Words by Isaac Vernon
Joey Valence & Brae was the sweatiest gig I’ve been to in a long time – second only to Royal Blood at the City Hall back in 2023. They brought a ridiculous energy that left me soaked in sweat, head to toe.
The duo from Pennsylvania surprised me by announcing a date in Newcastle, I almost went to Leeds overnight to see them on their last tour. In hindsight I’m glad I didn’t, because their latest LP, ‘Hyperyouth’, is their best effort so far, and luckily the setlist was loaded with hits from that album.
JVB know their audience, being born just a year before myself in 1999. Their DJ hyped up the audience like nothing I’ve seen before, with a pre-show set full of thowback songs like ‘Die Young’ by Ke$ha and especially the Skrillex remix of ‘Levels’ by Avicii; a song that was permanently playing in my headphones throughout the whole of Year 7. These old-school bangers immediately created mosh pits before the duo even stepped on stage. Going into this gig I wondered what the crowd would be like; luckily the folded arm Radio 6 dads were nowhere to be found, being replaced by energetic 20-somethings who were giving it 110% from start to finish.
When JVB emerged, they immediately gave the crowd back the energy that had built up. Standing on their own platforms to the left and right of the stage, bouncing through the title track from ‘Hyperyouth’, followed up by an extra lively ‘Give It to Me’, which saw the audience fully give in to the rhythm. A trademark of their music is their leftfield and inspired samples, everything from SpongeBob to Bangarang. The pair were able to flex their comedic timing with these as they blasted out of the PA, which was dialled up to eleven throughout the gig. Unsurprisingly, the devoted crowd quoted these back to the performers beat for beat whenever they were thrown in, often multiple times per song.
Joey Valence in particular gave ridiculous amounts of effort in his performance, with his pale blue cap being transformed into solid navy, almost black with sweat by the time ‘Punk Tactics’ kicked in. This was a real set highlight, being their most popular song, it’s understandable that it went OFF. It marked a key moment in the development of the band’s career. ‘Tactics’ is an early hit that sounds like a forgotten Beastie Boys song, a pigeonhole they could have quite easily found themselves stuck in, but with the variety the earlier part of the set provided, this song highlighted their growth from the early days.
Ending on ‘Disco Tomorrow’ was a fantastic choice; the song perfectly bookends the new album as well as the set. It’s a nostalgia-soaked song aided by twinkling keys that reminded us all to take a breather from the crazy scenes we’d indulged in for well over an hour, and unfortunately made us all aware of our soaking wet T-shirts. This was a gig I will remember for a long time, one my body will be paying the price for in the morning, and one I can say “I saw them at the uni” once they’re selling out academies and beyond.
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