Scissor Sisters | Bimini
The Piece Hall, Halifax
Sunday 9th August 2026
Back after a break, gay icons Scissor Sisters turned this historic venue into party central with a string of pop hits.
Bimini was the runner-up on RuPaul’s Drag Race UK and opened the show, strutting around the stage in black hot pants, chains, and ripped tights, singing to backing tracks. They have been recording music since the TV series. And opener Big Dick Energy summed up the set’s energy as a crowd clearly on their side began to warm up. God Save This Queen was a nod to the electronic music of the 1990s that influenced their sound. Bimini had a strong voice, and a solid cover of Wonderwall went down well with a crowd already in a party mood.
That party mood continued from the moment Scissor Sisters started blasting out the twisted disco of their number one single I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’, and charismatic frontman Jake Shears came out in a camp farmer outfit complete with big yeehaw cowboy hat and diamante overalls.
On a stage dominated by a blow-up balloon of their iconic logo – and for some reason a jeep – this version of the band featured original members Shears, Babydaddy and Del Marquis, but due to other commitments no Ana Matronic. She was such a big part of their sound; she had been replaced with two really strong and feisty backing singers who all added to the camp fun.
Shears was in fine vocal form during the glorious pure pop of Laura, before he asked the crowd, ‘How many gays?’ Big cheer. ‘How many lesbians?’ Even bigger cheers. No surprises there as they had always been prominent supporters of LGBTQ issues, but there were plenty of allies here keen to join in the fun. He unleashed his falsetto to great effect during Tits On The Radio, which was their disco indictment of New York’s gentrification under Mayor Rudy Giuliani before he went MAGA.
For a band named after Tribadism, there was always a naughty edge to their shows, so there was a hint of the outrageous campiness of an early Bette Midler show during I Can’t Decide, complete with a funny dance routine. Take Your Mama may be the ultimate coming out song as Shears invited mothers of all gay people to join them for a drink and an insight into their world. In a lovely touch, the intro featured a lovely tribute to George Michael as Shears sang a section of Freedom 90.
For their complete reinvention of Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb, there was a costume change as Shears returned in an over the top red devil’s outfit complete with horns as the backing singers weaved their voices around his voice and the subtle disco beat.
Filthy/Gorgeous might be the song that best summed up this naughty gang up, and Bridget Barkan slipped seamlessly into the Ana Matronic role, powerfully riffing off Shears as Scissor Sisters closed a show that was full of big hits, camp as hell and above all fun, which god knows we need at the moment.
You can follow Scissor Sisters on FacebookandTwitter.
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Words by Paul Clarke; you can see his author profile here.
Photos supplied by The Piece Hall, Cuffe & Taylor.
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