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.
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