Spacey Jane

Manchester Ritz //Wednesday 8th February 2023

“Summer 2023 belongs to Spacey Jane” a review by Moshmag…

So here we are at the start of February, a time of the year that’s still meant to be in the clutches of a British winter, but today is slightly warmer than usual, and it’s Hump Day, and it’s about to get even warmer! That’s because tonight at The Ritz in Manchester, with it’s (early 20^th century) sprung ballroom dancefloor, the exuberant, sell-out crowd are in for a real treat!

Why, I hear you ask? Well, Australian indie four-piece Spacey Jane are in town. They’ve recently completed their biggest Australian tour, and performed a smattering of well-received dates in North America, but now it’s the UK’s turn as part of the ‘Here Comes Everybody’ 2023 tour, and Spacey Jane are taking to the this historic stage, and briefly transporting us to the future! I’ll bring you back to this shortly …

It’s the first time Moshmag have been able to get a ticket to a Spacey Jane concert, such is the clamour and demand to see their shows, and from the moment Ashton, Caleb, Kieran and Peppa stride onto the stage it’s abundantly clear why!

They look like they’ve combined almost every single current indie fashion trend and rolled it into one. In fact, Spacey Jane couldn’t be more on trend if they tried…. And that’s before a single guitar string, or drum has been touched, but that’s when things really crank up a notch!

The band open with Lunchtime, and immediately set the tone for the rest of the show. High paced, jangly guitars with punchy licks from lead guitarist Ashton Le-Cornu, rhythmic drums from Kieran Lama, and angelic backing vocals from Peppa Lane, all allow front man Caleb Harper to fully express himself, while he sways and swaggers charismatically around the microphone!

Two things become immediately apparent, one is that the bands sound instantly invoke feelings of summertime, sunsets on the beach and boozy barbecues! The other, is that this band absolutely ooze stage presence, and it all feels so effortless at the same time!

On one hand, there’s Caleb, wearing a white sleeveless, semi see through vest, tattoos on full display. He is casually ducking and diving around the stage at any opportunity when he’s not serenading the crowd, and holding long spells of eye contact with the adoring crowd, to add to the already intimate feeling of tonight’s gig.

Then there’s Ashton, who is a ball of unbounding energy,  completely unable or unwilling to stand still at any point! If he’s not manically flinging his long, thick curly hair around his face, he’s either furiously stamping the stage, rocking forward, or kicking his knee’s as high as he can, with the occasional jump thrown in for good measure! It’s as if he’s working through every iconic guitarists pose from every legend and hero that has gone before!

However, on the other hand, you have Peppa, happy to take a step towards the rear of the stage, and allow Caleb, and Ashton, to draw the eye and take most of the attention! Her calm and gentle demeanor acts as the perfect tonic to the rest of the front row of the band. It’s this calmness, amongst the busier parts of the stage, that give Peppa her own presence, you almost can’t help but watch her, as she enjoys every single moment, with a permanent smile. Cheekily, she will throw in the occasional jump as well just to keep you on your toes with the odd shimmer of energy, that briefly reflect her band-mates’.

As the band make their way through their set, they showcase their best work, with songs such as Skin, Sitting up, Yet, and Sawteeth, demonstrating that they’re not here to just go through the motions, like some bands often do when touring a new album.

Spacey Jane are here to make a statement! They’re here to take you on a journey, with new album tracks carefully interwoven through a set list that includes songs released as far back as 2017 and 2018.

The band finish with Lots of Nothing, Good for you, Hardlight and Booster Seat to round off a superbly crafted set, and as the show draws to a close, this very much feels like an “I was there” moment, Spacey Jane are destined for bigger things!

A set filled with so many earworms, that will still be in our heads by the time spring and summer roll around, and with summer already in our minds thanks to tonight’s setlist, Spacey Jane, the hottest band on the indie scene right now, will be featuring on every single Spotify Summer playlist, and Summer soundtrack! With that said, all that remains is to step outside, back to the dark, wintry, Manchester streets.

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