One Sided Horse took on the mini Beast from the East for the launch of their debut album Between Light and Space in Halifax on Saturday night.

While the snow thwarted some fans, many still made it to The Lantern to see Preston’s Mark Whiteside perform tracks from the new album, backed by the musicians from Yorkshire indie-rock band Embrace.

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The band is the brainchild of Whiteside, who is most well known as the singing drummer in Evil Blizzard. Whiteside often performs his One Sided Horse material solo but the launch, like the album, was a full band affair.

Read more: Preston band explain how Mark E Smith helped make them

Support came from EEVAH, singer-songwriter Nicole Hope Smith and Embrace guitarist Richard McNamara. Smith’s stunning vocals helped the crowd thaw out, and songs like Kill You Again had a dark, anthemic pop feel reminiscent of Lana Del Rey.

One Sided Horse are another purveyor of big sounds. The 12-track album has been three years in the making, and musically there are similarities with Nick Cave and The National. The songs on show last night were soaring and epic. Crackerjack, More Than Old and Still In Space (featuring Smith) in particular hit the emotional high notes.

The sound throughout the evening was rich and large, despite the intimate nature of the venue. But that was no real surprise with Embrace involved – after all, they are a band of stadium pedigree who last year supported Coldplay at the Principality in Cardiff.

Whiteside has been in bands in and around Preston since the 1980s. Evil Blizzard have a huge cult following, but will it be One Sided Horse that finally takes him to the next level? With Embrace behind him, don’t bet against it.

Between Light and Space is available to buy on CD from onesidedhorse.bigcartel.com, or can be downloaded from iTunes and Amazon.