Music

It’s a Friday night in uptown Oakland, and there’s a buzz in the air as British rockers Wolf Alice arrive at the Fox Theater on their much-anticipated fall tour. The band have won growing acclaim with each of their four albums, but there were four years between the release of 2021’s Blue Weekend and 2025’s The Clearing.

Thus, there’s been a long wait to see Wolf Alice back on tour. The group’s first major-label album since signing with Columbia Records last year is a polished, ambitious collection of songs that explores an array of sonic landscapes. There’s dream pop, power ballads, full-tilt alternative rock, and tunes that defy easy categorization as dynamic vocalist Ellie Rowsell and her cohorts explore their craft.

Sonic diversity is a Wolf Alice trademark, but there’s also a more seasoned approach on The Clearing. The group have been around the block a few times and are moving into their 30s, a time when one starts to ponder life’s existential questions more deeply. “I think a lot of it is like, maybe you think when you’re younger that you’re going to get older and understand yourself and everything around you a bit more,” Rowsell told Rolling Stone UK earlier this year. “Maybe getting older is understanding that you might never. You don’t always figure it out. You don’t figure yourself out because you’re always changing.”

Change can be a fine line in the rock world, where fans want the familiar sound they fell in love with. However, it’s the bands that can maintain their original vibe while also growing and experimenting with their art who tend to have the most enduring careers. Thus, Wolf Alice are poised to continue their ascent. Guitarist Joff Oddie has had to stay home, missing the fall tour while awaiting the birth of his first child. Reports indicate he hand-picked guitarist John Victor to fill in for him, along with keyboardist Ryan Malcolm. 

The first few songs here at the Fox Theater showcase the band’s dream pop side, highlighted by the atmospheric vibe of “Delicious Things” from Blue Weekend. Rowsell wears what appears to be a sequined white leotard, white stockings, and white boots, making her look like a cross between an Olympic gymnast and a superheroine from The X-Men.

The set ignites on “Formidable Cool”, an electrifying hard rocker from 2017’s Visions of a Life. Bassist Theo Ellis and drummer Joel Amey lay down a wicked groove, and the guitars crank up the amps to send the group’s sound to a more powerful sonic landscape. The stylish Rowsell seems to embody the concept of formidable cool, with what feels like a shamanic presence, and it becomes evident that she is a first-tier rock goddess and a solid guitarist.

Amey takes the lead vocal on “White Horses”, a vibrant tune about personal identity from the new record, where Wolf Alice soar with a crisp upbeat sound that takes on a multi-dimensional flavor with Rowsell coming in for the choruses. It’s a standout track on the album that really comes alive onstage as the audience grows increasingly engaged. Wolf Alice’s sound clearly has more of an edge in the live setting, and it’s exhilarating to experience.

“Bros” from 2015’s My Love is Cool returns to the dream pop realm and is clearly a fan favorite, as Rowsell gets the adoring audience clapping in unison. “Your Loves Whore” is another song from that 2015 release that soars, a power pop gem where Rowsell’s voice shines. Wolf Alice mix it up when Amey and Malcolm come out front to join Rowsell for trio harmonies on “Safe From Heartbreak (if you never fall in love)”, winning simpatico cheers when they sing, “You fucked with my feelings.”

A showcase moment for Rowsell occurs on “The Sofa”, the dreamy closing track from The Clearing. At first listen, the song may seem like an oddly emotional number about chilling on one’s couch, but the song has deeper layers, both sonically and thematically, as Rowsell explores life’s conflicting emotions. She sings about having a wild side, but sometimes she just wants to lie there on the sofa all day long. A lot of people can probably relate, but only Ellie Rowsell turns this universal feeling into an existential power ballad, with the crowd waving their hands back and forth in sympathetic unison.

“Bread Butter Tea Sugar” follows as an upbeat number that blends a Beatlesque production vibe from the Sgt. Pepper’s era with 1970s pop rock, as Rowsell continues to shine with a giant star backdrop behind her. Wolf Alice crank the energy level to incendiary levels on the combo of “Yuk Foo” from Visions of a Life and “Play the Greatest Hits” from Blue Weekend. There are extra psychedelic lighting effects and wild, side-energy from Rowsell as she headbangs and swings her long hair around like a woman possessed. The energy is contagious, as the Fox is really rocking out now.

“Lipstick on the Glass” returns to a mid-tempo level, but there’s a shimmering vibe as Rowsell emotes in a mesmerizing way over a tight bass line, creating a song that feels like it could be from a neo-noir film soundtrack. “Giant Peach” is a rocker from the first album with a punk edge that revs things up again in sensational fashion. Ellie Rowsell can hang with the best in dream pop, but she transforms into a genuine force of nature on the harder-rocking songs with her mesmerizing presence.

“I’ll tell you one thing, thank god for the West Coast of America,” bassist Theo Ellis says sincerely, thanking everyone for coming out before the band launch into one of their most scintillating songs with “Smile” from Blue Weekend. It’s a Wolf Alice tour de force with the heavy groove, the tight riffs, and Rowsell’s syncopated freestyle type vocals as she sings of lost souls congregating at the bar to remember who they are, before a big chorus. Rowsell is also back on guitar here, rocking out like the rock star that she is.

“Bloom Baby Bloom” pairs well with “Smile”, the hard-rocking first single from the new album that feels larger than life as Rowsell belts out a powerful vocal over big hooks and a fierce beat, culminating in a climactic conclusion to the set.”When I’m playing this song, I’m just trying to channel that Muppet that plays the drums – you know, Animal. Yeah. Just on the floor tom for, like, three-and-a-half minutes. So maybe I’m trying to outgrow my nonanimal persona and into my animal persona,” drummer Joel Amey told NPR about his approach to “Bloom Baby Bloom”, which seems fitting for the song’s high energy level.

“A primal scream to remind yourself that you are brilliant as you are and not to let anyone let you forget that. Maybe when you feel in doubt of your own strength and power, like, it could serve as a kind of encouragement or something that you are amazing,” Rowsell added regarding her intention with the song, highlighting rock’s ever-compelling power to foster and encourage personal empowerment.

The encore of “The Last Man on Earth” starts as a contemplative ballad, before taking off with a shimmering sonic grandeur as Rowsell sings, “You’d like a light to shine on you, Let it shine on you,” seemingly channeling a bit of the vibe from the Rolling Stones‘ “Shine a Light”. It hits the feels like sonic honey for the soul, setting up the finale of the band’s hit power-pop song “Don’t Delete the Kisses”. 

It’s been a sensational night at the Fox Theater, as Wolf Alice continue to build on their legend that began with taking their name from a short story of the same name by Angela Carter. It’s apparently a variant of “Little Red Riding Hood” from the perspective of a feral child, which perhaps provides some explanation for how fierce Ellie Rowsell can seem at times onstage. It’s been said that rock ‘n’ roll may not be able to change the world, but that it can get you through the night. Tonight’s performance has undoubtedly been one of those, as fans exit feeling blessed to bask in the uplifting power of Wolf Alice.