Palace, Swapmeet @ Lion Arts Factory, Adelaide 29/6/2025
UK band Palace are on the cusp of something brilliant and one song away from breaking in a massive way on route for global domination. This was an elite performance and to be able to say I saw them in the intimate surrounds of Lion Arts Factory will surely be of the envy of the most die hard of fans. There is little doubt that when they return next time they will be playing even bigger venues. Originally booked to play Hindley Street Music Hall, the change of venue made this an automatic sell out kicking off the frenzy for tickets for those who missed out.
It might of been a cold wintry Sunday night but that paled in to insignificance as Adelaide fans were treated to something quite remarkable. The energy and vibe amongst the crowd was electric and everyone who was in the venue were crammed in to the main band room. It was cramped, hot and a little uncomfortable but with what was experienced was well worth it.
What an opportunity for Adelaide band Swapmeet. Up until this point I had not seen them play before and were on my list to check out and the word on the street is that they are doing some great things. Even though I only caught the tail end of their send there is no doubt they are on to something and a band to keep an eye out on.
It was all strobe lights and haze as Palace emerged starting with Goodnight, Farewell. There is something quite unassuming about their music but right from the getgo they had charmed the pants of the Adelaide faithful with their blend of indie rock fusing together elements of folk and psych creating something uniquely Palace. They really have been the quiet achievers with four albums So Long Forever, Life After, Shoals and Ultrasound plus a string of EP’s to their credit. Tonight’s set list was dominated by those four albums with a bit more off Ultrasound.
The strobe lighting and haze aesthetic enhanced the mood of each song creating its own unique feel. When Everything Was Lost was followed by Lover (Don’t Let Me Down). Singer and guitarist Leo Wyndham didn’t really need to make a lot of small talk letting the power and emotive qualities of these songs do all the talking apart from the “Adelaide, how are you doing? First time here in Adelaide, thanks for coming!” So Long Forever was stellar followed by the quip by Wyndham “don’t jazz me, I’m wearing a Palace top”.
Bleach was fantastic but it was Greyhound that got a huge fan applause. The crowd reaction to the likes of Son and You was as equally strong. They knew all the songs and sung them back with as much passion and energy as the band. Live Well was that big moment in the set, the band knew it, the fans knew it, and Wyndham acknowledged it saying “that was amazing, beautiful singing.” If there was one moment that stood out from this show that would have been the one that made the highlights reel. Gravity and Rabid Dog were great moments.
The set continued to build in intensity with so much more “gold” to come and was like the perfect soundtrack to a Sunday evening. Let’s Go Swimming from new EP Greyhound was sublime with the likes of Someday, Somewhere, Give Me the Rain, Heaven Up There and a huge sing-a-long on the anthemic Bitter to round out the main set. The complete production from start to end was well done and the way the lighting was used to heighten the mystique of these songs took them to another level. Returning for an encore of Forever Ever After and the first song they had ever written in Veins won’t be forgotten in a hurry either. Definitely one of those shows where you just had to of been there.
Live Review By Rob Lyon