LiveWolf Alice headline Ally Pally with a formidable cool
“Don’t chicken out, it’s all good. You’re allowed to be what you could,” sung Wolf Alice way back when. That shimmering self-belief has always been a part of their ramshackle DNA and tonight as they play ‘Blush’ to a sold out Alexandra Palace, that line echoes from their past with a smile.
Wolf Alice could have made the step from academies to arenas years ago but they waited. Patience has always been paramount as the group ensures everything they do is just right. And rather than reaching, the gang look comfortable throughout. From the slowburn open of ‘Heavenward’, everything is deliberate, considered but still comes with a touch of danger.
‘Yuk Foo’ swiftly follows, the anger that runs beneath ‘Visions Of A Life’ breaking the surface for a few blistering moments and lighting the room up before the band twist it, and use it to create.
‘Don’t Delete The Kisses’ into ‘Bros’ is a powerful showing of the band at their most sentimental and affectionate, celebrating small victories and enduring connection on the biggest of stages while that intimacy continues as Ellie rolls ‘Planet Hunter’ around in her mouth. “I lost my mind in 2015,” a purposeful stance as the band send postcards from then and now.
The threat and fury of ‘Formidable Cool’ morphs into the strobe lit realisation of ‘Sadboy’ while ‘Space & Time’ already has the twang of a classic as Joff spins, shakes and smashes his guitar about, trying to make it sing. It’s defining moment after defining moment during an evening that refuses to settle. You can’t have a highlight when the band glow as brightly as they do. The four way vocals on the shuddering ‘Visions Of A Life’ come close, as does the triumphant riptide of ‘Giant Peach’ but it’s the moment that Jade, a fifteen-year-old fan who’s never played guitar in front of a crowd before, gets up and plays Ellie’s part in ‘Moaning Lisa Smile’ flawlessly that really captures the real magic of Wolf Alice. There’s no gushing or babysitting from the band, instead the shared trust and mutual respect between everyone in the room takes to the stage with an effortless cool.
“So this is fucking mental playing here, just for the record,” exclaims Theo as dreams, self-belief and hard work come together under a winking glitterball. Even tonight, the band take their time and allow each song to spread out and take up as much space as they need. Every one fills the room, scratching at the walls and pressing against the ceiling. As confetti rains down on what Wolf Alice have built, the next step is already theirs for the taking. Whenever they want to, of course.
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