HALFLIVES - BIRMINGHAM ASYLUM 2, 1ST MARCH 2024

BY SAMMIE LYNCH

Exciting times for Halflives, as they embark on their very first headline tour where we caught them in action at The Asylum venue in Birmingham, at the second stop on their UK dates. The mastermind and goddess of this alternative rock band Halflives, Linda Battilani (vocals and guitar), rocks the house, alongside Gloria Simonini, absolutely smashing the drums, and Enrico Bertoni, totally shredding the bass guitar and backing vocals. Support on the tour comes from the sensational German punk rock band Cadet Carter, who, whilst struggling with a few technical issues during the set, engage with the crowd with ease, as Nick Sauter (vocals and guitar) mentions that they are still a punk rock band, “so let’s keep going. We’re here to get everyone in the right mood, being the opener,” and that, whilst they are more or less a German band, Nick, having been born in Wales but now living in Germany, “tonight, we’re more or less an English band”. Cadet Carter are an impressive support act, joking with fans while discussing nerdy topics for a brief moment, and a band who know how to hype up the crowd as they play recent single ‘Lift Me Up’ with an introduction to the crowd that if they “feel like jumping around together, let’s go”. This is all met with cheers, the crowd assuring the band that they’re doing an amazing job. A fantastic band.

As the lights go down and the background music comes to an end, the buzz in the room skyrockets as the low hum and intro begins while the crowd waits in anticipation for Linda to join the band on stage. Raising the roof with opening track ‘everybody knows it’, the fans are beyond hyped for this night. Early on, Linda gives thanks to fans as they make this ‘Inferno’ tour possible. You can see smiles across the band’s faces, the gratefulness to be touring together and for rocking out with fans like those in this room tonight; it all makes everything worth it. Music is a healer, a safe space and creates a community like the one here tonight in Birmingham. Introducing the song ‘EVERYTHING SUCKS!’ with that fact that tonight, nothing does indeed suck, the band are “so happy to be here with you tonight”.

Fans are also delighted and treated to the live debut of the new single release from Halflives, hot off the press, ‘jealous’, that Linda mentions some of the fans may already know the words and dance moves if they had already heard the song and seen the video release earlier in the day, though, even if you didn’t, it won’t be long before you do, so let’s dance away. A true charismatic crowd conductor, Linda gets the crowd belting out ‘woah-oh’s during ‘Rockstar Everyday’ and flashlights out across the entire room as we’re “going to remember ‘Oblivion’”.

The final track of the set sets the room ablaze with a lust for more, for the night to never end, with Linda introducing the track by asking the crowd who has followed since the ‘Empty Rooms’ era (their debut record in 2017). This is, of course, met with lots of cheers and enthusiasm. She continues that there is one song in particular from that era, that the whole room is going to be “burning down the house and we’re going down with it. This is ‘Burn’”.

An evening full of smiles and grateful energy from both the band and the fans, Halflives are going from strength to strength, blazing their way through the alternative rock scene and we all cannot wait for them to return. As the band depart the stage, there’s an energy still electrifying the air in the room as you feel the desire for the band to come back for more. Shout-outs from the crowd with chants of “We want more”, you can hear Linda on the mic jesting “Where are your voices? You guys don’t want to hear two more songs?!”, racing back through the crowd to the stage as she continues, “I’m your victim and I really, really like it,” rocking the house down with the last two songs of the night in this exhilarating encore that scorches into the fans’ memories forever more. Halflives outperformed themselves with their performance this evening, having ignited an inferno of infectious energy among the crowd that we are all craving more of already.

  A review of this show will also appear in Black Velvet Issue 110