Sea Girls Live
Liverpool O2 Academy, 15 October, 2021

I have to admit to having some concerns about covering a sell-out show in Liverpool especially since Sea Girls has such a vocal and enthusiastic younger following. With Covid infections on the increase again (45,000 most recently) - second only to the USA currently - and despite by double vaccination, I had to think twice. But being starved of live shows for nearly 2 years and cameras gathering dust I decided to bite-the-bullet. When I arrived at the O2 Academy in Liverpool, the long and winding queue had already formed and was getting longer by the second. When Sea Girls eventually appeared it was clear that the venues capacity of 1,200 had been reached with even the venue’s balconies spilling over.

Supporting Sea Girls was a 4-piece band from the Isle Of Wight called Coach Party. The band released their debut single ‘Lola’ in 2019. This short track, along with 5 others, all produced in their own studio on the Isle of Wight, has generated interest from the music industry. With further singles following, the 6-track mini-album was released in 2020.

Coach Party is:

Jess Eastwood - vocals, bass
Joe Perry - guitar
Guy Page - drums
Steph Norris - guitar

I’ve read that the band is classified as an indie or alt rock band but on the evidence of the night’s performance I’d be tempted to go rockier as they sounded distinctly punk - angry, frustrated, loud. Eastwood’s screaming banshee vocal partnered with Page’s dominant and skilful sticks secured audience approval. As the warm-up act for Sea Girls they certainly lifted the temperature nicely with songs of diverse pace and mood. My only criticism (and it’s an important one) is that the band’s sound management over-egged the rhythm section so that the vocals could not be heard.

SETLIST

Lola
Everybody Hates me
Crying Makes Me Tired
Girlfriend
Really OK On My Own
Breakdown
Nirvana
Flag (Feel Like A Girl)
Can’t Talk, Won’t

https://www.coach-party.com/

I have only ever seen/heard Sea Girls on YouTube and have been impressed with the band’s simple, poetic and intelligent song lyrics in addition to their performance skills. So the night’s show for me is a putting-meat-on-bones exercise, and the first live rock show in nearly two years. By the time the band arrived on stage, the venue was heaving. The four band members was spread out over the large stage and consisted of:

Henry Camamile - vocal
Andrew Noswad - bass
Oli Khan - drums
Rory Young - lead guitar

In front of a largely very young audience the band opened with a medium-paced and melancholic ‘Call Me Out’ and immediately the fans were singing along. Frontman Camamile was impressive. He possesses a powerful voice that covers the scales and is immensely comfortable connecting with the audience. It all seemed so natural to him. ‘Violet’ with its radio-friendly choruses was next while ‘Closer’ gave the guitar section the opportunity to display some notable riffs. Instrumentally and vocally, Sea Girls proved to be the real deal with enough pop sensibility to guarantee strong radio coverage.

The band revealed its rock credentials with an exhilarating interpretation of ‘Transplant’ - young angst at its finest. The setlist covered both debut and prospective new record penned for release in January 2022, together with songs from several of their build-up EPs. ‘Ready For More’ was a prime example of the melodic strength of the band’s songs while the encore of slower ballads ‘You Over Anyone’ and ‘Sick’ sealed the deal for me. This young band has legs enough to turn young fans into more mature fans. They have performance capabilities in abundance but more importantly Camamile’s writing places him and the band at the top of the pop/rock band tree right now.

It is unusual to find a capacity audience cheering and singing every song but that is what happened and deservedly so. I loved the diversity of pace and mood of the set which more than proved that this band possesses real depth and durability on an international scale. The inclusion and quality of many new songs in the setlist points to a major charting position next January for the band. What a night!

SETLIST

Call Me Out
Violet
Closer
Transplant
Hometown
Lie To Me
Forever
Moving On
Do You Really Wanna Know?
Ready For More
Heavenly War
Lonely
Too Much Fun
Damage Done
All I Want To Hear You Say

Encore:
You Over Anyone
Sick