After seeing Palace at the Green Man Festival only a few months before this gig, I was pleasantly surprised to see how far they had come in terms of fluidity of performance and image. The setting of the intimate and edgy performance space at Headrow House suited their presentation perfectly, allowing for their effortlessly cool vibe to blossom through in a more endearing way than what was demonstrated in the larger space of a festival. Even during a short tuning period, the band was still able to entertain with a delightful improvised interlude, showcasing their obvious musical talent and polished audience-pleasing skills.

It was very easy to lose yourself and your awareness of your surroundings in the mesmerizing vocals of Leo, the band’s lead singer, supported by the dreamy harmonies provided by his other band members. As my friend, a Palace virgin before this night, said to me after the gig: it was ‘the kind of music that you could listen to, drunk or sober, and it will take you to a memory’, a statement I could only agree with. Somewhere in the trance-like melodies, one finds themselves reverted back to hot, lazy summers, an inviting far-cry to the dismal and cold October night outside. Even in the newer, more rock focused songs, the alluring vocals kept up the consistent softness of the sound.

However, unfortunately one was brought back to reality by the contrasting behavior of some of the crowd members, which included lots of exaggerated glass smashing and a fight – incredibly inappropriate actions at such an intimate gig. Palace maintained their professionalism despite this, which is commendable.Overall, I was very impressed by this gig, especially on consideration of how far their professionalism and performance skills had improved in such a short space of time. With improvements coming so rapidly, I have only high hopes for this band, and suggest that they are definitely one to watch.

Molly Crouch

photo: Hollie Fernando