Tough Love 20: Ulrika Spacek, William Doyle, Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band

Tough Love is ready to celebrate their twentieth anniversary with an evening of celebration and curiosity at the ICA.

The label has invited three of their acts to grace the ICA stage. Ulrika Spacek have been with Tough Love for almost a decade now – they’re familiar friends, and this is their only UK show for 2025. Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band, fresh from releasing their loose, thrilling album of roughshod jams and canny reflections, Dancing on the Edge, are making their UK debut on the night, too.

Not to be outdone, William Doyle is heading backwards to move forward, playing in full – for one night only – Total Strife Forever, the extraordinary debut album, from 2013, of his one-man project East India Youth. That feels a typically classy Tough Love move, weaving together threads of past and present to propel the lucky listener, and their highly attuned ears, on into the next twenty years.

From their beginnings in 2005, Tough Love has consistently released music that’s as surprising as it is immediate, all while maintaining an independent ethos and unique aesthetic. From early releases with groups like HEALTH, Girls Names, Weird Dreams, and CYMBALS, to their current roster – which makes connections between the San Francisco pop of Cindy, April Magazine, and The Reds Pinks & Purples, and the Australian outsider spirit of Rat Columns and The Stroppies – the label is notable for its wayward, inspired vision. - Jon Dale

All tickets to events at the Institute of Contemporary Arts are subject to a Venue Levy of £1.50.

Presented by Institute of Contemporary Arts.

This is an 18+ event