Vol. 108
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Tag: Norwich
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Pale Waves
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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Vol. 107
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Newton Faulkner
The Waterfront, Norwich
Monday 13th October 2025
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NEWTON FAULKNER – NORWICH – LIVE REVIEW
Last month the incomparable Newton Faulkner shared his eighth studio album, ‘Octopus’, and now it’s time for him to take these new songs out on the road. Tonight, at The Waterfront in Norwich is the first date of a new headline tour from the virtuoso.
Much of Faulkner’s recent touring has seen him performing dual sets without any support, but tonight we have not one but two opening acts to get the diligent crowd warmed up.
MARIE NAFFAH
The first of which is London-based songwriter Marie Naffah who is accompanied this evening by her producer Robin Breeze on guitar. The duo are a gentle easement into the evenings festivities and they are able to use their undoubtable abilities to hypnotise the audience.
Their performance is full of songs about love and the likes of ‘For You’ and ‘Gloria’ ensure that their short time on stage is memorable. Naffah tonight is mesmeric with both her charm and her talent, much like an early days Mr. Faulkner.
NATI
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Next up on the stage is a redheaded alt-pop guitarist. Nope, not Newton but NATI., who brings a little bit of chaotic humour and the rousing songwriting of a modern day Newton Faulkner!
Two wise choices as support then and as with Naffah earlier, NATI. is able to very quickly engage the audience and soon has them singing and clapping along. Her brand of songwriting is a lot angrier than Naffah’s and the atmosphere in the venue accordingly ramps up a notch or two.
A fantastic cover of Alanis Morisette’s biting ‘You Oughta Know’, along with the likes of ‘JOAN’ and ‘5 More Minutes’ are delivered with refreshing candour. The sense that the audience wanted more of NATI. as she ends her set was palpable and that’s always a good sign.
NEWTON FAULKNER
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There isn’t long until Newton Faulkner takes the stage. There is little fanfare as Faulkner starts up his set. He isn’t the classic showman musician, but his charisma is ever enchanting. He ultimately lets his music do the talking, but he’s also pretty adept at entertaining the crowd with his wit and musings.
Our two support acts truly did represent and the yin and the yang of what makes Faulkner special and tonight he structures his setlist to gradually escalate in intensity. Starting off with the likes of ‘Gone in the Morning’, ‘Finger Tips’ and ‘I Need Something’, his much-loved cover of Massive Attack’s ‘Teardrop’ then marks an escalation in the set.
The middle section of the set brings more of Faulkner’s signature orchestration of audience participation and some more fan favourites including the obligatory singalong to ‘Dream Catch Me’.
Faulkner’s new album, ‘Octopus’ is his noisiest work yet and the set builds to a crescendo of new music. The final run seeing him deliver ‘You Make It Look So Easy’, ‘What Took You So Long’, ‘Alright Alright Alright’ and ‘Snakes & Ladders’.
The set ends with as little fanfare as it began, Faulkner simply thanking the crowd and that’s that. Tonight, hasn’t been a night of clichéd tropes though, it has been a great evening of organic entertainment centred around songwriters.
Indeed, all three performers have been a delight, and the uniquely talented Faulkner remains as absorbing as ever!
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Vol. 90
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snake eyes
Waterfront Studio, Norwich
Wednesday 11th June 2025
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snake eyes – norwich – live review
📸(c) Denis Gorbatov
The sun may be out and festival season may well be upon us, but there are still plenty of great gigs happening in venues across the country. Tonight, a group of clued in music fans file into the Waterfront Studio in Norwich for one such gig!
Grassroots venues such as this are a proving ground for young bands and tonight fans will get to witness three such groups looking to insert their names into the hearts and minds of attendees.
AMOURETTE
First up on the compact stage is the local opener Amourette who bring a refreshingly reckless abandon with them. The four-piece have a youthful exuberance which brings their punky rockers to life and gets the venue ready for what’s to come.
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RAD PITT
Soon enough it’s time for our next act to hit the stage; or at least some of them! Rad Pitt have journeyed from Essex to make an enormous racket of hypnotic math rock marvel.
