Kids In Glass Houses – “This 15 Smart Casual Live!” – Cardiff Students Union

“But I won’t admit defeat until Saturday, Saturday, Saturday…”

Review and photography by Chloe Jackson-Nott

Kids In Glass Houses, a Welsh five-piece rock band consisting of Aled Phillips, Andrew Sheehy, Iain Mahanty, Joel Fisher and Philip Jenkins. With their debut album Smart Casual turning 15 this year, they have reunited and are back on the road to bring nostalgia to the kids who have been fans since 2004.

The band announced their split back in 2014 where they played a final show on Halloween in Cardiff. On their current reunion tour, they have stopped off in Glasgow, Manchester, Birmingham, London, Bristol and finally wrapping up in Cardiff. It felt incredibly fitting to watch Kids In Glass Houses perform on a Saturday in their home city of Cardiff, with The Nightmares as their support act.

The Nightmares are a four-piece band who describe their music as Noir Pop. The Newport band consists of Adam Parslow, Eleanor Coburn, Benjamin Mainwaring and James Mattock. With the staging set up in dark red, the band played songs from their discography with black roses attached to their microphone stands. Their vibe gave a gothic atmosphere with a melancholy crimson feel.

Kids In Glass Houses came onto the stage with bundles of energy. Aled Phillips was running around the stage and showing no sign of stopping until their set was complete. They opened with Fisticuffs and finished with Matters At All. The the eccentric dance moves from Aled, it felt like he was channelling his inner Elvis. With a sea of inflatable flamingos in the crowd, and the chanting of A.L.E.D, the final show on the tour really did end with a bang. The band were incredibly thankful that so many fans were still supporting them and selling out shows and how 15 years since Smart Casual was released has flown by. The band finished off by taking a photo with the audience and included a sign that read ‘BRB…Making A New Album!’

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