Photo Credit: Ella Kreft
Words: Emma-Jane Bennett
Hailing from Manchester, Arkayla has built a reputation like no other. Known for their emotionally charged performances made up of raw lyricism and dynamic instrumentals, the four-piece create a live sound that feels powerful, restless, and intimate all at the same time.
Opening for Arkayla was Leeds’ very own, Garage Flower, these boys have no problem warming up the crowd. Performing their hit tunes like ‘Blossom’, ‘Garage Flower’, and ‘Patience Is A Virtue’, there is no doubt that they are blossoming on the scene.
Oporto was packed in a way that I have never seen before, it was heaving. So you can imagine the roar of excitement from the audience as ‘Know How’ by Young MC came on; we knew it was showtime. Led by Murphy on drums, Rubens on lead guitar and vocals, Harley on bass, and Blakebrough on lead vocals and guitar, they parted the crowd and made their way onto the stage.
‘Lost In A Valentine’ as the opening track of the night set the perfect atmosphere; a youthful sound rooted in grit and melancholy woven together creates this anthemic tune.
Followed by ‘Long Way Back’ off of their most recent EP got the crowd dancing and fuelled with excitement. “How are you Leeds? Welcome to the very first gig of our very first headline set!” Blakebrough says as he swapped to an acoustic guitar for ‘Fortune Teller’, he was immediately corrected by Rubens, “first headline tour, he meant tour” which got a laugh from the fans.
‘Vivian’, an unreleased yet fan-favourite track was next and the crowd immediately sang along to the continuous “la la la, la da da da da da da”! A personal favourite was up next, ‘Rita’, they seem to have a thing for old lady names as song titles, huh? During the chorus, they left it quiet and teased the audience before ending it, but an eager fan in the crowd shouted “for the fame” which made everyone giggle.
“It’s good to be back here in Leeds. I once spent an unsuccessful year of uni here… any Leeds conservatoire kids in the building?” Blakebrough asked, a few nods and cheers here and there. They then teased their upcoming EP with a song titled ‘My Number’ and everyone loved it.
They took us back 3 years to their first ever single ‘Calling Time’ which excited the crowd; the instrumentals worked together to create a blazing track with edge and grit. A trip down memory lane for the fans. Shortly followed by ‘Falling Down’ which had its very own 8-bar intro.
“Has anyone ever heard of Aleksander Doba? Well, this song was written about him, a polish kayaker, rest in peace” Blakebrough told the audience who seemed intrigued. They played the powerhouse tune ‘Doba’ off of their upcoming EP, opening with the lyrics: “Doba, Doba, you’ve gone too far, you lost your mind and forgot who you are”. I think this could easily become a new fan-favourite.
Swapping back to the acoustic guitar, they played another throwback: ‘Ella Malone’, which Blakebrough explained he wrote at 15 years old, making it their first and oldest song. This serenading tune had the crowd swaying and their hands in the air, a wonderful sight to see.
‘Ecstasy’, another unreleased song, started slow and melodically. With mentions of lullaby, the lads produced the most angelic harmonies together and wowed the crowd.
They were finally ready, the crowd was on the edge of their seats (metaphorically because no one was sitting down) as ‘Run Kid’ was up next. Arkayla’s most recent single has an edge to it, it is energetic and thrilling, and most importantly loud! Safe to say this song seems like it will be on their set-lists forever.
“You’re such a fucking waste of time!” the fans exclaimed as they reached the chorus of ‘Waste of Time’ a single from 2025 that they claimed they wrote in “20 minutes”.
“We have one more left for you now”, I think the crowd saw this coming, they closed their set with ‘Doctor’, an obvious favourite. With its exciting bass line and addictive guitar riffs, this tune is no doubt one of their bests. The rowdy chorus: “Call me the doctor doctor doctor I’m not taking my pills today!” the crowd exclaimed. Blakebrough gave it up for the band, introducing everyone and just when you thought it was over, they extended the ending just to give it to us one last time.
“Thank you Leeds, we fucking love ya! We’ve been Arkayla, we’ll see you very soon. Have a lovely night!” front man, Blakebrough, says as they wrap up the last tune. What a perfect ending to the kick off show of the tour!
Photo Credit: Ella Kreft
Taped Magazine 