Page 48 - Black Velvet Magazine Issue 98

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ROAM / MILESTONES / WOLF CULTURE – MILTON KEYNES CRAUFURD ARMS, 13.07.18
When ROAM announced that they were doing an
‘intimate tour’ across the UK, we weren’t too sure
what to expect, but a trip out of London into the
nearby Milton Keynes showed us that the band were
very serious when they said these venues were inti-
mate. With no barriers, the full access to the stage
was sure to make for a rowdy night of crowd surfing,
which has come to be expected at ROAM’s shows.
But before all of that, the crowd needs warming
up, which Wolf Culture and Milestones do plenty of.
The excitement is evident from the offset, with a tan-
gible buzz in the air as Wolf Culture take to the stage.
Having only released their debut EP in May, they’re
certainly making their mark in the pop-punk scene
with every show they play. Although they’re the first
band to play, it does not take long before the room is
moving along to songs such as ‘Continents’ and ‘The
Side Effects of Being Happy’. Despite the limited time
of their opening set, they definitely get the crowd fired
up for the rest of the night, as evidenced by the ap-
pearance of circle pits at two different instances.
Following on are Milestones, who hail from the
North West. Bringing their anthemic tunes to Milton
Keynes, beginning with their uplifting song ‘This Is My
Life’, smiles spread across people’s faces as every-
one sings the rousing lyrics of ‘This is my time, this is
my life. This is the feeling of coming alive’ in unison.
It is a truly special moment, and the electricity and en-
ergy in the air is certainly alive. During ‘Forever Or
Never’, singer Matt Clarke takes the crowd for a sin-
galong, nearly getting drowned out by enthusiastic
fans in the process, and for vibrant song ‘Eighteen’,
Matt gets everyone to get on the floor before directing
everyone to jump up simultaneously, resulting in an
explosion of energy. The band choose to end on a
more tender note with ‘Call Me Disaster’, and as the
last notes fade out, the deafening roar from the crowd
is enough to speak for how good the set is. We have
no doubt that they will be hitting more milestones in
the future.
By this point, the room has filled with anticipating
fans who are eager to see ROAM, and as the begin-
ning of ‘Flatline’ rings out, the anticipation translates
into an insane amount of crowd energy. It is almost
as if the floodgates for crowd surfing open as soon as
the first guitar chord is struck, and it does not slow
down at any point during the night. Everyone is keen
to get as close to the band as possible, with out-
stretched arms towards the stage as vocalist Alex
Costello jumps around the stage, never staying still
for more than a few moments. ‘Alive’ and ‘Left For
Dead’ dazzle with their guitar-driven melodies, and
with the lively nature of the songs, it throws the crowd
straight into an unforgivingly fast-paced start. Al-
though the majority of the set is dominated by mate-
rial from their latest album ‘Great Heights &
Nosedives’, the band’s older material certainly isn’t
neglected as evidenced by the presence of songs
such as ‘Hopeless Case’, ‘Over Your Head’ and
‘Warning Sign’. Of course, the band can’t play a show
without including ‘Deadweight’, and during this song,
the throng of crowd surfers somehow becomes even
more enthusiastic, as limbs and hair fly around every-
where. The crowd is given a chance to breathe as
ROAM strip down to acoustic instruments for touching
song ‘Tracks’, and the tenderness can be felt. The
calm doesn’t last for long though, with the band kick-
ing into ‘Head Rush’ and ‘Playing Fiction’ to finish
what is a very sweaty but delightful night. With their
high-octane set that sears with energy, we doubt an
opportunity to see ROAM in such intimate settings will
arise again, as they are clearly destined for bigger
stages.
YYYYY
Athena Kam

Alex Costello (ROAM) Photo By Athena Kam

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