Wolf Alice have been a total powerhouse on the UK music scene since 2010, winning the prestigious title Group of the Year at the 2022 BRIT Awards following their chart-topping third album Blue Weekend. Ascending in popularity ever since, the quartet has since began touring again to promote their latest album The Clearing, which has blended the ethereal pop flair that they have become known for since 'Don't Delete The Kisses' with seventies classical rock influences, drawing a strong likeness to Fleetwood Mac. Wolf Alice have mastered the art of experimentation and genre-bending in their music, and they certainly showed that off in the AO Arena.
The stage for Wolf Alice was built for drama: lead singer Ellie Rowsell appeared in front of a backdrop covered with shimmering silver streamers in a flamboyant shining leotard. It was evident from the moment she stepped on stage that the audience were going to be watching a boisterous and lively set, especially as she paraded downstage to the instrumentation of their opening song 'Thorns'.
This melancholic track may not have been the most obvious choice to excite the crowd, but Rowsell's emotive lyrics and soft instrumentation certainly encapsulated the wistful ambience expected from Wolf Alice. Despite it not having the sucker-punch style that a lot of their other tracks have, it was a perfect way to wean in their new material, and began the night in the same way it begins The Clearing.
The second song of the set came in the form of The Clearing's lead single, 'Bloom Baby Bloom'. An eccentric medium between dreamy pop and hard seventies rock, Rowsell sang the track's sultry lyrics to the backing of a smooth bluesy showcasing her signature operatic vocalisation. A positive song about personal growth, 'Bloom Baby Bloom' was the perfect choice to uplift the crowd as the set began to properly kick in.
Wolf Alice glided into their next song, the bluesy fan favourite 'Formidable Cool' from their second album Visions of a Life. Rowsell used her mixture of delicate technique and raspy screams to show her vocal versatility, that undoubtedly has helped make the band a staple in UK indie music. The swanky blues riff alongside meticulous vocal melodies truly demonstrated Wolf Alice's chemistry as a band, as well as their instrumental malleability. The choice to place 'Formidable Cool' so early on in their setlist, especially after 'Thorns' as an exposition track, was bold but effective, as the seventies-inspired blues elements of the song got every audience member's toes tapping.
Wolf Alice went on to introduce a song that is deeply meaningful to the band, namely 'The Sofa' which provided the second single from their latest album and focuses on feeling unapologetically, refusing confinement from the world. Rowsell took some time to explain the song prior to playing it, exclaiming "if I want to wear my sparkly knickers, I will!", which was met with rippling laughter and assenting cheers from the crowd.
'The Sofa' is a melodic indie track, paired seamlessly with candid lyricism about being "not ashamed" to celebrate one's own joys and successes. The fluttering instrumentation and Rowsell's vocals truly captured the whimsical indie-pop side of Wolf Alice, making a perfect asset to both the set and their newest album.
The band continued by performing a slower cut from Blue Weekend, 'Safe From Heartbreak'. The minimal instrumentation and Rowsell's trilling melodies greatly contrast most of the other tracks in the set, offering a refreshing call-back to the opening song. However, the band encouraged some crowd interaction, met with cheering from the audience. All members of the band asked the audience to think about an ex, and with that passion to yell "you fucked with my feelings!" as loud as they could. Despite the softness of the song, Wolf Alice still managed to incorporate their indie-rock persona into their crowd interaction, inciting as much intensity from the audience as possible.
The final song of the night had to be their biggest to date, 'Don't Delete the Kisses'. This song proves itself as ethereal live as it sounds in your headphones: heavily reverbed instrumentation and Rowsell's flowing vocalisation instantly excited the crowd, who were compelled to sing along word for word.
Overall, Wolf Alice managed to entirely enrapture the crowd at the AO Arena by combining their oldest and newest hits, while showing off their experimental fashions onstage. With plenty of audience interaction, glamorous drama, and powerful vocals, it is needless to say that Wolf Alice's live performances are not one to miss.
https://open.spotify.com/album/2kKc3Yid0YR3SSbeQ3x5kV?si=B2Ru1jAOTaWbjM6HYtROog
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