Matthew P is a bit of a cheeky chappy, declaring before not one, but two of his songs that they were written while he was in Bali with a girl he met there or no, wait, while he was in Portugal with a girl he met THERE. But if women are one of his core inspirations then let's hope they keep having their influence because his music is sublime, chilled and lyrically colourful. Singing songs from his 'Swimming' EP you feel like you want to be sat cross legged around a camp fire on the beach while he croons away with his acoustic guitar.
Just as we were all feeling musically laidback we were aurally pounded by the sound of Save Your Breath, a pop punk band hailing from nearby Newport, South Wales. With the temperature in Clwb Ifor Bach already reaching sweltering levels it was a struggle for them to create any sense of dancing chaos amongst the crowd but they more than made up for it in their performance as they hit us with their adrenaline-pumping songs. Now don't go lumping these boys into the sugary sweet pop punk ringfence that houses acts like You Me At Six, All Time Low and Paramore because these fellas bring a heavier and more exposed edge to the genre. They don't let the catchy elements of their songs slip with sing-a-longs and memorable melodies a-plenty but at the same time their sound is raw and hyped up in a hard-hitting way. Further proof that Welsh acts really do do it better.
When it is the first time seeing an act who you've eagerly waited what feels like years to see; you can't help but weight it down with high expectations. Which exactly what I had done with The Rocket Summer. The moment Bryce Avary walked on to the stage flanked by his accompanying band members and broke into song a smile entered my face and it never really left until the set drew to a close for the night.
The Rocket Summer's music is a perfectly formed package of upbeat, happiness-inducing sound that translates superbly to a live perfomance. The infusion of toned down, piano-orientated songs with the faster, guitar-charged tunes is infectious to the extreme. And song-wise we were spoilt for the entire night. There was a mixture of his current EP 'Of Men and Angels' thrown in with older material from 'Calendar Days' and 'Do You Feel' with catchy classics 'Break It Out', 'Do You Feel' and 'Save' getting some of the biggest receptions of the night.
Within moments it seemed people were ignorant of the heat in favour of embracing the music with open arms. Bryce himself was always on the go running right up to the crowd constantly to encourage us to sing with him and be part of the music, not just listeners of it. Ever the one for variety; we were given two covers performed solo by Bryce - Paul McCartney's 'Blackbird' and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' 'Maps' which he sneaked into the centre of the crowd to sing so that he was completely emerged amongst us before appealing to everyone to help him crowd surf back up on to the stage.
Undoubtedly one of the highlights of the night was when Bryce returned to the stage on his own to demonstrate to us just how he mixes instruments together on his own when he's writing new records in true one-man-band style. He lay down the beat on the drums first before heading to the piano and finally the guitar as he blended it altogether one-handedly. To say we were impressed would be an understatement when we were faced with a man so multi-talented you were actually left a little speechless.
The most tender moment came when the band performed 'Walls' off of current EP 'Of Men and Angels'. Bryce stated that the song was written for those that have come through their own personal battle; whether it be depression, addiction or something else. The passion of the song and sincerity of the lyrics rang out around the room. Everyone was a little stiller, letting the words wash over them and letting the message play its part.
Staying in the newer song vein was 'I Need A Break, But I'd Rather Have A Breakthrough' and the super infectious 'You Gotta Believe' as well as tracks 'Hills & Valleys' and 'Roses'. The iconic thing about songs by The Rocket Summer is that they all leave a lasting impression on you for one reason or another. Whether they are slower, epic ballads or uptempo older classics; they all have their individual effect.
To close the first part of the set the band gave us 'So, In This Hour...'; an anthemic song that seemed to sum up the notion of the entire night with its building crescendo and rapid key changes sending us into emotion overload. After the mic failed to work as Bryce attempted to sing the close to the song we were left watching him still continue to sing despite not really being heard and you almost felt like you were intruding on a private moment, the special aspect being that we were allowed to be a part of it with him.
We were not to be left hanging on for an encore and after departing the stage Bryce returned alone just seconds later and standing in front of his piano he declared that he wanted to perform a medley of requests at the demand of the crowd. So after much hollering for specific tracks he gave us snippets of well-loved songs including the quirky 'Japanese Exchange Student' (much to the glee of my friend Emma).
To close, the full band launched into 'So Much Love' which seemed to be an apt way to end a truly unforgettable night. The band played out what little energy they had left and Bryce went into the crowd with his mic to be literally embraced by everyone around him. Love is something that The Rocket Summer sings a lot about and everyone in that room felt it for him. As the show drew to a close he even said to us himself "I love you all. Forever and ever and ever". So just to clarify in case it wasn’t clear already – Bryce, we love you too.
If you're looking for something to raise your spirits, something to give you a bit of hope or simply something to put a smile on your face then you should look to The Rocket Summer. The smiles that Bryce showed himself were enough to get you smiling and as corny as it may sound everyone was riding the same music high with Bryce riding the highest out of us all. On a personal note; I had a horrible throat infection but as soon as they took to the stage I sang my heart out regardless of how much it hurt because the music induces that in you. And you know what? As I left Clwb Ifor Bach my throat felt miles better and I was on a severe post-gig high. I don’t think you need much more evidence to show you that The Rocket Summer = pure magic.
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