As the closing act of Concorde 2’s line-up for The Great Escape, Welsh trio The Joy Formidable put on a muscular performance. 

With little pause for conversation, they maintained a heavy, rhythmic wall of sound throughout the forty-five minute set, punctuated by front-woman Ritzy Bryan’s addictive vocals. 

As is always the case during The Great Escape, it was hard to tempt people to make the fifteen-minute voyage out of the city centre as far as Concorde 2, so the venue wasn’t packed, but there were a solid couple of hundred supporters eagerly transfixed by the band onstage. 

The band released their third studio album, ‘Hitch,’ in March, so have a significant catalogue of tracks to draw from, and the set was both blisteringly fast-paced and gratifyingly loud. 

Whirling limbs and sloshing pints swung at the front of the crowd, and at the back, appreciative nods were exchanged. 

The Joy Formidable are a band’s band, a stylistic throwback, committed to riffs and rocking out more than crafting a cool image. 

Carousing around the stage and jovially bashing into each other, the band gave the impression that they were having a brilliant time. 

This genuine enjoyment was infectious, and ended the evening on a righteous high.