Live Review + Gallery | The Orielles @ Norwich Arts Centre

The Orielles

Norwich Arts Centre, Norwich

29th January 2026

Photography by Amber Hill (@amberhill.photography)

Toby Furlong

I’m a writer hailing from the distant land of Norfolk. With a deep love for vinyl, currently standing at over 100 in my collection. When it comes to picking a favourite artist, it will always be the sounds of Trish Keenan and Broadcast.

We head to Norwich to catch The Orielles headlining the Arts Centre for Independent Venue Week, with support from Ladylike

Some time ago, pushing about six years now, I saw The Orielles playing a short walk across town in a venue called The Waterfront. I had caught the bug hearing ‘Come Down On Jupiter’ from 2020’s sophomore album ‘Disco Volador’ after it started to get frequent radio play over on 6 Music.

I couldn’t believe that this group, sounding like a cosmic mix of Stereolab, Saint Etienne, My Bloody Valentine and The Shangri-Las, were landing down in sleepy Norwich, and from that moment on I have followed them religiously. I am still yet to find and hear a band as transformative and chameleon-esque as the Halifax trio, consisting of sisters Esmé Hand-Halford (vocals and bass) and Sidonie Hand-Halford (drums), along with Henry Wade (guitar and vocals).

In their earliest days, they debuted with 2018’s ‘Silver Dollar Moment’, a perfect remedy of indie-jangle and funk influences. Tracks such as ‘Liminal Spaces’ gave every indication that this trio had ideas and invention that would lead them to the cosmic-pop of ‘Disco Volador’ and the dark cinematic soundscapes of 2022’s ‘Tableau’.

Such relentless reinvention is an indication of how how unpredictable an Orielles set can be, with influences ranging from the thunderous sound of Godspeed You! Black Emperor to the ethereal post-rock of Sigur Rós.

Successfully wetting our appetite was the ragged-glory of Ladylike, a Brighton group who themselves are building a reputation for a spellbinding blend of folk and shoegaze. Playing tracks from their upcoming EP ‘It’s a Pleasure of Mine’, highlights included ‘Rome’ which should have more than endeared the group to a receptive Norwich crowd. Atmospheric folk music that can bloom into a sound all of its own has Ladylike orbiting the ones to watch category.

The crowd at the NAC are always up for a chat and, throughout The Orielles’ set that consisted mainly of the group’s upcoming release ‘Only You Left’, Henry Wade was delightfully cheery, lowering that important barrier between audience and performer.

The set sparked into life with the rising-and-falling guitar chug of ‘BEAM/S‘, the dreamy voice of Esmé surrounded by crunching guitar and the electronic transmissions of a synthesiser. If anything, it’s the perfect introduction to the scope of ideas the group are able to bring to a live stage.

With the new album arriving in mid March, it was the unreleased material on display here that brought special attention to a continually evolving sound. ‘Three Halves’ in particular had a distinctly darker edge, substituting any jangle for a sound teetering on the edge of guitar blow-out and oblivion.

However geared the set was for newer experimentation, The Orielles are a group that recognise a need for a crowd favourite, including ‘Come Down On Jupiter’ in all its space voyage-esque glory. When the band and crowd shout “Thrift Shop Cowboys, Bag your deals, Pull out your guns!” you fall in love with this shapeshifting trio for the first time all over again.

I think it takes courage to take to the stage in the same city six years down the line with a completely new sound, but through fearless innovation and sheer friendliness, the trio have marked their new identity to a crowd of enraptured East Anglians.