Photo Credit: Kelsi Luck
Making their way back up north halfway through their tour, Manchester indie-pop band PALE WAVES returned to Sheffield as part of their ‘Smitten‘ celebrations. Their steel city performance was filled with a variety of set list stapes, new songs, and a surprise or two thrown in to the mix to give fans from all their eras something to singalong to.
Edinburgh based grunge-rock inspired trio SWIM SCHOOL served as the opening act across the tour, and what better way to get the crowd warmed-up than a ray of upbeat fast-paced tunes. The bands stage presence matched the songs perfectly, with vocalist/guitarist Alice Johnson showcasing a variety of vocal styles, demonstrating the bands live versatility while keep the crowd engaged throughout. Kicking off their set with ‘See It Now‘, the song features a blend of serenity along with a powerful mid-section, whilst ‘Delirious‘ adopts a more sombre tone. The bands finale came in the form of ‘See Red‘, to bring their show to a stunning closer and winning over a bunch of new admirers on the night.
After a brief interval, the room soon turned to darkness, and the stage lights flickered red. PALE WAVES made their entrance, gradually one by one taking their places, and as Heather Baron-Gracie took centre stage, it was time for the spectacular show to begin. Opening their show with their new albums lead single ‘Perfume‘, followed by ‘Not A Love Song‘, it was clear the new material was already engrained in their dedicated fanbases brains, and getting the reception it whole heartily deserved. To gratify their OG fans, the band immediately rolled back the years with ‘There’s A Honey‘ which only enhanced the singing across the room.
No matter if the song is a more lively track, or a laid back ballad, bassist Charlie Wood’s intensity on stage complements each song on the set list, putting on a show of his own but not taking away the limelight from the rest of the band. Fan favourites ‘Television Romance‘ and ‘Eighteen‘ replicated that perfectly, now with the crowd matching the bands energy as the place was filled with raised hands and dancing feet. The mood was soon lowered for the poignant acoustic ballad ‘Last Train Home‘ which created a more solemn tone across the room, but was still received with a huge cheer from the crowd.
Now it was decision time, with Heather handing over the reigns to the Sheffield audience to decide what song would feature next, ‘Unwanted‘ or ‘Red‘. The latter getting the loudest roar and securing its spot on the setlist once again. The electrifying ‘Kiss Me Again‘ soon followed, before the band bowed out to ‘She’s My Religion‘ with Baron-Gracie wrapping herself in the lesbian flag to showcase how proud she is of her sexuality.
Building up the excitement once more, the band exited the stage for a brief moment, before returning for two more songs. Starting with ‘Glasgow‘ to pick up the pace once again, it was the festival classic ‘Jealousy‘ that gave the steel city crowd one last shot at throwing all their energy at it, and the didn’t let the band down one bit.
Taped Magazine 