Wolf Alice live in London: Britain’s boldest rock band conquer the biggest of rooms
On the first of two nights at The O2 Arena, Britain's best rock band of the last decade prove why they've ended up in rooms of this size
By Nick Reilly
There’s a touching moment during Wolf Alice‘s first night at The O2 when ‘Bros’ – their enduring anthem to the power of friendship – fades out and the arena’s screens highlight a photo of the band as awkward youngsters in their tentative years.
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If only those four young friends could see how far they have come now. Across a lean and action-packed 90 minutes, here is a show which proves why Wolf Alice have rightly staked their claim to being arguably the best young British rock band of the last decade.
They arrive on a stage which has been draped in an enormous tinsel curtain, channelling the 70s vibe of their brilliant latest album The Clearing, before setting the dramatic ante with ‘Thorns’ – a gorgeous ballad with shades of 007 about it. Dennis Villeneuve could do a lot worse than considering this lot when cameras finally roll on his much-mooted Bond film.
From here, it’s a show which proves that the talent, showmanship and incredible songs from these four friends was always bound to end up resulting in two nights at a room like this. An early outing for ‘Bloom Baby Bloom’ offers the first chance for singer Ellie Rowsell to let out a formidable howl and show off an intensity which rarely lets up. She constantly stalks the stage to survey her crowd and during ‘Formidable Cool’ – even comes a cropper. “I just fully stacked it for the first time on stage,” she grins after concluding the song. It’s testament to how cool Rowsell is that it looked like a knee-slide from where we were. Consider it well and truly styled out.
It’s ostensibly a triumphant rock show, but such is the sheer strength of Wolf Alice’s songbook that the softer moments shine too. Recent favourite ‘The Sofa’ sees 20,000 people swaying in unison as Rowsell is positioned on a pink platform, while the lilting folk of ‘Safe from Heartbreak’ proves to be a genuinely lovely moment.
As things near their end, it’s that formidable rock sound which raises to the fore once more. There’s a powerful one-two punch of the stomping ‘Yuk Foo’ and ‘Play the Greatest Hits’, while the central guitar riff of ‘Giant Peach’ arrives with the kind of power which makes you wonder whether The O2’s roof could blow off again.
At one early point tonight, bassist Theo Ellis tells the crowd: “You have no idea how much I love these four people on the stage.” By the time they return for an encore of ‘The Last Man on Earth’ and ‘Don’t Delete the Kisses’, the perma-grins cemented across each of their faces suggests it’s a mutual affair. Those four friends from Camden might be older and wiser, but they’re also better than ever. Britain’s best rock band of the last 10 years? Consider our colours truly nailed to the mast.