Featured image and gallery: Sally Stretch
Hot on their heels from the release of their debut album Elsewhere, Always, Birmingham indie-pop four-piece Overpass play Bury’s The Met, in collaboration with independent record store Wax and Beans.
Consisting of Max Newbold (vocals/guitar), India Armstrong (bass), Jake Bishop (drums), and Elliot Rawlings (guitar), and formed in late 2020 after responding to an ad posted by Newbold, the trajectory of the band has been far-reaching, touring with some of most profound bands on the scene, like label mates Wunderhorse and Dublin’s Inhaler.
In typical Manchester fashion, the downpour outside sets the tone for the evening. Kicking off the gig with new album’s title track ‘Union Station’ it seems almost fated, as the downpour outside rings true for the single’s music video.
Introducing a new, wall-of-sound distortion with their guitars on the latest album, the sound is warmly welcomed by fans: arms being thrown in the air punctuating lines, timing themselves with the most emotive lyrics. Cult classics like ‘Slow’ reach out to the crowd, assuring that they’re not alone with their feelings, and the crowd sing along, finding comfort in their community. Couples embrace during ‘Forever, You’, a bold proclamation of love and the feeling of finding your forever person.
Despite the fresh new sound, their electric indie-pop still shines through as they show off their repertoire, cherry-picking from previous EP’s and singles from the new album. The band, especially Armstrong, show off their infamous two foot shuffle whilst playing, mirroring the audience. Fans, some new, and some who have been here since the days of pub gigs, anticipate each track, eager to sing along even though the album is merely days old.
The mood shifts as ‘Bonnie and Clyde pt.2’ begins, a slow, acoustic ballad from the latest record, fronted by Newbold and his guitar. The crowd stops for a moment, allowing them to embrace one another and share a moment of tenderness, the edge of the newer material softened in this shining, yearning track.
With six years of hard work behind them, the band bounce off of each other throughout the set, mirroring each other during guitar breaks and orbiting around Bishop. You can feel the communal pride shared between them, looks of fondness shared between tracks, radiating pure joy and appreciation for their emerging stardom.
As the gig comes to a close, many venture to Wax and Beans across the way to meet the band, foreheads still sweaty from the night’s antics. With a new era for the band on the horizon, this intimate show showcases a band ready for more. Reviving and revisiting power-pop, the band take the genre, and reclaim it as their own.
Overpass are set to embark on their biggest UK Tour yet this October and November, including sold-out dates in Manchester and London.
Featured image: Ella Venn and Nicola Cutts Manchester’s Open Fly talk new music, performance mishaps and men. Bassist Lily Rose believes that women have better things to say than men when it comes to song lyrics, especially in the world of indie bands. She says this with a sheepish smile as her bandmate and frontwoman…
Featured image: Nicola Cutts & Olivia Taberner Watching a movie, scrolling through social media and playing video games can be fun, but sometimes, you just want to slow down and disconnect from a screen. Where better to begin than with a magazine that you’re holding? Here are five analogue hobbies that will kick off a…
Featured image: Aura Album artwork Kyle Alessandro’s journey these last few years has been nothing short of impressive. Previous album, Evig & Alltid, recorded in Norwegian and released in 2023, had a more conventional pop sound but latest record Aura swerves this and sees Alessandro go searching for a different sound altogether. With Aura, there is…
Featured image: Album Cover (Press) Following the success of 2024’s self-titled album Bleachers and their biggest world tour yet, New Jersey pop-rock band Bleachers are back with fifth studio album everyone for ten minutes, released on their label Bleachers Band Recordings and Dirty Hit. Recorded at New York’s iconic Electric Lady Studios, Bleachers’ fifth studio…
Leave a reply