WOLF ALICE | LIVE REVIEW

Muni Arts Centre, Pontypridd, Mon 21 Aug

The Muni Arts Centre is a venue where intimacy is key; a hub for entertainment in Pontypridd, where the community saved the venue in 2015. The gothic architecture of the building is typical of any Welsh town, but what made this seemingly quiet Monday night different is that one of the most frenzied bands currently in British rock came to play a show that sold out in just two minutes.

Wolf Alice are a four-piece that have triumphed with their debut album My Love Is Cool: their grunge flair and folk undertones have propelled them to the Pyramid Stage whilst ticking off Grammy, Brit and Mercury nominations.

Handpicked by the London outfit, the support came from Aberdare trio Head Noise, where they sported black jackets with DIY white silhouettes sprawled across the back. Their electropop was full of eccentricities, including a cover of the Chemical Brothers’ Hey Boy Hey Girl, a surprise choice for a Wolf Alice crowd.

Opening with Don’t Delete The Kisses, the introduction of the headliners’ new material was met with a moshpit reaching the same energy levels as earlier, punkier favourite You’re A Germ. Wolf Alice’s forthcoming album Visions Of A Life, set to be released at the end of September, finds them progressing from debut material – the title track and Beautifully Unconventional for example – but the grit matched with the eloquent, melodic vocals of frontwoman Ellie Rowsell has been furthered. The atmosphere tonight quashed any questions as to whether the group would struggle with second album syndrome; their manner is kinetic and infectious.

While Rowsell’s stage presence remained fairly reserved at times, she stands out by virtue of her seemingly natural ability to switch from thrashing vocals (Yuk Foo), to folorn lyricism (Blush) with no varying degree of impact. Topping the set with Moaning Lisa Smile and an encore of Giant Peach, Wolf Alice’s performance tonight finds the band diminishing the stigma around guitar music dying a death.

words FFION RIORDAN-JONES photos KEVIN PICK