Wolf Alice Plays Manchester’s O2 Victoria Warehouse

Kirsten Moreton

Following the band’s US and European tour, Wolf Alice announced two final UK dates in Manchester’s O2 Victoria Warehouse and London’s O2 Brixton Academy to celebrate the success of their second album “Visions of a Life”. With the band playing requests from fans and limited edition and signed merchandise these shows were destined to be something special!

The night began with songs from opening support, Vinyl Staircase. The band kicked off the show with some upbeat tunes that got the crowd roused and ready as they promoted songs from their self-titled debut EP as well as their latest single “Feel It”. The band’s performance set the tone nicely for the rest of the show and warmed the audience up for a night of great music.

Following Vinyl Staircase, second support Surfbort kicked off their set with a bang. Lead singer Dani Miller’s energy was both entertaining to watch and powerful enough to pump up the entire crowd. The bands thrashy sound and high energy immediately created a buzz throughout the room. The group played fan favourites such as “selfie” and “45” as Miller danced through the audience giving it her all. The bands performance was unforgettable and filled the entire 21,000 capacity venue with excitement and hunger for more.

Wolf Alice entered the stage and there were immediate waves of elation throughout the crowd as they opened with their hit single “Yuk Foo”. The atmosphere in the room was electric as fans jumped around, singing every word.  The four-piece continued with a setlist made up of their most popular and successful songs like “Don’t Delete the Kisses” and the award winning “Giant Peach”. Whilst also including fan requested songs such as “90 Mile Beach” and “White Leather” from the deluxe edition of the band’s debut album “My Love Is Cool” as well the track “Storms” from the bands second EP, “Creature Songs”. This change of setlist gave the band a new energy where every member seemed as though they were loving every second of the performance. Throughout the performance, lead singer Ellie Rosewell shamelessly showed off her impressive vocals, her voice sounding stronger than ever. Both Rosewell and bassist Theo Ellis shared their happiness with the crowed by chatting with the audience and interacting with them as if they were at one with the crowd and creating an intimacy that made the venues capacity feel much smaller. Wolf Alice’s stage presence and energy was unlike ever before as if the success of their album had given them a new found confidence.

Taking it back to their earlier days the band finished with their debut single “Fluffy” before playing an encore of their loudest songs yet. They returned to the stage complete with Christmas lights and undying passion for the performance. The crowd went wild as Rosewell belted out the lyrics to “Moaning Lisa Smile” before finishing on “Giant Peach”. The show ended with Rosewell singing held up by fans in the audience, with a smile on her face. The obvious expressions of joy displayed on the members faces as they performed bounced into the audience, the energy in the room unlike ever before. Thousands came together singing out the songs final line and the show ended with a final cheer from the fans and the band wishing everyone a great Christmas and new year. 

Even after the band left the stage the room contained a buzz. With the bands confidence and stage presence combined with their talent, it was destined to be a great show. The support bands created an amazing vibe throughout the room and got fans in the mood for the highly anticipated show and kicked it off perfectly. All of this combined with Wolf Alice’s setlist made up of fan favourites and requests made a performance that was unforgettable. The bands promise for a performance of a lifetime was fulfilled and left fans eager to find out what’s next from the talented group!