PANIC SHACK
Clwb Ifor Bach, Cardiff - 31st October 2026
Support: Jeanie And The White Boys
It's Hallowe'en and Panic Shack are back home. Not that I'm suggesting the two are connected. They're not really scary or anything, though I reckon they could be a bit of a handful if you get on the wrong side of them. After the initial show sold out in milliseconds, a matinee was arranged and that was the one we attended, which meant we could be home in time for tea like everyone our age should be.
But first up were Jeanie And The White Boys a London-based outfit (though Jeanie herself is from the Black Country). Imagine, if you will, old-school garage rock, fronted by a young, shouty, pissed-off Tina Turner. That's kind of what you get. Most of Jeanie's songs are about being really hacked off with people. "I'm a very hateful person," she tells the audience. It's not necessarily a bad thing, but if you ever meet her, be nice or you might be the target of her next single...
The Panic Shack girls took to the stage in fancy dress - Sarah as Casey Becker (Drew Barrymore's character in Scream), Romi as a bottle of tomato ketchup, and Em as Barry from Eastenders. Meg just seemed content being herself...
It has to be said that the band sounds really tight now, but not at the expense of the fun. They are a scream (pun intended) from start to finish. The set contained tracks from last year's debut album and 2022's now semi-legendary 'Baby Shack' EP. But there was also a smattering of new songs, including recent single Grin And Bear It, and Personal Best, which is about bassist Em "running a marathon on mushrooms"! For me, the new songs were among the highlights, and if they were intended as a snapshot of a second album, we're in for a treat.
Another great thing was the fact that a Saturday afternoon show made it so accessible for young people to attend. Young as in probably still at school. Really encouraging to see the next generation watching and enjoying live music rather than settling for awful chart fodder through their phone's speakers.
Despite the early finish, it was nearly dark by the time we got outside, but there was still time to take MrsRobster for a spot of shopping before heading home, with shouts of "VAPE! PHONE! KEYS! LIPGLOSS!" still ringing in our ears.
A couple clips from the show itself, plus an excellent version of the recent single...
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