Sunday night brought Norwich rock fans together at the Waterfront studio for an evening full of energetic performances.
Starting the night off was Lonesome, an alternative post-rock band, consisting of Jay Kerr Gray on vocals, Christopher Roberts on Bass, Will Cooper on Guitar and Scott Campbell on drums. They quickly had the crowd moving and attentive as they set the tone for the rest of the evening. Jay delivered flawless vocals through a glistening face covering while the rest of the band created atmospheric soundscapes to match the emotional vocals; ‘You Say It’s love’ was particularly poignant.
Next up was Newshapes from Scotland who delivered a high energy set with heavier vocals and combining more electronic components with synths. Ian Mann held it down on vocals, effortlessly switching between strong growls and softer melodies which were supported by additional backing vocals from Michael Hamilton (bass) and Stephen Christie (guitar). They had the crowd waving lighters and moshing throughout while Michael switched between bass, synth and vocals while still finding time to jump off the barrier numerous times! Their set even included an impromptu air saxophone solo from Lonesome‘s Christopher before both Stephen and Michael jumped into the middle of the pit to bring their set to a close.
Dream State took to the stage to a massive cheer from the crowd, immediately jumping into ‘Still Dreaming’. The crowd were already hyped from the previous bands but brought the circle and mosh pits up to the next level for Dream State. The fans could be heard singing along to every word, becoming increasingly louder with each verse during ‘Are You Ready to Live?’.
Jessie Powell‘s vocal range was breathtaking, switching back and forth between screams and clean vocals as if it was easy. ‘Day Seeker’ and ‘Bloom’ stood out to me in particular while the crowd seemed exceptionally captivated by their latest single ‘Forever in View’, which left them silent, making in every note while Jake Owen and Aled Evans shredded on bass and guitar.
This evening was a perfect display of how music brings everyone together and further showcased how different bands’ approach rock and post-hardcore music to create their distinctive sounds. I found it fascinating how each band used similar components like synths and electronic production combined with live rock elements to create very different atmospheres within the same genre boundaries.