The latest quartet taking the indie-rock scene by storm are Pentire, and after kicking the
year off with a brilliant new single, Don’t Let Your Love (Let You Down), the Hereford boys are now out boasting their best work to the nation on their biggest tour to date!
The four-piece began making music in 2018, and after pumping out many beloved singles including Fading Out, Plastic Flowers, and Spinning, May last year saw the group release their debut EP, Now in a Minute. It was received well by fans and has been an enormous success. From there things got bigger and better; a successful first UK tour, supporting The Royston Club at their shows, playing the coveted Isle of Wight Festival, and receiving deserved support for their music by the BBC Radio 1 airwaves. Their performance at the Heartbreakers venue in Southampton is their second show after kicking off in Falmouth last week, and they’re joined by two other indie-rock sensations who are also working their way up the ladder; four-piece Small Talk, and solo artist Mackenzie.
The venue room was the definition of intimate, with a standout and distinct Pentire logo filling the backdrop; the energy about to be brought to it was euphoric. With a fresh, timely smell of alcohol, instruments, and an eager attendance, the nights first support act, Mackenzie, took to the stage emphatically; she gave the early birds an early flavour of what was to come. It can often be difficult for solo artists to fill the stage, but Mackenzie skilfully made it her own and had the ever-growing attendance in her grasp right from the off. She played her way through a perfectly chosen setlist that showed off her best material, including In My Head, Ordinary, and Twenties. We also were surprised with a new, unreleased track called It’s Alright, which is set to be released soon and was received well by the Southampton crowd. The Pale-Waves-esque vocals were superb throughout, and she left the stage with more energy than when she began; it was an impressive opening act. We should expect to see more new material later this year and see her perform at more shows and supports too.
You had just about enough time to grab a pint from the bar whilst the stage was re- rigged for the second support act of the night, and the attendance continued to grow. It was easy to sense the miserable weather outside, with a certain dampness in the air as more fans arrived. Any misery brought by the clouds outside would soon be swept away, even blown away, as Small Talk erupted onto the stage. Their presence onstage was undeniably commanding, confident, and they rewarded us with some of their greatest hits. Lifeline, Lost in the Moment (a personal favourite), Begin again; it was banger after banger and the energy maintained by their seamless transitions between tracks was palpable. The four-piece connected superbly with the crowd, with their lead vocalist Ben up to his usual theatrics; singing down off the stage with his guitar, having backing ‘Ooohs’ sang proudly back to them, and even breaking his guitar strings towards the end of the set. We were also treated to a brand-new track called Stay, which went down a treat and was a gift to the Southampton air. In a matter of time was it all ending, as they left us with their hit Always Always, which as the song suggests, would always be a conclusive extravangza of restless sonic. It was simply epic, and it has so far been an excellent showcase of upcoming indie-rock material.
It was time for the main event, as the venue reached a full house; the damp aroma was now mixing with a certain mixture of sweat and alcohol to add to the punkish atmosphere in the warming air. The set soon commenced, with a dreamy instrumental paired with flickering lights which welcoming the band; they emerged from an adjacent door and were met with excitable and glamorous cheers, before they threw us right into the thick of their electric number How Would Someone Else Do It. Southampton was ready.
The crowd were in for a treat tonight, as the quartet were successful with their ability to show off the variety of sonic within their material. There was a diverse mix of their more notable, energy-driven tracks including Water, Give Me A Reason (a track not usually played often according to lead vocalist Jack Morgan) and Plastic Flowers, and their more beloved, slower numbers including How Have You Been Sleeping, and Can I Drive, both which are heavily requested at their gigs. Morgan’s echo-laden vocals in these personal pieces was all too perfect and professional; there was distinct evidence of the group’s musical idles weaved within their material, including Declan McKenna, Inhaler and Catfish & The Bottlemen.
Their latest single, Don’t Let Your Love (Let You Down) had the crowd bouncing throughout, and at the request of the frontman, they were belting back some of the memorable lyrics; considering the track had only been out two weeks, the crowd knew exactly what they were doing. The set continued precisely as you’d expect, anthem after anthem, and the crowd in the centre of their grasp. Take It Away, Spinning and Bellydancer were real crowd pleasers and were a real joy to see played live. The band performed two newer songs set for release later this year; Get Up, and Love On TV, both audibly pleasing with strong sentiments of their unique sonic embedded throughout, and a real gift for the electric audience. Their ability to connect closely with the crowd and tap into a variety of emotions throughout was a testament to their continued success; one eager fan was lucky enough to have their BeReal taken by the band onstage, per their request between tracks.
The set was nearing its conclusion, but not until more of their renown hits had been played. Kick Me, which had the crowd jumping to the final chorus, set us off, before How Have You Been Sleeping, Watch Time and Fading Out brought their set to a breathtaking end; all were nothing short of spectacular and made it an unforgettable night for Southampton. The group departed the stage leaving the crowd full of life and. wanting more: it was a legendary ending to a surreal showcase of upcoming alternate, indie-rock music.
Pentire, a band you simply must see live once in your lifetime if you want a flavour of what the indie-rock music scene has to offer. Their stage presence was restlessly dominant, and they filled the Southampton air with the best of their material. I’m sure we’ll undoubtably see them on the big stage in no time!
