Peace, The Harley

I was hoping and praying that Peace would live up to their hype tonight. I myself have been banging on about their EP 'Delicious' to pretty much anyone with ears since I first heard it, and the popular music press have been singing their praises too. This year Peace have been well and truly thrust into the spotlight. They've supported Mystery Jets and Tame Impala and have now bagged a support slot on Manic Street Preachers' European tour, as well as a place on NME's Awards Tour with Miles Kane, Palma Violets and Django Django. Their shows with fellow Birmingham bright sparks Troumaca and Swim Deep have cemented the feeling that British indie-pop is about to be shaken up by an storm of fresh, young talent.

The band shuffle unassumingly onto the tiny stage at Sheffield's legendary Harley almost as if they'd wandered on by accident. After a few sound adjustments they lead into the fantastic opener 'Ocean's Eye' with a mesmerising drawn-out intro. The crowd seem a little subdued as the band continue to struggle with technical difficulties, but soon get moving after a track from their earlier catalogue 'Lil Echo' and new material 'Wraith' (which they filmed a video for that day, according to frontman Harrison Koisser)

'Is anyone here in love?' he asks the crowd, before playing swoony Beach Boys-esque number 'California Daze'. For a band with only a handful of tracks, they can definitely capture an audiences' attention with impressive ease, as hands, phones and lighters sway to their dreamy West-Coast jam. Despite this, I'm slightly underwhelmed by their lyrics (notable clangers include 'It's spectacular/How you suck my blood/Baby you're dracula/It's oracular'). The band also seem hindered by their apparent desire to resist becoming successful, as highlighted in several interviews where they act bewildered by their new-found 'next big thing' status. There's a lot of room for growth, which can only be a good thing, and their live show is still as captivating as I hoped it would be.

They rounded off their set with 'Bloodshake', the stand-out track from 'Delicious' EP with a lilting guitar riff that gets stuck in your head and grungy afro-pop bassline which gets every single person on their feet (and a few people up in the air for a short-lived crowdsurf). The gig ends with half the crowd on the stage, sweaty and triumphant, a successful show if there ever was one. It's apparent that Peace are on the verge of something huge, if only they can keep creating songs of this calibre without running out of steam.

I described Peace to someone who had never heard them as Foals-meets-Friendly Fires. But with hindsight, that feels like underselling them. While they are clearly influenced by the sound of acts such as these, which dominated the summer (NME cited Wu Lyf and Vampire Weekend as key reference points), they are heading the right way to creating a sound which is uniquely theirs. A couple more catchy choruses won't be enough, but fingers crossed they'll come up with the substance to back up the style.

December 4th 2012 @ The Harley, Sheffield