Review: Joe T. Johnson in London

 

☆ BY HENRY AGER ☆

 
 

A FRIDAY NIGHT IN LONDON IS ALWAYS PACKED FULL OF EXCITEMENT - and in this chapter of live music history takes us to Clapham, London, at the Bread and Roses venue to watch new wave indie artist Joe T. Johnson perform with his talented band. 

The first thing you notice about Johnson is his natural charm, which pulled casual pub-goers from their seats towards the stage, having been enticed by Johnson’s presence in the venue. The venue had an intrigued anticipation as Johnson excitedly introduced himself and his band. They began their performance of “10 Pounds”, from Johnson’s debut EP English Elegance, and the face of everyone in the room lit up. As the reverb-heavy guitars and steady backbeat drums rang out it was instantly apparent that the live performance was going to be markedly different from the studio recordings. The recordings lean on the folk and indie side of Johnson’s sound, with only hints of rock and punk, whilst live, the rock elements are on full display in the capable hands of his band. It was an interesting, unexpected and pleasing twist on Johnson’s sound, that makes him all the more intriguing as an artist. 

The band is newly formed, however, the members of Marek Domanowski on lead guitar, Hal Crafter on Bass and Rhys O’Malley on Drums all play with the air of seasoned professionals and thrive off Johnson’s passion. They jammed around the songs, pushed each other to play harder and remained tight throughout the performance. 

Johnson took the opportunity in the middle of the set to cement the crowd's love for him by meandering through the crowd handing out “English Elegance” badges whilst the intro for “Cold Streets” played. Upon returning to the stage, he grabbed his guitar, then the band launched into the song, embellishing it with extra grit. 

Joe T. Johnson is a new wave indie artist who released his debut EP English Elegance in 2021 partnering with cult British photographer Rob Bremner for the artwork. The debut EP went up for sale across Rough Trade stores and solidified Joe’s style as an artist. Jumping forward to 2022 Joe T. Johnson just released his new single “Twist” with an accompanying music video which arguably is his best release yet. Johnson is performing across many stages and venues this summer, including Glastonbury, so be sure to head to see him if you get the chance.

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