Lonely The Brave @ Rescue Rooms (Nottingham, UK) on October 10, 2016 [Photos & Show Review]

As a photographer and as a music fan, I had high hopes before seeing Lonely The Brave. I was looking forward to quite an intimate performance at Nottingham’s Rescue Rooms, as although the ground level was packed, the balcony was off-limits so everyone in attendance huddled together in the floorspace. As the lights dimmed and the band walked on they were greeted by cheers, before they launched straight into “Black Mire”, one of the singles from their most recent, third album Things Will Matter.

From the very first moment I was fully immersed in their show, as though there was nothing else beyond the Rescue Rooms. Part of what drew me in was their lighting set-up, which was so sympathetic to the songs – delicate in places and hard hitting in others.

The band played a balanced set of both their albums, choosing “Strange Like I”, “The Blue, The Green” and “Backroads”, amongst others, from their extended 2015 album The Day’s War (Victory Edition), “Comfortably Numb” from their EP and “Dust and Bones”, “Diamond Days” and “Radar” from their latest album. After a particularly moving rendition of “Jaws of Hell”, which the fans were singing along to, guitarist Mark Trotter paused to thank the crowd.

It’s difficult not to admire frontman David Jakes, who has historically spoken about his nerves and performance anxiety, Every night, Jakes pushes himself far out of his comfort zone in order to bring his music to fans across the country. This band doesn’t need a singer that draws the spotlight, in fact I felt his stoic performance added to the set, as it brought the audience back to his outstanding voice and just made this intimate night even more special for the fans in attendance.

Check out the song “The Blue, The Green”