit of History (and a Global Plan)
While international touring is an incredible experience, it is also very expensive for independent musicians. To support their upcoming album launch this September, Eyre Llew decided to try a completely different tactic.
Instead of a traditional live tour that only reaches a limited audience each night, the band chose to harness the power of the internet. Their plan was to create a series of visually stunning live performance videos filmed in historic locations across Nottinghamshire - churches, castles (they even considered the famous Nottingham caves!) - to share with a global audience online.
For frontman Sam Heaton, St Mary’s wasn’t just an impressive, historic building. “My dad reminded me that when I was little, I’d actually been here before,” Sam laughs. “His band used to rehearse in the side room!” A lovely full-circle moment.
Smoke Machines, Cables, and Church Acoustics
Filming inside a historic, Grade I listed medieval building brings a unique set of challenges, but for Eyre Llew, the church's layout was a huge part of the appeal. Instead of being tucked away on a stage, the band could set up right in the middle of the nave, allowing a roving camera crew to glide around them and really capture the mood of the space.
The fact that St. Mary’s has movable furniture was a massive practical bonus, and the building's natural acoustics certainly didn't hurt, either.
“It was an aesthetically cool space with loads of character and a fantastic history, right here in our home town,” says Sam. “It just felt right.”
Operationally, the shoot day was a whirlwind. Turning a historic church into a closed film set required a massive logistical effort, but the production team managed to power all their heavy gear using a web of heavy-duty extension cables rather than resorting to noisy external generators. To capture the moody atmosphere, the crew deployed a smoke machine inside the nave and rigged high-powered lighting fixtures outside the church, simulating dramatic shafts of sunlight streaming through the windows.
A Team Effort
While it’s the three members of Eyre Llew you see on camera, bringing those striking visual effects to life is definitely not a solo gig. It took a dedicated nine-person crew working cleanly and respectfully inside the historic building to make the magic happen.
A huge shout-out goes to the full team on the day:
BAND
- Sam Heaton — Vocals & Guitar
- Jack Bennett — Guitar & Effects
- Jack Clark — Drums
- Laurie Illingworth — Piano
- Russ Clark — Bass & Mix Engineer
CREW
- Ciaran Grant — Director
- Will J Carman — Camera & Lights
- Marc Reeves — Sound & Mix Engineer
- Kat Brown — Production Assistant
- Heather Kirk — Photographer
- Shure Microphones — Sponsor
The nine-person production crew taking a well-earned breather inside St. Mary's.
A Modern Welcome
Bringing smoke machines, amplifiers, and a full film crew into a centuries-old sacred space requires an immense amount of trust. Fortunately, the band found an incredibly welcoming partner in Reverend Lydia Cartwright, who possessed a wonderfully "modern outlook" on community and the arts, simply asking for a quick review of the song lyrics for suitability before giving the project her blessing.
That warm reception was echoed on the day of the shoot by Reverend Esther, who was on hand to oversee the production. “It was just good to see the church being used in a completely different way,” Rev. Esther recalls. “It was great to support a local band, especially when they had chosen a venue that obviously meant so much to them.”
The session at St. Mary’s yielded three live tracks in total: "Miningsby", "Nova", and "Silo" - the latter being a deeply personal track originally featured on their 2019 South Korean split EP, Carrier. Fans won't have to wait long to hear the finished project. At least two of the tracks recorded right here in the village will headline the band's upcoming album, BLOOM, releasing this September. Following the album launch, Eyre Llew will celebrate with their biggest hometown headline show to date - a special afternoon and evening performance at The Nest in Nottingham on Sunday, 15th November 2026, featuring guest artists and bespoke lighting.
Watch the Live Session
"Silo" - Recorded live inside St. Mary's Church, Clifton Village.
Supporting Local Talent
It’s not every day our village church becomes a film set, and it was wonderful to see St Mary’s used in such a creative way. A big thank you to Sam, the whole Eyre Llew team, Reverend Lydia and Reverend Esther for letting us peek behind the scenes of a very memorable day in the life of the village.
If you want to dive deeper into Eyre Llew's atmospheric music or keep up with their upcoming second album release, you can find them across their official channels below: