OPM aren’t your typical band. With a combination of hip-hop, rock, pop, and reggae, they have a remarkably distinctive sound. This only made their gig at Norwich’s The Owl Sanctuary all the more interesting.
For a small venue, the turnout for a gig is unpredictable, and looked to be insignificant at the beginning of the evening as support act, Ceekay Jones, took to the stage for a 30 minute set. His set consisted of a mix of sounds, some soulful pieces and others more upbeat with rap verses. It was enjoyable to see an artist with such diversity, performing with both an electric and acoustic guitar, experimenting with sounds for a small crowd. With such strong vocals and fluency in performing it was a great shame that the crowd hadn’t yet built for more to witness his performance, which provided a great opening to the night.
With Ceekay’s catchy melodies now behind us we were introduced to the second support of the night, Big B, who again performed a 30 minute set leading up to headliners, OPM. The rap, hip-hop act brought a more upbeat performance to the evening; shuffling about the small stage, motivating the ever-growing crowd to move around to the enticing songs performed. By the halfway point in Big B’s set, the night felt as though it was finally off to a start, with more people filling the room and thoroughly enjoying the music with drinks in hand. As Big B’s set came to a close, the crowd dispersed to the bar to refill on refreshments before the main act of the night, OPM took to the stage.
By now the venue was at its fullest of the night as OPM began their set. As a band of various genres, the excitement for their set was at a high. The crowd had loosened up by now and were moving about to every song, which only progressed throughout the evening. The whole room was fully engaged and participating in the bands performance. The small venue made the gig feel much more intimate and enjoyable for the fans who were reaching out and singing together with the band down the microphones. OPM had both support acts featuring in their set, also taking full advantage of their talents. There was a great energy present in the room during the course of their whole performance, where by now drinks were fully flowing for both the crowd and the band. OPM didn’t disappoint when it came to humour either, constantly cracking jokes between every song. Nobody stood straight-faced for the remainder of their set. With no surprise, ‘Heaven is a Halfpipe’ and ‘El Capitan’ went down a storm with the crowd, who at this point were filling the floor as if it were a nightclub. The band continued to play past the curfew of 11.00, playing several songs to end the night on a high.
Shows like this prove that you don’t need to be in a big venue full of people to have a great time at a gig. The music was great, the crowd were great, and the evening as a whole was great. I would thoroughly recommend going out to see this band and will be awaiting their return to Norwich!
Words: Mollie Maddox
Photography: Kayleigh Warren
