Yonaka have been on the move as of late. Over recent months they have crossed the United States, Europe and the UK with tonight proving a very apt setting for the culmination of their Welcome To My House tour. Chalk – one of Brighton’s leading alternative music venues – plays host to the rock three-piece as they round off a monumentally successful tour in signature style. And, with the band originally hailing from this fair city, tonight must truly feel like a homecoming.
Predictably things are kicked off with aplomb. I don’t think any artist could ask for better warm-up acts than Mimi Barks and Noisy. Sets of doom trap and d’n’b hip hop greet the early arrivals and quickly have the auditorium packed. The pit could boast of a greater footfall than the bar – a true testament to the hype both Mimi Barks and Noisy generated in the lead up to the main event.
Which, as we all knew would be the case, did not disappoint. Yonaka take to the stage to be met with a crowd response which most acts would be happy closing their nights to. As they kick off their set with recent hit ‘By The Time You’re Reading This’, an anthemic singalong, they lay out their intention for the evening. Despite having developed a broadly mellower flavour to their sound in recent years the energy of the evening rarely dips from thereon in as the group prove that they still retain that visceral quality which won them such diehard fans since day one.
In Yonaka, an eclectic, undefinable sound (dark pop? grunge rock? alt-metal?) meets an indefatigable stage presence and it’s little wonder that tickets for tonight’s event sold out at the rate that they did. Even the recent poppier and more soulful releases such as ‘PANIC’ and ‘I Want More’ are flung into the auditorium with a wink and an edge sharpened for live performance.
Always ones to flirt with the grungier side of the rock spectrum, the band knock out their heavier hits which start pits as they mete out riff after hook after bop. ‘Creatures’, ‘Clique’ and ‘Greedy’ all set the crowd ablaze but it’s, predictably, recent standalone single ‘PREDATOR’ that provides the greatest turmoil with a drop so thick it comes with its own postcode.
Vocalist Theresa Jarvis struts, boogies and belts out every lyric and refrain with investment, always making the effort to engage the crowd in between songs with anecdotes of tour experiences and the thought processes behind the tracks. It makes for a personable atmosphere – amidst the maelstrom – like that of a conversation with an old friend. It is a catalogue of hits that defies easy compartmentalisation and a rousing encore of ‘Ordinary’ and ‘Seize The Power’ sees the crowd out into the cool March night air.
“I’m so happy our last show is here!” cries Jarvis. We’d wager there wasn’t a soul in that room who could disagree.
This is Yonaka’s house. Welcome to it.
Chalk, Wednesday 27th March 2024
Photo by Brian Ziff
