'This Better Be Something Great': Westside Cowboy live at YES Pink Room

On the same day they released their debut EP, rising act Westside Cowboy celebrated in style at YES Pink Room.

The first band to take the stage was Holly Head. Like Westside Cowboy, they have quickly become a fixture in Manchester’s music scene, building a devoted following in just three years. Emerging from the local scene alongside bands such as Fruit and Martial Arts, who lean into post-rock influences, Holly Head carve their own niche. Vocally, they evoke the deep yearning and introspection similar to Midwest emo bands, while their intricate bass lines and raw energy drive their songs, and the guitars are comparable to Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin’s work on Schlagenheim or the post-punk grit of The Fall.

Formal Sppeedwear, the second act of the night, similarly carve out a unique space in a scene often flooded with modern post-punk imitators, subverting expectations with a fresh take on new-wave. Singer Beck Clewlow channels the vocal style of David Byrne, but rather than commanding attention as a typical frontman, he shifts focus to the band’s intricate, funky basslines that groove beneath the vocals. Formal Sppeedwear have given themselves room to evolve and grow as a band: even though their inspiration is rooted in eighties legends such as Talking Heads and Brian Eno, they add originality and vibrant energy to Manchester’s art rock landscape.

Westside Cowboy themselves, headliners and one of the biggest musical talking points in the country, took to the stage to the sound of 'Tumbling Dice' by The Rolling Stones, a song that echoes the band's ethos and musical achievements. The band evidently takes inspiration from rock and roll music, a genre which finds complexity in the emotions it evokes, and their style is reminiscent of nineties rock bands including Pixies and Pavement, as evident in the final EP single, 'Drunk Surfer'. These stylistic choices allow the band to use simpler chords and structures, focussing more on one of their biggest strengths: the emotional impact of lyricism.

The band's songs span from the lush but quiet ‘Slowly I’m Sure’, to the loud but still deeply romantic ‘I’ve Never Met Anyone I Thought I Could Really Love (Till I Met You)’. When the crowd began singing the opening of 'Shells', they reacted with beaming smiles: the moment must have confirmed to them that the opening lyric for the EP and the title itself, "this better be something great", had come true. The song’s abrupt time changes flow effortlessly, a testament to drummer Paddy Murphy’s drive. Murphy commands his instrument with incredible pace and power, driving the song's energy.

Westside Cowboy closed their set with a moment in which Murphy picked up his snare, leading the band to crowd around a singular microphone and finish the night with a classic folk-inspired song. It came in stark contrast to the relentless, driving pace of the rest of the set, but provided a touching conclusion to the show. The song is currently unreleased, yet the crowd were able to recite most of its lyrics in a true testament to the support and love for the band in Manchester.

The band's swift progression and growth is nothing short of astounding: they played to a packed-out room as support for art-rockers mary in the junkyard just half a year ago, and now they’re back headlining the same venue to celebrate the release of their debut EP on the same day.

It seems as if there are no bounds to what Westside Cowboy can achieve, and they have already achieved so much in their short time as a band. Their crowd evidently recognised that, causing a collective feeling of inspiration and radiating happiness from the room after the gig. Westside Cowboy inspire hope, and with their upcoming EU tour alongside Black Country, New Road, they will soar to even greater heights.

Listen to the EP here.