Music Editor Alfie Warner attends Wunderhorse’s UK tour, complimenting the band’s stellar live performance at Digbeth’s O2 Institute
Wunderhorse was a live gig I had been looking forward to for a while, even before the band’s latest album Midas released at the end of August this year. The O2 Institute was once again the home for a beautiful night of sweaty rock music; life was good.
The gig was kicked off by London band HighSchool; an enjoyable prelude to Wunderhorse. They were your fairly standard indie rock band with an upbeat coat of paint, though their discography uses lots of synthesisers and effects that carve them a slightly more unique sound.
But they were just the prelude to the carnage that followed, for when Wunderhorse entered the stage and kicked things off with ‘Midas’ the crowd just melted into itself. It was never going to begin any other way, being the first and undeniably most recognisable song from the album. Before getting too carried away with their new stuff, they reminded us what they started from, performing ‘Butterflies’ from their first album Cub.
they were just the prelude to the carnage that followed, for when Wunderhorse entered the stage… the crowd just melted into itself
A trifecta of ‘Emily’, ‘Cathedrals’, and my personal favourite ‘Girl’ were all met enthusiastically, but once ‘Leader of the Pack’ started, the audience unleashed. It was definitely the point in the gig where things got more rowdy – not that they weren’t before – but it never seemed to settle after that, which was fine by me. I’d take an energetic crowd over standing still any day.
Just over halfway through the set, they played an instrumental medley-come-mashup of their already quite instrumental closing track from Midas, ‘Aeroplane’. Special mention here to Harry Fowler and his stunning improv on the guitar – it’s always a treat when someone is aware of the improvisations they’re doing, and it showed on the night.
Jacob Slater’s vocals were passionate and raw; there were a few moments he would sing a line and fade out just from the exertion he was channelling into the music. Crowdwork was kept to a minimum which was a bit of a shame, but it didn’t really matter – we were there for the music, and the music was delivered.
The highlight of the night was definitely ‘Superman’, a far slower track steeped in vulnerability. It was certainly a popular track from the new record; Midas has only been out a little over a month, and yet every soul in that room was screaming the lyrics right back at Slater.
every soul in that room was screaming the lyrics right back at Slater
The night ended the only way it could – the soul-crushing ‘July’ took front and centre stage with its crashing dynamics and tragic story. The final notes were left ringing out as the band took their leave and the night came to an end.
Wunderhorse have really been carving a name for themselves in the past couple of years, and the band has developed quite a sizable following as a result. Their standard for quality certainly shows in all their tracks, and I look forward to hearing about what they get up to next.
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