Spreading themselves off the stage and onto the dancefloor, the band conjure something of a joyous chaos to the delight and/or bemusement of those in the venue. Their set is tremendously entertaining and just pure riotous fun. Where else would you want to be on a Wednesday night?
SNAKE EYES
Finally, we arrive at our headliners snake eyes who have been making a name for themselves with their support and festival slots in recent times. A steady stream of infectious singles has momentum on their side and this headline tour is a big step for the duo.
They kickstart their set with the brilliant ‘lean’, and recent Full Pelt Single of the Week ‘jar full of wasps’, and already they have the crowd in the mood for a good night. The duo proceeds to deliver just that with a selection of rocky riffs and poppy hooks.
Having previously performed live as a three-piece, its noteworthy that the duo don’t miss a beat and are still highly captivating throughout their time on stage.
Fellow newer tracks ‘hdtv’ and ‘hug me’ are highlights in what is a superb performance before popular tracks ‘scuttlebug’ and ‘skeletons’ receive a highly appreciative response from the audience.
You can’t help but leave the venue excited about what the future holds for snake eyes, who have proven themselves tonight as one of the hottest young bands on the scene.
When looking at the evening as a whole, you can’t fault any of the bands, the venue is a great and life is good. Live music brings incredible joy to many music lovers, and you really should head to your local venue. And if any of these bands are playing? You’d better be there!
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Vol. 63
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Vol. 59
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Kids In Glass Houses
Waterfront, Norwich
Wednesday 6th November 2024
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📸 (c) Denis Gorbatov / Full Pelt Music
KIDS IN GLASS HOUSES – NORWICH – LIVE REVIEW
It’s a damp and dreary Wednesday night in November, so where else would self-respecting music fans in Norwich be other than the vital Waterfront venue in the heart of the city?
After all, there is a bumper line-up on offer this evening with reformed headliners Kids In Glass Houses bringing with them not one but two of the best young bands on the circuit!
MOUTH CULTURE
The first of those is Leicester’s Mouth Culture hot on the heels of their latest EP, ‘Whatever the Weather’ and an appearance on our own The Full Pelt Music Podcast!
This is a group who really sound like they are coming into their own, and even with a short time on stage tonight, it’s clear that the audience appreciate what they’ve seen. With a throwback groove with a modern energy, the band are undeniably on a pathway to much bigger things.
HIMALAYAS
Our second opening group HIMALAYAS are a band that many have felt are on that same pathway. The band are now dropping new music following the release of their 2023 debut album, ‘From Hell to Here’, and it’s recent single, ‘What If…?’, that stands out most tonight.
The band play hard and fast this evening and certainly seem to have added a little extra edge to their performance over the last few years. Whether that added impetus will keep them on an upwards trajectory or not, only time will tell but for sure they remain a viable proposition when looking for an engaging live act.
KIDS IN GLASS HOUSES
It’s soon time for our headliners this evening to take to the stage and having returned with a nostalgic run celebrating their superb debut album, ‘Smart Casual’, Kids In Glass Houses are now fully embracing their second coming.
How does a band do so without falling fowl of becoming nothing but another nostalgia act? Release new music of course! This tour celebrates their recently released fifth studio album, the flamboyant ‘Pink Flamingo’.
This record in and of itself if a nod to times gone by with its 80’s aesthetic but also feels like a big step up in ambition from a band who perhaps feel like they have nothing to lose. ‘Theme from Pink Flamingo’ and ‘Change Your Mind’ kickstart proceedings this evening and show a band with renewed zip and swagger.
Fan favourites ‘Give Me What I Want’ and ‘Dance All Night’ then ramp things up a notch or two before a couple more new tracks, ‘Rothko Painting’ and ‘Vulnerable’ again emphasise that this is a Kids In Glass Houses enjoying themselves once more.
That is perhaps the overall takeaway from the evening, that after a decade away this group of five friends are back on stage doing what they were meant to be doing.
The likes of ‘Peace’, ‘Easy Tiger’ and ‘Saturday’ all serve as reminders of the impact the band had first time around, and as ‘Matters At All’ concludes a very enjoyable evening fans will be left to hope that ‘Pink Flamingo’ is just the start of round two with Kids In Glass Houses!
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Full Pelt Magazine
Vol. 58
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