Live Review: Røry – Waterfront, Norwich
2nd March 2024
Support: Lleo, Uninvited
Words & Photos: Tom Atkin
It is a busy ol’ night for the Waterfront. Tonight’s show was meant to be upstairs in the Waterfront Studio. However due to incredible demand, they have been bumped up to the main room downstairs. Doors were meant to open at 7, So I arrived at about 20 to, to find the queue was already round the block!
Starting off early tonight we have Lleo, calling themselves a “Bipolar Pop” artist that’s been growing more and more since mid 2022. These kind of nights I love, as I had not heard of either support artist, so I can go into their performances completely without any outstanding opinions.
Lleo puts on an absolutely flawless show, with just a drummer joining her on stage that also controls the sample tracks, All eyes are on Lleo. The energy they brought to the stage was fantastic, for a genre that includes the name pop. It does not feel like it in the live environment. A theme that has started tonight and is going to continue, there is a lot of emotion coming through the music.
Next up, We are treated to a healthy dose of pop punk from Glasgow in the form of Uninvited. A four piece that bounced on to the scene in 2020. These guys are absolutely brilliant. For a some what young band their performance comes with a great amount of confidence, along with a great ability to grab the audiences attention.
I think one of the most impressive things for me, is the blend on original style 2000’s pop punk with more recent themes mixed in. This is an absolute credit to their writing ability. Both Taylor and Gill’s vocals fit their genre phenomenally, giving the music an absolutely perfect throw back to the original era which provides a great amount of nostalgia. After previous performances at 2000trees and Reading/Leeds Festival, I think they are really gonna stamp their mark on the pop punk scene for years to come.
Finally tonight’s headline act RØRY. Hailing from London, her music career has been going from stride to stride for a fair while now. Initially writing for some of the greats such as You me at Six and All American Rejects, before really focusing on putting her own voice to her words.
Having first come across her music on TikTok in late 2023, I felt a connection to it. A lot of what she writes about is related to past traumas, which I think this is perhaps one of the draws for her music. People realise they aren't going through things alone, and that things will get better.
So, performance wise. The whole band is great, there is some incredible bonds on the stage this evening and they work flawlessly together. Having listened to Rory a fair bit in my free time, live versions of the same songs, are one hundred times better. I think this is down to the fact that that the true meaning in the songs comes out. Røry explains a bit of back ground to some of the songs which just helps people relate more and brings all the emotions out!
Side note: Røry loves her fans. Incredibly so, stopping the show towards the end to get two members of the crowd up on stage so that the gentleman could propose to his partner (she said yes!). She kept an eye on everyone as well, making sure everyone was good, and just generally interacting with everyone in a rarely seen way. It felt more like every one in this room has known each other for years and she was having a catch up with them.
A handy thing about Røry is that she works HARD. Having released a full length EP in 2022 and her first album in 2023 means she already has a nice collection of songs. Tonight we were treated to all her most popular. 'Kill The Girl', 'SadCore' and 'Anti Repressant' to name but a few.
As previously said, the amount of emotion poured into these songs is unreal, and it is all coming out onstage. Honestly, it must be knackering! The hard work is showing as well, having recently recorded a song with Blind Channel for their latest album.
Røry’s album 'Family Drama' is available now on all good streaming sites and you can catch her at Download Festival this year!
Photo Credit: Tom Atkin
