We headed to the O2 Islington Academy to catch the closing night of Patent Pending’s Spring UK tour, with support coming from Sheffield's Sweet Little Machine and Newcastle lads Boy Jumps Ship.
By the time I arrive, the venue is already decently busy which reassures me that tonight will be one to remember.
Sweet Little Machine take to the stage and immediately strike a chord with the audience – the Sheffield based four piece play a set packed with catchy sing-along hooks that really sets the tone for the night – crowd interaction and plenty of it. Despite a technical issue with a dodgy guitar strap, front man Alex powers through bravely and with a real professionalism. The band easily warm the room up for the second support, Boy Jumps Ship.
The Boy Jumps Ship lads, all the way from Newcastle-Upon-Tyne are where pop-punk, indie and alt-rock collide. They’re accessible and check all the boxes that should land them on prime-time radio, yet still have the heavier elements of the alt-rock scene that fits them comfortably onto this bill. If the crowd weren’t excited before, they are now. Tracks “Make You Proud” and “Burn” make the crowd bounce and sing as if this were the main event, alas – there’s more to come.
Patent Pending walk out onto stage to a sea of screams and front man Joe jumps into the crowd during the first song. Covering tracks from their ample back-catalogue, the band play a relatively short 30 minute set that sees a crowd surfing contest between singer Joe and Sweet Little Machine drummer Joel (the latter came first), the entire room swinging their hands (hooks) back and forth and Joe live-streaming the show from stage to prove to people back in the US that they truly do play large shows on the other side of the world. Their most popular track “Hey Mario” is received (perhaps unsurprisingly) best of all, though other singles “The Whiskey, The Liar, The Thief”, “Douchebag” and “Started In My Head” get the crowd shouting at the top of their voices. The band jump, boy-band-dance and laugh their way through a set that leaves everyone feeling like everyone’s best friend. Patent Pending even manage to Rick-roll the entire crowd with a rendition of Rick Astley’s “Never Going To Give You Up”, (complete with 80’s dad dancing!) a track that appears on their new album: “Other People’s Greatest Hits”. A three-song encore ending with Joe pleading for the venue to respect the curfew so the band can meet their fans rounds off a fun and enjoyable night.
Words and Photography of
Rhys Haberfield
