Live: Hey Violet @ The Garage

by | May 9, 2017

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Hey Violet’s hyperactive performance at North London’s The Garage begins, and ends, with deafening screams from an equally hyperactive audience. To be fair, though, there’s a lot of screaming the whole way through.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Like when singer/dynamo Rena Lovelis asks: “How’re we doing London?” Or when she tries to tell the excitable crowd about falling for this city (on her second visit), her love of British accents, and how she could just “listen to you talk and talk and talk”. Or even when, for the purposes of a video shoot, the band perform the big-grooving Hoodie twice, both times prompting en-masse Radio Gaga-style clapping. Or when keyboardist Miranda Miller plays the opening notes of a hyped-up take on the Ed Sheeran hit Shape Of You. Or, actually, every time any song ends.

Miranda Miller of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Miranda Miller of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

But the Los Angeles five-piece certainly warrant the adulation. As their 494,000 twitter followers and 380,777 Facebook fans will attest, they certainly know how to connect with their fans. And their live shows are no different.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

The quintet reach out from the very start, whether it’s by the individual members actually introducing themselves, Rena Lovelis throwing roses into the sea of raised arms, the jubilant stage-led “yeah yeah yeah” singalong during the not-yet-released but instantly memorable My Consequence, or drummer Nia Lovelis getting emotional as she addresses the people who feel like they don’t fit in while introducing triumphant outsider anthem ODD.

Nia Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Nia Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

And it doesn’t hurt that their enthusiastically performed songs are glittering power-pop gems designed to echo around stadiums. Take single Guys My Age. Building up from a twinkling keyboard line into a fist-pumping celebration driven by Iain Shipp’s droning bassline and embellished with Casey Moreta’s ‘80s guitar licks, it’s immediately obvious why the track’s already amassed some 22,497,165 Spotify streams. So too the high energy Fuqbois, a no-nonsense up-yours to “a certain kind of guy”, complete with hooks as big as the singer’s leap off the drum riser.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Yet, while punchy songs like these hint at the group’s origins as all-girl hard-rock quartet Cherri Bomb and may result in inevitable comparisons to the likes of Paramore, Pvris, and even label mates 5 Seconds Of Summer, there’s a lot more to these Californians than power chords and big choruses.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

All We Ever Wanted, dedicated to the people who’ve come out tonight, doesn’t sound unlike late-’70s Blondie, its punk attitude only partly obscured by disco guitars and a bouncing beat.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

The alternately light and dark Break My Heart, complete with Rena Lovelis bounding across the stage during the insatiable choruses, wouldn’t be out of place on a Gwen Stefani LP. And, with its icy synths and shimmering guitars, Brand New Moves is the best song Duran Duran never wrote.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

So, they’ve got the tunes, they’ve got the charisma, and they’ve got the audience in the  palm of their hand. No wonder the fans just can’t stop screaming.

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Rena Lovelis of Hey Violet (Kalpesh Patel)

Hey Violet release their debut album From The Outside on 16th June.

Live review of Hey Violet @ The Garage by Nils van der Linden on 8th May 2017. Photos by Kalpesh Patel.

Kalpesh has more music photography up on his flickr stream here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/somethingforkate

 

 

Korn @ Download Festival XXII - Sunday (Carolina Faruolo)

Masks, Mayhem, And Metal Legacies: Korn Bring Download Festival XXII To A Triumphant, Tear-Up Finale

The third and final day of Download Festival XXII is here, and whilst we’re sad it’s almost over, we’ll save the mourning for tomorrow and dive headfirst into everything it’s got.

Billy Idol @ Wembley Arena (Kalpesh Patel)

Billy Proves He Is No False Idol, But A Truly Authentic One At Wembley Arena

Fresh from being well received at the inaugural Forever Now festival as well as a surprise appearance alongside...
Wide angle photo of Opus Stage and Arena at DownloadXXII

From Chaos To Catharsis: Sleep Token Silence The Doubters As Day Two Of Download Festival XXII Delivers Big Moments And Bigger Emotion

We’re back for Day 2 of Download Festival XXII. Would today live up to the great start we had yesterday? Let’s see…

Bludfest 2025 @ Milton Keynes Bowl (Ruby Boland)

Hello Heaven, Hello! Bludfest Returns Bigger Than Ever!

The elfin Elin Hall makes for the perfect entrance music, America swirling like the threat of rain overhead, as...
Nine Inch Nails @ Scala (Kalpesh Patel)

Trent And Atticus Nine Inch Nail It At The O2 Arena

Every act craves that strong connection with their audience – but how do you achieve this in a cavernous space like The O2 Arena, filled to the brim with around 20,000 fans (all, naturally, dressed in black)? Well, in typical belligerent style, Nine Inch Nails meet this challenge head on – treating us to a set by turns poetic and punishing, and despite the odd technical hiccup, really delivering that all important connection.

L-R: Roger Taylor, John Taylor, Simon Le Bon & Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran @ The O2 (Kalpesh Patel)

Duran Duran To Bring Their Spectacular Danse Macabre Halloween Party To Manchester’s Co-Op Live

British music legends Duran Duran have announced their first-ever UK Halloween extravaganza, set to take over Manchester’s Co-Op Live on Friday, 31st October 2025. Promising a night of haunting glamour, sonic mischief and spine-tingling surprises, the one-off show will mark the UK debut of the band’s acclaimed Danse Macabre Halloween Party.

Jane Remover @ Outbreak London 2025

Outbreak Festival Storms London: A Genre-Bending Baptism Of Hardcore, Chaos & Community

Outbreak has been the beating heart of the UK’s hardcore scene since 2011 at its home in Manchester, finally the...
Santana @ The O2 Arena (Kalpesh Patel)

A Higher Frequency: Santana’s Timeless Spirit Lights Up The O2 Arena

As London sweltered under a 32-degree summer solstice sun, a different kind of illumination awaited inside The O2 Arena. Carlos Santana—guitar deity, Woodstock survivor, and spiritual messenger—brought his legendary band and transcendental energy to the capital with his Oneness Tour, proving once again that music, when played with heart and soul, can truly heal.

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This

Share Thing