I still find it hard to believe that Pale Waves are on their fourth album. I vividly recall the hype that surrounded the band when they first emerged, helped heavily by being signed to Dirty Hit and championed by a worldwide sensation like The 1975, who took the newcomers to arenas worldwide as support for their A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships tour.
That's not to detract from the quality of their early work at all, but it undoubtedly helped. Their debut single 'There's A Honey' was, and still remains, the type of song many bands could only dream of conjuring and I still think of the first time I saw the band in the Steel room at The Leadmill, a tiny gig for a band with incredible potential. The early successes of their first singles truly laid out a path for the band.
The band have done anything but stick to that path by any means though. Over their four LPs, the Manchester quartet have spanned genres and eras and consistently reinvented themselves, their look and their sound. Debut My Mind Make Noises encapsulates their love of 80s pop with sweeping synths and infectious melodies, while follow ups Who Am I? and Unwanted tap into the pop punk glories of the 90s and early noughties.
Now, with their fourth record Smitten, Pale Waves tap back into their potential as pop powerhouses with soaring success. As the name suggests, among the 12 tracks there are countless ballads purely about love in the modern day. Heather Baron-Gracie's incredible lyricism plays out over a gorgeously rich soundscape that evokes memories of The Cure and The Cranberries to name just a couple. It pulls no punches in it's descriptions of the highs and lows of love and in doing so, it scratches a particular shameless itch in your brain and refuses to stop until it's drawn a smile from you.
Armed with what may be their best work to date, Pale Waves took to the stage of Foundry with the swagger of a band at the top of their game and they would do little to dispel those thoughts over their set. In a crowd that somehow seemed to encompass all ages and styles, the four-piece delighted all. Opening straight away with the gorgeously atmospheric 'Perfume' and cinematic 'Not A Love Song', they made it clear that Smitten would be at the core of the show, if the title of the tour had left anyone in doubt.
Heather and company have never been one to shy away from taking risks with their work but I wasn't quite ready for 'There's a Honey' to happen within the opening salvo of songs, but it was an undoubted stroke of genius. The basement room burst to life singing every word as loud as any I've seen there previously, it was feverish and euphoric and speaks to the impressively enduring quality of the band's debut.
While other cuts from Smitten and My Mind Makes Noises took centre stage for large parts of the night, particular highlights including of course 'Television Romance' and 'Eighteen' from the latter and 'Thinking About You' and 'Kiss Me Again' from the former, they weren't afraid to give the other two LPs the spotlight too. 'Change' and 'Easy' were just as well received as any of the other tracks and 'You're So Vain' saw Heather don a tiara to really hammer home the "fuck you" feeling of the track.
Pale Waves have never hidden their influences or inspirations in their work, despite making everything their own their music does evoke images of countless bands before them. But perhaps the clearest and most important influence and inspiration for them is the LGBTQI community. That love and admiration comes through most apparently on their performance of 'She's My Religion' which sees Heather proudly raise a Lesbian flag and proudly declared her queerness, dedicating the song to girls. It was a triumphant and liberating moment.
Before you knew it, the bulk of the gig was over. The band left their entrancingly designed stage to cries asking for more, and after the obligatory chants of "Yorkshire!" from the crowd, they eagerly obliged. Smitten had one more gem for us in the form of 'Glasgow', a true power ballad but one somewhat at odds with the overall celebration of love that is Smitten, it is a break up anthem after all. But even the story of this track cannot dampen spirits as it plays out over a glorious glitzy melody reminiscent of The Cure's 'Just Like Heaven', it still feels like a celebration.
Sadly, like the relationship in 'Glasgow', all good things must come to an end, as they did here in the most spectacular way. 'Jealousy' has earned its spot as the band's curtain closer since the release of Unwanted and rightly so really. It's pure power pop with a punk edge that demands an energy from the crowd that few tracks can. Based on each time I've seen it live, the crowd are more than happy to comply, at tonight was no different, leading to a rapturous performance, deafening choruses and limbs everywhere.
Heather stated in one of her chats with the crowd that "it feels good to be back up north". They had spent time in Bristol, Brighton and Nottingham before coming up to Sheffield. Maybe this was the spark that led to such a jaw-dropping show ... Or maybe it's just the fact that Pale Waves are one of the best fucking bands in the country. I know which conclusion I left with.
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