Live Review: Love Rarely - The Grace, London 06/05/2026
Love Rarely bring an intense emo math rock set to Highbury/Islington’s Grace that shows they’re ready for bigger things; with excellent support from the likes of Sunday Best – we’ve just witnessed the first London headline of the next great hardcore band
For a relatively new band like Love Rarely to sell out the Grace after the release of their album is massive; to the point where you’re almost left wondering whether or not it should be upgraded for more space. The crowd – everyone involved; have come tonight as they’re fans – be it of local support act Sunday Best, or headliner Love Rarely – the Leeds band at to a growing number the strength of that scene. Their intricate math rock style and five-piece structure gives them a unique sound with soaring; powerful choruses – you can see instantly, why this is a Slamdunk sponsored show – the perfect chance for those going to mingle and network ahead of the emo festival in Hatfield (and Leeds!) later this month.
Sunday Best are on first and I haven’t seen that much energy from an opening band in a long time. They’re local favourites and it’s very much a queer friendly, pro-Palestinian hardcore band that wear their heart on their sleeve: repping the hardcore scene for alternative people of colour at every show. Walls of death, circle pits, heavy moshes, two-stepping are all present - with the enthusiasm that you only get if you are really, really into this music and nobody there looks as though they don’t want to be on stage. Their groove-oriented emo and post-hardcore makes them the perfect support for Love Rarely – with lead vocalist Alex Ekong catering to bands like My Chemical Romance, Letlive. and Smashing Pumpkins for inspiration – and you can tell in his vocals; lead delivery and sheer passion that he brings to the table – all band members are unafraid to bring their instruments into the pit and get stuck in. It’s high tempo, high-energy, completely and utterly unpredictable – and running through tracks like ‘Pollyana’, ‘Dig Deep’ and ‘Past Tense’ – those who got down early (as you always should) are in for a treat. They’ve already played Multitude and Decolonise Fest – and have had sold out shows in London and Birmingham. That’s the sign of a band on the rise – capable of getting fans out of their comfort zone and into the pit in the best way possible.
Second act on is mishikui; who draw on influences from the likes of Sunny Day Real Estate, Title Fight and Drug Church and that is evident in their post-hardcore set up. Their sound refuses to be defined by any one space, and they instantly carve out a unique path with a clear vision – the dreamy guitar hooks groove throughout the room and the audience is engaged completely. They look set to follow the journey to Burn it Down festival in Torquay and that’s the sign of a real tastemaker hardcore show right there – they draw a packed out crowd and get them bumping and moving effortlessly.
Headliners Love Rarely are on an upward trajectory and that’s apparent by the fact that the crowd know the words to every song even though Pain Travels is a very recent release. It’s an intricately personal record and intimate show to boot; the band making the venue feel alive and lived in completely and utterly. Lead vocals Courtney Levitt’s screams are both haunting and deeply powerful – reminiscent of Tay Zantingh’s intensity (frontwoman of Canadian hardcore screamo outfit Piss, equally good and equally dealing with as much rawness in their subject matter) and capable of chewing scenery with the best of them. The energy is ramped up to eleven and it feels like the whole venue is pitting; moshing, there’s even time for a crowd-surf. Circle pits break out early on and Love Rarely have the energy for much bigger stages and the star power to back it up – Levitt’s ability to command the room to have walls of death split open and surge forward is impressive; the vocal delivery for the sheer intensity of the subject even moreso. Love Rarely tackles rich issues like generational trauma and how if not dealt with correctly it just carries on and on through families – with the album tackling deep rooted issues from childhood.
They’ve said that the album fits the vibe of Danny Boyle’s ’28 Days Later’ – although I’d say just as likely reflective in its sequel; ‘Years’ – with the themes of family issues between the core group of characters that are apparent and that is the one soundtrack that evocates the mood of the live show perfectly upon delivery. It’s an outfit that feel really engaging live – capable of chewing up the room and leaving nobody behind. ‘Whiplash’, ‘Mould’ and ‘Severed’ get us started – and if it wasn’t personal by ‘Severed’ things get really intimate by then; the spell cast on the audience helps it feels like you’re witnessing a special intimate set from a star performer that normally fills out arenas. Levitt’s energy is unparalleled and the abrasive attitude that she brings to the table draws the crowd in; rarely standing still and always throwing the bands’ weight around. It’s my favourite from the record so to see it deployed so early in the set marks a very high bar for them to clear for the rest of it.
The complicated relief of letting go of a personal family member is such a hard, deeply personal thing to do and incredibly difficult when they’re still in your life – you can’t help but feel guilty even though it’s through their own actions, not yours, that have lead them to this point – and you have to acknowledge that some people are beyond saving. You hope you don’t have to relate to it; but too many people do. This kind of emotional power helps Love Rarely to stand out and catch eyeballs – like with their show supporting The Callous Daoboys and Knives at Underworld; it feels like your last chance to catch them at a venue this small – few stronger debut hardcore albums have been released this decade.
The rest of the set follows: it’s 13 strong which covers most of the tracks they’ve released so far; drawing as much from ‘Lonely People’ as ‘Pain Travels’. By the time you reach ‘Through Families’ you feel like you’ve been on an almost spiritual journey of healing with the band themselves – able to convey the emotions of their pain; and their growth through trauma – with the audience. “So pull up the family tree, the roots are soaked in alcohol, the branches weak, the leaves suffer” is self-cited as Levitt’s favourite lyric from the band and it’s easy to see why in her delivery – grappling with the weight of alcohol addiction and the scars it leaves behind. As a main set closure before the outro of ‘P.A.F.’ it’s a perfectly quieter; more emotional touch.
Catch Love Rarely at 2000 Trees and Truck Festival this summer, as well as Burn it Down in September – their unique blend of vulnerability, defiance and post-punk riffs really captures a space in the scene that is very much lacking right now. Don’t ignore support act Sunday Best either – playing next at the Black Heart, supporting Profiler, before a string of festivals like Bulletproof and Duck & Dive.
Words by Miles Milton-Jefferies
