Two words – absolutely phenomenal!
There has been a lot of talk lately about ‘where have all the bands gone?’ but if the few that are around bestow us the quality that Wunderhorse bring then I’ll settle for that. Musically, lyrically on point and with a devoted following, all of which have been gained naturally.
The venue was a majority young crowd this evening and those who had arrived early were guarding their spots on the barrier. It was refreshing to see so many to whom this band appeal. Perhaps I was reminded of myself in the years gone by, besotted by a band and chuffed to bits to have a spot on the barrier.
The 750 capacity venue, The 1865, could have been sold 2-3 times over this evening such was the demand! What a privilege it was going to be to see Wunderhorse perform in such a small venue, fresh off the back of them announcing a 12,000-capacity show at Ally Pally for 2025!
The closer it got to 9pm, the more the anticipation and atmosphere in the venue was building. As the light drop ‘Somewhere Over the Rainbow’ begins to ring out and this is finely blended in into ‘Loser’ by Beck (I couldn’t have predicted this would be a combo but it worked!) – this ques Jacob and the boys entrance to the stage. The first few notes of ‘Midas’ cause pure excitement in the front of the crowd and sets the tone for the rest of the evening!
One thing that is evident throughout is the feeling of pure emotion in Jacob’s lyrics and his delivery, none more so for me on ‘Arizona’. ‘I’m losing my voice a bit today so you might have to help me out, yeah’ in one of his fleeting interactions with the crowd – every word was duly sung back to him from then on in.
With the set mainly comprising of tracks from the latest album release ‘Midas’ there is a huge buzz for ‘Leader of the Pack’ from 2022’s ‘Cub’, which is beautifully introed. The set felt like it was over in a flash, which was a sure sign of how much I was enjoying things. The tail end was a joy with ‘Girl Behind the Glass’, ‘Silver’, ‘Purple’ and ‘Rain (one my album favourites)’ flowing back to back! I wasn’t sure if an encore would be on the cards given Jacob’s voice but we were treated to a superb rendition of ‘Teal’!
If I had to be slightly disappointed with anything this evening, more from a selfish perspective, it was not getting the chance to hear ‘July’ played live but then that is just the excuse I need to see Jacob and the Wunderhorse lads play again sometime soon!
Big shout out as well to High School who supported Wunderhorse – originally from Melbourne, the band are now residing in London. I was delighted to see them listed as support as their track ‘New York, Paris and London’ has appeared on my Top 100 tracks pretty much every year since its release in 2021, I have played it that much. Not sure what that’s says about me, maybe a little obsessive sometimes with tracks!
If you have a ticket for this tour then you are in for one hell of a treat! I think I will go on record to say that this was the best gig I have seen so far this year!
