Waterfront, Norwich
Wednesday 22nd October 2025
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pale waves – norwich – live review
Twelve months ago, Pale Waves unveiled their fourth studio album ‘Smitten’ – an album which explored singer Heather Baron-Gracie’s romantic experiences following a revisit of her teenage diary.
The personal themes were reflected within the more intimate sound of the record and struck a chord with the groups increasingly dedicated fans. The tour in support of the album was equally well received and now the band are back on the road with the ‘Still Smitten’ tour.
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EMMMA
Tonight finds the run of dates well underway as a wet and windy Norwich welcomes them to The Waterfront.
Support comes from EMMMA (“with three m’s so you can find me easier”) an alt-pop powerhouse who confidently grabs the audience and leads them through an enchanting set of emotional melodies.
EMMMA herself demonstrates the dexterity of multi-instrumental ability during her performance but it is her voice and presence that win over the audience this evening.
PALE WAVES
It’s then over to our headliners Pale Waves who start their own performance with two ‘Smitten’ tracks – ‘Perfume’ and ‘Not a Love Song’. Looking around the room, you can see the love that the audience have for the band as they seemingly hang off every lyric and every note.
The atmosphere soon kicks up a gear as fan favourites ‘Eighteen’, ‘Lies’ and ‘You’re So Vain’ follow on. The band are tight, and the performance is somehow both methodical and organic, with Baron-Gracie coming across as a real star.
Her aura manifests to a new plane during a hauntingly moving rendition of The Cranberries ‘Zombie’, which is a real highlight of the evening. ‘There’s a Honey’, ‘Change’ and ‘Red’ then ensure that the audience’s singing voices are well tested.
The main portion of the set flip-flops between older favourites ‘My Obsession’ and ‘Television Romance’, and ‘Smitten’ takes ‘Kiss Me Again’ and ‘Glasgow’.
The mix of the setlist this evening is pretty career spanning and gives the fans a power hour of engaging pop-punk glory. An encore of ‘She’s My Religion’ and ‘Jealousy’ is enough to send the crowd back out into the cold realities of the world.
Tonight has been a great escape from those realities and fans will be keen to escape again in the world of Pale Waves. Given the prolificacy of the band, you’d imagine they are already working on a follow-up but for now we’re still smitten!
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