Live Review: Our Hollow, Our Home - 299, London 24/03/2017

Our Hollow Our Home are right at the front of the latest wave of UK metalcore. We headed to the first night of their Spring ‘17 tour to speak with them about their debut full-length album “Hartsick” and to catch their show at the 229 Venue, London.

The 229 isn’t large. It needn’t be – with the likes of Brixton, Shepherd’s Bush and Roundhouse (to name a few) carrying the torch for larger venues, there need to be more intimate spaces too.

Vanity Draws Blood are greeted to a small crowd even by 299’s standards, but that does nothing to deter them. The band members spin, jump and scream as if the room were fit to bursting. For the first support, their light-show is surprisingly energetic; rather fitting considering the fervour with which they perform. Heads bob and a couple of people mosh – it’s a small start to the night, through no fault of the band, who play through their set with a passion that’d fill a headline show.



Sworn Amongst get a greater response from the crowd. Stand-in vocalist Jack does a fantastic job covering the band’s material, descending from the stage to sing into the faces of the fans below. For Sworn Amongst, this show is personal - various medical problems have meant that getting back on the road has been a difficult journey; a special round of applause rounds off their set on a humble and impressive note.



The headliners Our Hollow Our Home, perhaps unsurprisingly, get the largest welcome of all. The venue is still by no means full, but those that are in attendance return the energy from the stage in swathes. Die-hard fans that I met in the queue outside scream back every word and queue to sing into the microphone when vocalist Connor pushes it out to them, whilst Toby’s cleans are echoed by the audience. They joke about being able to play an entire full-length set that doesn’t repeat songs; tracks from both the Redefine EP and the new LP Hartsick make for some very happy fans. A special guest spot for Shields’ Sam Kubrick during “Rest Assured” closes their main set and they finish with an encore of “Pride: Lieoness” – a fitting end to a cracking opening night.



Words and Photography by Rhys Haberfield