Payola Live at The Water Rats: Swagger, Firepower and a Wall of Sound
Thunderous drums, guitars with bite and bass playing that demands your attention: Payola brought plenty of swagger and soul and rocknroll to London’s iconic The Water Rats with conviction. An excitable anticipation surrounds the five-piece’s headline appearance, and what follows gives that excitement substance, a tight, powerful performance with fresh material standing confidently alongside established favourites.
Opening with new song Set Our Souls Free is a confident move. The crowd quickly embrace its steady groove and thick, muscular guitars before gradually opening out into something much bigger. The final section really lifts, giving the track an anthemic, arms-in-the-air quality.
Time finds a similarly receptive audience later in the set, suggesting that Payola have plenty more to offer as their repertoire grows.
The Way It All Begins delivers an early explosion, unleashing the wall of sound the room has been waiting for. What makes it hit so hard, though, is the precision beneath the noise. The drumming is thunderous, the lead guitar fires off sharp bursts of energy, while the rhythm guitar provides the backbone that keeps everything locked together. Particularly impressive is the bass, which commands attention throughout the evening, cutting through the guitar assault and giving the whole performance real weight.
That balance becomes one of Payola’s greatest strengths tonight. Every member leaves their mark without ever overcrowding the songs; the individual parts lock together with a sense of purpose, turning sheer volume into something far more controlled and devastating. This isn’t simply a band playing loud — it’s a band completely in sync.
Ivory Tickler emerges as one of the night’s strongest moments. Sounding punkier than it does when played previously t arrives with an extra bite that suits the live setting. It’s an exciting development for a band who now exactly when up the tempo and then slow it down into the ballady numbers.
Born Out Of Frustration and Everywhere Light Can’t See are further highlights, underlining the strength of the songs underpinning Payola’s considerable volume.
Frontman Dave Farley knows how to work a crowd, giving the band’s collective energy an engaging focal point. During Pulse Jet Man, his outward gestures and raised arms complement the sight of the musicians absorbed in their playing around him. The performance has personality as well as muscle, with all five members contributing to its presence.
Farley also delivers one of the evening’s most heartfelt moments, speaking passionately about supporting live music and grassroots venues. His thanks to those who have come down reinforce the connection between the band and the audience. In a room like The Water Rats, that appreciation feels especially fitting.
Wait is a fitting end to the set. It showcases the bands melodic instincts and punk bite. Bright, chiming guitars give the song its immediate lift, before it soars into an anthem of pure euphoria, that any band would envy.
The bands ever growing and loyal fanbase chanted for one more song and Payola didn’t disappoint. They delivered a rousing and scorching cover of The Who’s My Generation provides the final eruption. It’s a defiant finish to an evening built on tight musicianship, emerging favourites and the sheer pleasure of a band playing with conviction.
Payola’s wall of sound has five musicians holding it up, and every one of them makes their mark. Swagger, bite and songs worth coming back for: this is grassroots rock ’n’ roll giving you every reason to get through the door.
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