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Permanent (Joy), with Lady of Mars and SMO – Islington, The Grace – 25/09/25

When I spoke to Permanent (Joy) at the start of the year, they were still dusty with the ash of their last iteration, Blondes. Having switched up a couple of members and pivoting to a less polished, angstier sound, the band seemed unsure of which direction to head. Their first single, ‘Josephine’, was as though Jeff Mangum had written ‘For Emma’, while their debut EP’s final closer, ‘Untitled’ was a grungy spoken word affair, inspired by Pixies and Radiohead, perhaps even a splash of Yo La Tengo’s drudging melancholy.

A year after the release of ‘Josephine’, and Permanent (Joy) were headlining the mirrorball-besplattered Grace venue in Islington. The support acts felt like two halves of Permanent (Joy). Lady of Mars inhibited the moodier half, bringing pop-punk and emo songwriting with Hayley Williams vocal inflections throughout. They brought a great deal of energy as openers, and my only criticism is that their moustachioed bassist should have been wearing a turtleneck – but what do I know about fashion anyway?

The other half was occupied by Dublin-based SMO, a charming indie act which harkens back to Permanent (Joy)’s days as Blondes. Looking like an Irish Julian Casablanca, SMO’s vocal melodies slink between stalwarts of a certain sound and era – think Liam Gallagher’s debut solo album, DMAs, mid/late-2010s Fratelli’s – allowing for something easy to get a hold of without having to sacrifice its big heartfelt chorus.

Combine the two, and you get Permanent (Joy), rocking up and rolling straight into a few tracks from their first EP. These songs (‘Save My Life’; ‘Sometimes’) are pockets are longing, with lead singer Alex Davison, bassist Noah Roche and guitarist Dan Stroud lined up by the front of the stage delivering punchy harmonies. They aren’t the band’s best songs, and were outshone immediately by the bombastic and beautiful ‘Josephine’.

However, the energy of the venue was immediately changed for the better when Permanent (Joy) performed their latest singles, ‘Stressed Out’ and ‘Role Models’. With a sound firmly indebted to 2000s garage rock, the two songs sound ready-made for an iPod advert, as evidenced by the silhouetted music video for ‘Role Models’ (‘Stressed Out’ also has a refrain of ‘It’s too late’ that’s taken straight from a Hives songs, ‘Tick Tick Boom’). It showed a tighter, more energetic and playful side to the band that offset their heavier, earlier songs, highlighting Dave Annis’ drumming chops. It was the first time that I saw Davison smile during the gig, and while I find some of his vocal inflections erring on the wrong side of cutesy, who could help but let out a smirk when a shaker and whistle come out mid-song?

As an encore, the band played ‘Untitled’ and ‘I Wanna Go Home’. The former culminated in an off-mic shouting rant by Davison – part of the song, mind you – grounding the gig back into the angst of their debut, before ending the set with the latter’s tremoloed guitars. Just after the first anniversary of their music, Permanent (Joy)’s headline show only proved that fans should look forward to their next single, that the band’s shows will only evolve into more energetic, hectic displays.

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