Live Review: Junodream - Bush Hall, London 28/09/2023
Ahead of their debut album ‘Pools Of Colour’, dream-rock outfit junodream dazzled at Bush Hall for the final show of their September tour.
Having formed at the start of 2018 with their first EP ‘Isn’t It Lovely (To Be Alone)’ released in 2019, junodream are relatively fresh faces. However, their psychedelic space-rock inspired sound has gathered a major audience, earning them a spot supporting The Backseat Lovers during the UK leg of their tour and bringing in over 11-million streams of their early single ‘To the Moon’. Consisting of Ed Vyvyan (vocals/keys), Tom Rea (guitar), Dougal Gray (guitar) and Jake Gidley (drums), the band touched down in Shepherd’s Bush for a sold-out show at Bush Hall to conclude their UK mini tour.
The ornate venue was filled from top to bottom with attendees waiting for junodream to take the stage. When the time came, the band was greeted by an eager crowd and generous bouts of applause. They began with ‘The Beach’, the first single they’ve released this year. A dreamlike feel was strung together by Vyvyan’s floaty vocals and hazy instrumentation. A mesmerising number, the reception was striking for a track that was released just two months ago. The crowd hung on to every word, with attendees swaying in waves as they sang along: “Head up, head out, I wish I could take to the beach.” The band then waded into the unfamiliar with unreleased ‘Kitchen Sink Door’ taken from their forthcoming album ‘Pools Of Colour’. The track balanced upbeat delivery with brooding instrumentation that occasionally felt haunting, and the crowd took in every bit of it.
Before continuing, Vyvyan took a break to thank the audience and introduce ‘Galactica’ – “I don’t know if you ever feel attached or displaced, addicted to your phone, that’s what this is about.” The track played low and slow with a velvety key melody, subtle bass groove and glossy electric melodies. As disco ball lights danced against the beautifully constructed space, an otherworldly moment in time was created. This stretched into ‘To The Moon’, an endearing swirl of textures – light keys, mysterious synth waves and wispy guitar rhythms that came together with a stunning flow. It was clear that the track brought in millions of streams for a reason. The tone switched as the band began their most recent single ‘Death Drive’, a punchy number introduced by a faint whistle, short, sunny riffs, and a deep bass groove. Rea added a bit of flair to the percussion with shakers, bringing everything together with an old Western feel.
Towards the end of the performance, Vyvyan spoke to the crowd with a touching announcement. “The important thing to say is we have our debut album, ‘Pools Of Colour’ coming out. I don’t know if you can imagine what it’s like for us, but we’ve known each other since we were fourteen and all we’ve wanted to do was release an album. Now we’re here.” This led into ‘Close Encounters’, a starry-eyed alien-themed track which also taken from the new album. Attendees raised their phone torches high, brightening the space as Vyvyan confessed, “I can’t explain why the aliens came.” After briefly going back to 2018 with the fuzzy, electrically charged ‘Fire Doors’, Vyvyan elaborated on the meaning behind ‘Pools Of Colour’. “It’s about insignificance, really. In relationships, in space, and coming to terms with that,” he explained. “But also, we’re junodream – we find significance in our dreams.” This was followed by ‘The Oranges’, another unreleased track which truly felt like a dream through its ambiguous lyricism and neo-psychedelic undertones.
Unexpectedly, the most thrilling part of the evening was the end; but this is not said with contempt. After giving their all in a blazing performance of ‘Nobody Wants You’, the group thanked the audience and left the stage. The crowd erupted in chants of “juno!” and “one more song!”, the ground vibrating as attendees stomped their feet and continued their applause in hopes of an encore. Almost timidly, Vyvyan returned to say that the performance really was over, and they had not planned for an encore. To appease the demands of a wanting crowd, junodream returned to play ‘Nobody Wants You’ once more for a thrilling reprise. While the first time was riveting, the second transformed into an entirely different performance. “I wanna see a lot of sweat,” Vyvyan encouraged, and the crowd was happy to oblige. The room trembled as attendees jumped and sang along, with Vyvyan even stepping down into the audience to be a part of it. After crowdsurfing his way back to the stage, junodream bade their final farewell with animated cheers to follow.
junodream has constructed a hypnotic soundscape that becomes an entirely unique experience when mixed with their energetic stage presence. Their debut album ‘Pools Of Colour’ is due to be released on 26 January 2024 and it is available for pre-order now. junodream is only just beginning, and with the stir they’ve created across the span of five years, it seems it’s only onward and upward from here.
Words by Kayla Sandiford
