After supporting As Everything Unfolds on their UK tour last month and Yours Truly at the beginning of 2023, South Arcade were now ready to headline their own tour and they stopped off at Glasgow’s Garage Attic on the fifth date of the tour. This was also their first time headlining in Scotland so we were privileged to be here tonight. The Oxford-based pop-punk quartet have released a couple of new tracks recently including Nepo Baby and Silverlight whilst also promising more new music in 2024.
We were lucky to catch tonight’s support act Beren Olivia at The Jacaranda during the Sound City Festival in Liverpool last year and she has since released more songs which we would get to hear tonight during Beren’s seven track set. Unusually there was no drummer so just the singer and a guitarist, despite this they created a good bond with the audience as the set began with So Emotional and Stranger On Fire; two of their biggest songs. Following this Olivia announced that there would be a new EP released on 17th May, prompting a cheer from the fans, and then they played I Feel Like Talking, a song written around mental health and how talking and opening up can help. Some fans then shared their knowledge around deep fried Mars bars and what the best venues are in Glasgow for partying! Read My Mind is by far Olivia’s biggest track to date and this was played at the end of the set to a great reaction from the fans. We would like to see Beren Olivia on a headline tour in the near future. 7/10
South Arcade are known for their high energy live performances and that continued tonight during their thirteen-track set that was perhaps a little short at forty-five minutes in length. There were no complaints tonight though as the alt-pop/punk band had the packed room onside from the first song Silverlight, released in September. It wasn’t long before vocalist Harmony Cavell used her charm to connect with the crowd, posing for the camera and even taking some fans phones on stage and recording for them! Cavell’s enthusiasm was infectious as she used the full stage to the delight of the fans while the guitarist Harry Winks and bass player Ollie Green thrashed around the stage enjoying every moment. Another of the new tracks Nepo Baby was next up as the fans joined in chanting “You really think you got a poker face, poker face”. New Fever and Change Your Mind were played with great energy while two new tracks were played starting with Riptide, which the band announced will be released in two weeks. The fans phone torches were turned on for At The Lights, another one that will be released this year with the fans appreciating the chance to hear these unreleased tracks indicating there is lots to look forward to from South Arcade this year. Unaware got the crowd moving again as we joined in for the chorus “I was so unaware, so unaware/That you feel this way”, making for a very catchy alternative pop song.
The Avril Lavigne Sk8er Boi cover went down well with the young Glasgow crowd prompting a massive singalong but it was their cover of Katy Perry’s track I Kissed A Girl that got the best response, a track that the band have played the three times they have been to Glasgow and one that everyone seemed to know. The best song was left to the end as Sound Of An Empty Room had everyone in the room jumping up and down and was the highlight of the set for us. Harmony Cavell invited everyone to join them at The Cathouse for an after party which we hope went well!
Written By: Alan Brown
