Live Review: The Royston Club @ The Great Hall, Cardiff

Photo Credit: Alicia Woods
Words: Abi Jones

A dazzling Cardiff crowd showed plenty of cariad to The Royston Club on Friday night. Having been active in the modern indie rock scene since 2019, the Wrexham four-piece are no longer fresh faces and now carry themselves with the confidence of a band who know exactly how to put on a show. The Royston Club have enjoyed an astonishing year with the release of their sophomore album, ‘Songs for the Spine‘ in full swing since early August, earning widespread praise and even achieving the number one spot on the UK Independent Albums Chart. It’s hard to argue that ending 2025 with a successful tour across the UK and wrapping up the era (for now) in Liverpool on Saturday, isn’t the perfect way to go. 2026 will see even greater things from this band as they’re set to tour the UK and Europe next spring, bringing the bittersweet spirit of ‘Songs for the Spine‘ across the continent. Given their trajectory, it would come as little surprise to see them make it globally in the near future.

The Great Hall, situated in Cardiff University’s students’ union was the ultimate venue for embracing intimacy yet still keeping plenty of room for a music-loving community to thrive. This marked a significant upgrade from the last time the band played a Cardiff venue, which only had a capacity of 1,000. Their growth since then can only be described as remarkable.

Joining the indie royalty of the night were Permanent (Joy), greeting the crowd with their alternative sound and charismatic Liverpudlian stage presence. With their debut single released just last year and only a handful of songs to their name, it is genuinely outstanding how well they’ve already begun cementing their presence into the world of indie music. Their talented songwriting which has been demonstrated through mellow songs, ‘Josephine‘ and ‘Aeroplane‘, have landed them support slots for other renowned bands like Franz Ferdinand and Inhaler. Only a year in the making, yet, they’re no strangers to tour life as they’ve opened up their music to various audiences across the country. Balancing out the mellowness of their set were their newer, punchier songs, including ‘Stressed Out‘ and latest single ‘Lucky‘, which raised the energy of the venue and got everyone moving. On this frosty December evening, Permanent (Joy)’s mission was to deliver some stellar tunes and warm up the crowd, and it’s certain they did that and so much more.

As the lights dimmed, pre-gig chattering amongst crowd-goers soon became cheers and chants of “Royston” and “Wales”. We were soon met with the alluring ‘Love Theme‘ from 1988 film ‘Cinema Paradiso‘, which seeped every bit of feeling from ‘Songs for the Spine‘ into the room before the band had even entered. Cloaked in a warm light were members Tom Faithfull, Sam Jones, Ben Matthias, and Dave Tute. With each of them walking over to their familiar places and instrument in hand, we all knew tonight’s show was going to be special. Opening with ‘The Patch Where Nothing Grows‘ was a fierce start. Being the lead single from their latest album, there wasn’t a single mouth in the crowd that didn’t know to sing the iconic guitar riff along with lead guitarist Ben Matthias. The way the riff seized the ‘Love Theme‘ track was truly powerful and gave the audience a teaser of what the show will be like from the very beginning; ballads and angst all in the space of a few minutes.

’30/20‘ was a real crowd pleaser, continuing the upbeat feel of the night. It would be easy to mistake the room for a sea considering all the waves made from everyone jumping up and down to the music. Tute’s talent was highlighted throughout the entire show, but this specific track proved that a solid bassline can make or break a song. In The Royston Club’s case, it definitely makes it.

After a run of fresh songs from the latest album, the band pleased older fans with their charming, earlier sound. ‘Mariana‘ and ‘Mrs Narcissistic‘, which were first released in 2020 and then re-recorded later in 2023, gave the crowd an insight to their more youthful and fast-paced essence. Lead vocalist Tom Faithfull pranced across the stage and was fantastic at encouraging the crowd to sing along to the catchy choruses everyone knows and loves.

Taking a break from the high energy, ‘A Tender Curiosity‘ was The Royston Club’s way of sharing their softer side in a beautifully intimate manner. Matthias and Faithfull treated Cardiff to this acoustic song while sharing a microphone and harmonising to create a euphonious moment. This was the best time for the crowd to listen and appreciate Matthias’s sentimental songwriting with Faithfull’s clear and calming vocals.

‘Shivers‘ broke out after ‘A Tender Curiosity‘ and ‘Spinning‘, and soon replaced the delicateness with power and grit. Drummer Sam Jones showcased his expertise especially in the beginning of this song with drum fills exploding in an intense rhythm. The instrumental work of this album opener really encapsulates all the feelings that build ‘Songs for the Spine‘, ranging from heartfelt to heartbreak. Along with this, I can only praise the lighting team for their work too. Particularly during this song as the flashes synced perfectly with Jones’ drumming and added so much emotion to the performance.

It would’ve been nice to see a bit more of an interactive approach from the band with the crowd. That being said, it seemed as though the audience didn’t exclusively need any prompting from them, the music alone was a strong enough foundation to build community and a warm atmosphere.

The Royston Club made an unusual decision ending their show with a ballad, yet their execution couldn’t have been more perfect and earned tremendous praise through applause and chants of “Royston” for the last time of the night. ‘Cariad‘ is the epitome of a real show-stopper. It was at the first chorus that a staggering amount of people got on shoulders to sing their hearts out to this anthem of heartbreak and yearning. This band has clearly used their power as a musical vessel to unite thousands of people every night and allow them to let out all their deepest emotions through a single bridge.

The end of the song was met with an extraordinary round of applause until Faithfull exclaimed, “One more time!”. He sang no more than two words of the chorus before the crowd carried on and poured their voices into every crevice of the room.

Cardiff being one of the last shows of the year was hugely special considering the band is changing the modern Welsh music scene into something bigger and better than ever before. There’s no doubt that the next generation are lucky to have such a phenomenal band like The Royston Club to soundtrack their lives.