Everything Everything - Live at Rock City, Nottingham by Izzi Glover

Everything (everything) about this gig was exciting.

Manchester band Everything Everything took on Rock City on a warm Thursday evening in Nottingham and the entire atmosphere matched up with the music. 

Local Nottingham legends Divorce opened up the show with some interesting, mellow music. This was special to watch as they clearly were happy to be there in their hometown at such an iconic venue. An odd choice to have them open up, however, as their music is the complete opposite of Everything Everything in terms of pace and emotional response. Simultaneously, the music fits the fandom; what can only be described as ‘man-made’ modern music. The only complaint here is that Divorce are very relaxed and gentle, which can be lovely in a gig setting, but as a support act for an upbeat indie act, they didn’t raise the energy in the room as you would expect. However, it worked. The crowd were silent and had their full attention towards the band during their slower songs, and throughout the entire set really. 

Divorce ended and thanked the crowd for making them feel so loved in their hometown, a warm start to the evening. 

20 minutes to wait before the main act came on; perfect time to grab a drink and for a quick toilet break. 

The stage set up has to be mentioned. A neon sun symbol behind Michael on his drums which made for some lovely silhouettes during the show. Floor lights underneath the raised part of the stage at the back also lit the members of the band in an interesting way, highlighting their faces and their instruments: the most important parts. Opening with The Mad Stone was an excellent choice because the crowd went mental. A track from their newest album, Mountainhead, which is fan favourite, then followed by Wild Guess, a personal favourite of mine, which the crowd also agreed with. The first three songs all being from the new album is an interesting choice that not many setlists take, but the crowd didn’t seem to mind at all. Everything Everything know how good their new album is and I agree with them, the only right thing to do is to show off all the new songs. 

Back to 2022, with Pizza Boy being the next song on the track list, a classic fan favourite, a good break from the new stuff and back to some old classics. The sound was raw, but crisp, electronic, but soft. Johnathon’s intense and steady vocals were heard loud and clear from all corners of the venue, I was at the front, then at the side, at the back and on the balcony, and the sound was crystal clear in all places. 

A healthy mix of all albums was spread out over the setlist, concoctions of old and new, different sub-genres and different sounds, something for everyone. If you were tagging along with a mate or a partner, and hadn’t really heard of the band, there is a guarantee you would find something in their set you would have e enjoyed. Obviously, Everything Everything are notorious for their dance tracks, like the iconic Distant Past. Lots of upbeat tracks thrown in around some more indie mellow sounds. The crowd were kept on their toes. 

Ending on Distant Past before the encore is certainly the only way to do it; such an iconic indie banger that I have most definitely heard in lots of indie DJ sets. The crowd put all their energy into this song. If they weren’t bouncing before, they most certainly were now. As always, they nailed this song and executed it perfectly. 

Overall, an energetic and exciting gig that is great for any music fans. A talented group of people known as Everything Everything blew Rock City away and have big things coming for them, I’m sure.

Click here to see the photographs taken alongside this review