San Diego – July 20, 2016   The Joy Formidable, a Welsh band that mixes elements of 90’s alt-rock (Garbage, Cranberries), shoegaze (Slowdive, Lush) and modern all-over-the-place indie rock, played the Irenic in North Park this week for a good sized and very enthusiastic crowd.  Sometimes I wonder how groups like this get discovered by so many people.  There is really no rock-radio or video channel supporting bands like this but tours with groups like Muse and Editors must have helped them build a solid following.

One thing is for sure – this band knows how to ROCK OUT!  Their records are hardly mellow  affairs, but as a live act The Joy Formidable puts its foot on the audience’s throat and barely lets up the entire show.  The Irenic is not a big venue but this group played as if they were in the Sports Arena coming on after The Foo Fighters!  Also, being Welsh, the band members,  vocalist/guitarist Ritzy Bryan, bassist Rhydian Dafydd, and drummer Matt Thomas, were charming and quite funny.

I didn’t really have a good angle for pictures or video but here’s what I got (“Maw Maw Song”, “The Cradle”, and two parts of “A Heavy Abacus” :