Live Review: Pool Kids - The Garage, London 25/02/2026
Pool Kids, Sydney Sprague and Fresh brought an emo masterclass of connection and energy to London’s The Garage on Wednesday night.
The Floridan headliners returned to the English capital for the first time in almost three years – revealing their 2023 headline show at Sebright Arms was their favourite Pool Kids show ever. Punk is the soundtrack of hot evenings, and the first sunshine of the year to hit London earlier in the day made it stickier, sweatier and more real.
The supports were two acts previously championed by WTHB, starting with London punks Fresh, who opened the night at 7.30 sharp.
Vocalist Kathryn ran out yelling “we are here to rock and roll”, introducing 30 minutes of pent-up power from the quartet, aided by George, Daniel and Joely.
Almost two years out from their last single, ‘Merch Girl’, the third song in their set, and almost four years from their most-recent album ‘Raise Hell’ (represented by the jaunty ‘Why Do I’), it is natural to mix in newer songs too. The high-energy Fresh rollercoaster swerved between the two camps effortlessly, including a newbie which answers the question “What if Fresh was disco?”
A snippet of Tom Petty’s ‘Won’t Back Down’ is used as the intro to their track ‘Going to Brighton’, which saw Kathryn running back and forth across the stage, utilising her fellow bandmates microphones and being generally captivating.
The good depth of new songs mean devoted fans should be excited for whatever path Fresh follow next, whilst their well-received wall of noise caught new admirers in the audience.
The rapid-fire nature of Fresh’s songs made Sydney Sprague feel like a prog rocker by comparison. This is despite last year’s ‘Peak Experience’ cramming eight tracks into 21 minutes. That album made up most of her 40-minute slot, starting with ‘Fair Field’ and quickly moving into ‘As Scared As Can Be’, introduced with a short speech about the US social situation, admitting “it’s as bad as it sounds”.
Sydney has joined Pool Kids on the entire UK tour, bringing her to London for the first time. It’s long overdue, not least after revealing to the audience that the city was her number one location on Spotify since last year.
Five years on from her gorgeous debut album, ‘maybe i will see you at the end of the world’, it is represented by two tracks. There was the spine-tingling ‘quitter’ and the reflective headbanger ‘steve’, feeling just as cathartic as the studio version: “Can I get what I want only once? Would it ever be enough?”
Meanwhile sophomore effort ‘somebody in hell loves you’ was represented by ‘lsob’ and its infectious refrain: “So tell me what to do”.
‘Dead’s In The Van’, a song about the perils of touring, is introduced with Sydney joking “this song is not for you” because of the breezy set-up at The Garage that day.
‘Flat Circle’, inspired by a half-remembered quote from Matthew McConaughey’s character in ‘True Detective’, is a particular highlight, as the Arizona songwriter sang: “What if time’s supposed to be flat? Will I ever get it back?”
Her impressive interplay with her band – fiancé Chuck on bass, Meghan on drums, and Seìbastien on guitar – made her set fly by, ending with 2022 standalone single ‘Think Nothing’.
Sydney filled her first London show with snappy but introspective songs packed with emotion. Here’s hoping her return is imminent.
“London, what’s up you fucking cunts?”
Thus began an hour of chaos, kicking off with ‘Arm’s Length’ from the quartet’s 2022 self-titled LP. For Pool Kids, the high-octane stuff comes naturally. Drummer Caden Clinton, bassist Nicolette Alvarez and axeman Andrew Anaya hold the fort marvellously well, but naturally, the attention is drawn to Christine Goodwyne, the captivating front woman and ringleader.
Before ‘That’s Physics, Baby’, she told the crowd: “That show we played at Sebright Arms in London was my number one favourite Pool Kids show we have ever played”, adding: “That’s going to be very hard to top.”
But everyone does their best to do this. From the pit, or the band, it’s constant kineticism. There’s bouncing, swaying, and more. The crowd do their part too, waving their phone lights for ‘$5 Subtweet’, from the first Pool Kids album, or waving their arms during ‘Sorry Not Sorry’. The latter is one of the singalong highlights of the night: “You never call me when you’re sober. You only call me when it’s half past midnight.”
The latest Pool Kids album, ‘Easier Said Than Done’, is their first LP for big-fish indie label Epitaph, and it makes up the lion’s share of their show, including ‘Tinted Windows’, a song about life on tour when Covid wrecks your plans, where Nicolette’s translucent pink bass shone brightly under the purple lighting. Meanwhile ‘Leona Street’ is a pop-rock anthem for the ages, full of the tiniest lyrical details which make the band stand out.
It also applies to the album’s title track - “Drinking on a Wednesday” never felt more resonant. Inducing another clap-along from the start, it transforms into a chaotic blend of emo, math-rock and pop all rolled into one. It’s at this point Christine takes to crowdsurfing, but she doesn’t miss a beat, word-perfect, before hopping back on stage to transition straight into ‘Talk Too Much’. It’s a breathtaking spectacle.
‘Dani’, from last August’s album, is a standout emo moment of the show. It built up big and dramatic, before descending into a beautiful ending: “I trusted you. I trusted you.”.
Under Andrew’s instructions, the crowd packed in “nice and tight” ahead of the encore. So many miles from Florida, he admitted it was “mind-boggling” to see a packed-out room. There’s one more trip into the triumphant emo world of Pool Kids, before they left again, but they won’t be leaving fans waiting. They revealed they’re coming back in the summer with Free Throw and Saturdays At Your Place – as well as 2000 Trees and Outbreak Festivals. “See you this summer.” You can bet many of those in the room are already planning their Julys.
It’s simple, sure, but it’s effective, the quartet getting the job done. There’s wholesome emo with a sprinkling of math-rock in their livewire performance. The pop elements also make it feel like an Alanis Morissette show at times. This mixture doesn’t sound like it works, until it does.
It’s tough being an independent artist in 2026. All acts have their merch pitches nailed down, given their importance in keeping bands on the road. At the end of an ethereal punk show, something tangible like a vinyl or t-shirt can feel important too. Plus it cuts down on shipping costs from the States – Sydney joked “it cost about 14 million USD to ship over here”.
But this trio of acts showed the positivity in being independent. The night had a buzz of reciprocal support, starting when Fresh’s Kathryn called it “a dream line-up”. Sydney’s band and Pool Kids consider each other “family”, and when Christine starts up a chant going “Sydney, Sydney, Sydney fucking Sprague”, it threatens to be one of the catchiest songs of the night. It’s an impressive achievement considering the depth of music on show at The Garage.
Ultimately, it’s a story about connection, with each other, with the music, and fellow fans. The whole room was bouncing physically, but everyone left bouncing emotionally too.
Words by Samuel Draper
