Wunderhorse | Rock City, Nottingham | 03/10/24

Rock revival is sitting firmly within their grasp.

★★★★★★★★★☆

Wunderhorse is the most exhilarating rock band to emerge in almost a decade. In a short few years, the indie quartet has pioneered what many bands dream of forever. Through unwavering hard graft, they’ve mastered the full package: Meaningful art, dynamic live performances and public hype. Conquer all three and you’re skyrocketing to arenas. And there’s no band more ready - rock revival sitting firmly within their grasp.

It’ll come as no surprise to find out their UK Tour (of 14 dates) is sold out, with any resale tickets being snapped up within seconds of appearing. In a little less than a week, they play their biggest-ever headline show at Brixton Academy. The defacto checkbox on the live circuit to decide your fate. For Wunderhorse, they’ve just booked Alexandra Palace. A capacity of more than double that of Brixton and a venue they’ve already played with Declan McKenna.

Their demand isn’t unfounded. Jacob Slater (vocals/guitar), Harry Tristan Fowler (guitar), Peter Woodin (bass) and Jamie Staples (drums) have been bubbling away playing every venue under the sun, capturing the attention of critics and fans alike internationally. As they set off on the ‘Midas Tour’, a first stop at Nottingham’s iconic ROCKCITY is an affirming proof we’re watching one of the next great rock giants find their feet.

Kicking off to the angsty riffs of Midas backed by Butterflies, Slater sprang into action with a mighty introduction for Nottingham. A tightly packed crowd, who had braved lengthy queues, stormed forward to be part of the unfolding action.

On stage they embody a primal energy, drawing a line of flames around their stage and unleashing it towards every gazing eye. This energy only continued throughout back-to-back new releases Emily, Cathedrals and Girl. Some artists lose momentum at the sight of newer material, but in this moment, anticipation and attention only grew greater.

Upon the arrival of fan-favourite Leader Of The Pack, which initially had the backing of Sam Fender, the room was riled up. The timeless nostalgia nestled away in the track’s riff sent people into a frenzy, while the band basked in an impressive extended version. While penned long before Cub was even conceived, Leader Of The Pack carries a lot of Slater’s early punk sensibilities. In the live environment, over countless iterations, the band have given it a new lease of life every night.

Other highlights across the evening included Silver, Rain and the resurrection of Girl Behind The Glass which hasn’t been in regular rotation since last year. All received unbelievable support from the crowd, hurling every word back at the stage. Rain is guaranteed to be an indie-rock anthem ready to stand the test of time through its grungy power chords. Elsewhere, Purple continues to propel the rock outfit to dizzying new heights. For the first time, the track received special treatment, using a beautiful selection of spotlights in addition to the usual purple-themed stage.

Parking emblazoned rock and roll, they slowly crept into Aeroplane. In all its intricacies and softness, the track seems destined to be the new Poppy. Last tour, the track in question received a version lasting almost three times the length of the original and felt like the pride and joy of any setlist. So, chopping and changing with Aeroplane allows the band to keep flexing their versatility, which they have in abundance.

Rounding up the evening were two of the biggest tracks, Teal and July. The former has built a life of its own in recent months and is quickly becoming the most streamed of the catalogue. Chants of ‘Teal, Teal, Teal’ bounced around the venue as a cover of Irene Goodnight began. There’s something quite special about Teal, scratching your brain in a way you never needed until you’ve heard it live. We watched chaos unravel as thousands of people, from various generations, loyally recited every word from start to finish. If anything, a moment like this only solidified every ambition we anticipate for Wunderhorse.

Into the finale was the aforementioned July: an unhinged, animalistic and feral Slater screaming from the barrier. Taking inspiration largely from Nirvana, this is the most performative Wunderhorse has ever been. Videos of Slater’s screaming went viral over the Summer, welcoming others to join in the madness. For those unaware, the frontman is playing a protagonist and characterising the track, which he does excellently. July is the perfect way to end shows, allowing the audience and band to completely lose themselves. Ever the eager crowd, they sang the first verse twice before Wunderhorse were still introducing the number. This was an undeniably confident close to the night and set the bar high for the remainder of the tour.

What stood out was Wunderhorse’s well-oiled showmanship, time and time again proving that in an age of rising ticket prices and elaborate light shows, standing firmly by your rock heritage can pay dividends. The extent of investment reaches a large cut-out of their logo; dangling above the stage, creating shadows against a blanket sheet.

Artists in the modern day rise to arena status prematurely, often rendering their (usually solid) performance substanceless and missing the mark. Wunderhorse has ravenously battled the live circuit and been adamant about coming up the old-fashioned way, which they’ve nailed through word-of-mouth endorsement. Slater, particularly, has learnt from old mistakes, avoiding the burnout that consumed Dead Pretties.

In our previous review, at O2 Birmingham Academy’s 600-capacity sweatbox, we lauded that ‘Wunderhorse’s clever blend of punk, rock, euphoric guitar melodies and authentic songwriting has brought to life a future headliner.’ Almost a year on, this couldn’t have been more true. Now jam-packed with two critically acclaimed records, Wunderhorse is ready to take the plunge into whatever comes next. A band set to become larger-than-life and genuinely, a breath of fresh air in the world of rock n’roll.

After the Midas Tour, Wunderhorse hit the road with peers Fontaines D.C. for a run of European shows. You can also catch their headline show at Alexandra Palace next year, while tickets last here.