Live Review: Pale Waves - Outernet, London 17/10/2024
Pale Waves put on a charismatic performance at Outernet.
Supporting Pale Waves on their UK tour was Scottish three piece band swim school, who continue their momentum on a run of big support slots, including the likes of Declan McKenna, Inhaler and The Amazons. Singer Alice with deliciously deadpan delivery quips to the crowd: “When we first started we were called a shite Pale Waves, look at us now!” This seems ironic based on their confident performance tonight.
Their influences include Foals, Wolf Alice and Pale Waves, singer Alice Johnson stated in a 2021 indie interview with Dork that Wolf Alice's lead singer Ellie Rowsell was her musical inspiration, and humorously described themselves as a "Tesco Value" version of the band. Their track ‘Let me inside your head’ has a strong rocky feel, very reminiscent of Wolf Alice, with its whispered start building up to a feral howl, showcasing the singer’s powerful voice.
Embarking on a UK tour to support their fourth album ‘Smitten’ released in September. Pale Waves play two nights at London’s futuristic Outernet, with the first night sold out tonight on a thriving Thursday in Tottenham Court Road. “I saw you standing there, and I was smitten” blasted over the sound system as they strode onto the stage with a spring in their step.
Since breaking the Manchester indie scene in 2014, the first three albums from Pale Waves thematically focussed on the present, whereas new album ‘Smitten’ delves into the past. Two years since their last album Unwanted, and its accompanying tour, singer and songwriter Heather felt able to reflect: “I found myself writing about not just a certain time period, but my whole life, from years ago. When I fall in love, I fall deep, and it’s interesting to me that you can feel so fascinated and smitten with someone and then they can become a total stranger. So I feel like Smitten really summarised perfectly what I felt for others at a certain point.”
Their punk pop sound still remains, but is softened with more of a synth pop feel. The album’s more grown up themes of the thrills and confusion of youth, being queer and in love resonate with the young audience tonight. Starting the set with the uplifting ‘Perfume’ with its catchy hook “I wanna make, I wanna make you my world” lead singer Heather Baron Gracie’s voice rings out sweetly, with a distinct Cranberries feel. This is definitely less punky than their previous songs, with a more dream-like quality. Their stage set up adorned with chandeliers and a mirror in the drum kit to reflect the fans in the front row singing along to every word is aesthetically pleasing.
Their third song in the set goes back to the first album with ‘There’s A Honey’, a Pale Waves fan favourite, as Heather states to the crowd, who passionately sing along the refrain “I will give you my body but I’m not sure if you want me”. Then ‘Change’ from the second album brings us back to a more pop punk, Avril Lavigne sound with its feisty lyrics. ‘Drive’ is “About being 23 and being emo” Heather says and adding that she was told: “It shouldn’t be on the set list, but I rarely listen to anyone, it’s Heather’s way or no way!”. ‘You’re So Vain’ sees Heather put on a tiara reminiscent of Courtney love, and its combative lyrics and grungy guitar sound channel her in the Nineties Hole heyday.
They give the audience the chance to decide the next song that they should play, and Heather teases with her cheeky charisma: “Are you ready for that power?”. Eventually they decide on ‘Red’, which goes down a treat with the fans. Following this, ‘She’s My Religion’ is introduced by the lead singer with the lively statement: “Let’s fucking go lesbians!”. For the encore ‘Glasgow’ from the new album gets a huge reception, as well as ‘Jealousy’, closing a hugely charismatic first night here at Outernet.
Words By Brendan Sharp
Photo Credit: Kelsi Luck
