The K’s Review 22/5/2025
Invited | Review by Samantha Pearson
It was energy from the off as the four-piece indie rock band The K’s from Earlestown, Merseyside burst onto the stage to a packed out, ramped up crowd at O2 City Hall on Thursday evening.
The band have been promoting their new album, ‘Pretty On The Internet’ tour across towns in the U.K. the past two month due to be released at the end of this month, choosing Newcastle as their final pit stop, and what a place to conclude.
London based newcomers, indie band Lady of Mars got things going for the night, their music much liked to being influenced by the likes of Stevie Nicks and The Smiths, with praise for exploring themes of toxic relationships and mental health, you could see how much the band resonated with the crowd due to their coming of age references. The band have a lovely for guitar solos and ascending female vocals, pleasantly warming up the crowd.
Next up, was Tom A. Smith, the nineteen year old destined for great things if Elton Joh has anything to say about it. “I think he’s going to be a big star”, the icon praised, along others such as BBC Radio 1 renowned Jack Saunders and plenty positively encouraging reviews from major magazines and social media accounts. Tom only played this one night of the tour alongside The K’s, but you could see how much he enjoyed performing for a local crowd and how humbled he was to be on stage doing what he does best. Sharing the stage on previous performances with the likes of Sam Fender & Catfish and The Bottlemen, this young talent is definitely one to watch. And can I also say… has played Glastonbury at the age of 10, how often does that chance come about?! I bumped into him outside and what an absolute pleasure of a guy, discussing our matching Docs, his incredible stage present and him hitting Wembley first thing in the morning for Sunderland AFCs final Championship leg, he’s just incredibly down to earth and has all the time in the world for his fans and the people.
Some of the songs in his set resonated with the crowd so much, and the atmosphere was next level, especially for ‘Little Bit’, an uplifting and motivating song with bouncy upbeat vocals and a melody to match, it was stunning to see the crowd join in and it was impossible not to have an overall sense of warm throughout the track. Finishing with ‘Never Good Enough’, the crowd echoed the catchy chorus back time and time and kept the electric vivacity going for the highly anticipated main event…
The spirit in the room was like nothing I’ve seen in a LONG time when The K’s powered on the stage, bursting straight into new single from the ‘Pretty On The Internet’ album ‘Gravestone’, the fans were high energy from the first beat, starting how mean to go on! This carried through the likes of ‘Icarus’, crowd favourite ‘Chancer’ and ‘Heart On My Sleeve’ before slowing it down for a personal favourite of mine ‘Hoping Maybe’, where lead singer Jamie Boyle took us on an emotional journey with his soulful, passionate power house vocals, which pairs effortlessly with lead guitarist Ryan Breslin’s outstanding, fast paced riffs, Dexter Baker’s laidback casual bass and Nathan Peers thunderstruck defiant drums.
The stage presence throughout the set was something to be commended, the lads energising the audience from the get go and throughout. It was hard to differentiate the live music from the perfect, the definition of pitch perfect in every sense. The lighting captured the ambience perfectly, different moods of fluorescent pinks and blues for the upbeat track ‘Aurora’, and a blue hue to compliment the smoky shadows of the venue to capture the essence of ‘Black and Blue’, which Boyle called the national anthem of their hometown. The lads also treat the crowd to a new track from the upcoming album ‘The Bends (Here We Go Again), with although not yet released or widely heard, the atmosphere was still something to behold.
Finishing with ‘Sarajevo’, the room erupted into the best kind of chaos, and much to the audiences delight, after chanting ‘Dacton! Dacton!’ All night, we were treated to an encore of ‘Dacton & Wanderella’ which was a super special finish and somehow… even more chaotic than the previous song – if that was even possible!
I think it’s only just the start for these loads, and for as long as they keep releasing absolute belters, the fans will follow. Already got them at the top of my list for bands to absolutely NOT miss at Kendall Calling 2025.
Catch them at Redcar Beach Live 2025 this bank holiday Sunday 25th May for an unmissable treat – you will not be disappointed!