Being As An Ocean
Asylum12/08/22
Birmingham UK
Claire H. Photographer
Facebook / Spotify / Instagram
Live Review
Celebrating the 10th anniversary of their 2012 debut release Dear G-d, Being As An Ocean made their long awaited return to the UK to headline six intimate venues. Originally playing Birmingham grassroot’ favourite hotspot Mama Roux’s, the show instead took place at The Asylum, home to the city’s biggest alternative club nights. The Asylum boasts a capacity of 600, although upon arrival it was evident that those in attendance were in double digits.
Supporting them on this run, Buckinghamshire based rockers As Everything Unfolds. Having just released two brand new anthems, Felt Like Home and more recent Blossom, the now five-piece band are gearing up for the release of their second album. Their set; minus the latest singles, was made up of tracks from their debut album Within Each Lies The Other, with hits Hiding From Myself and Grayscale being real crowd pleasers. As always, the band bought copious amounts of energy to the stage, with vocalist Charlie Rolfe leading the way. Finishing their set on a high with the help of huge hit single On The Inside, which never fails to get the crowd bouncing.
Setlist:
Take Me There
Hiding From Myself
Stranger In The Mirror
Blossom
Grayscale
Felt Like Home
On The Inside
After a brief intermission, fans gathered towards the front of the stage ready for the California headliners. With temperatures below freezing point; presumably to blame for the absence of punters, keen Birmingham fans braved the outdoors and bundled together for the band’ first Birmingham headline show in over four years. Walking onto a completely blacked out stage, a single spotlight illuminated the silhouette of lead vocalist, Joel Quartuccio as the band kicked off the set with Nothing, Save the Power They’re Given. The crowd surged forwards as Quartuccio leapt off stage and onto the barrier, wasting no time in getting stuck in with the room of devoted fans. Getting up close and personal with the band, fans flung their arms in the air and shouted the lyrics back to the frontman with everything they had. Quartuccio spent majority of the set across the front barrier, blasting through fan favourites Dear G-d and L’exquisite Douleur before closing the explosive and intimate evening with The Hardest Part is Forgetting Those You Swore You Would Never Forget.
All in all, the show was a heartfelt nod to what is undoubtedly an incredible album. It’s just a shame that so many missed out the opportunity to witness it in a live setting after all these years.
Setlist:
Nothing, Save the Power They’re Given
Dear G-d
L’exquisite Douleur
Alone
We Will Never Be the Same
Salute e Vita
Find Our Way
Lost
The Poets Cry for More
Black & Blue
This Room is Alive
Humble Servant, Am I
Know My Name
Thorns
Dissolve
This Loneliness Won’t Be The Death of Me
The Hardest Part is Forgetting Those You Swore You Would Never Forget
