The Orchestra (For Now) – Live at The Exchange, Bristol

It was one of those cold November nights where the city feels half emptied out, except for Old Market Street where everyone clearly had the same idea. The pub across the road was overflowing, and The Exchange wasn’t far behind. Inside the venue, clusters of people lingered around the bar near the heating before shuffling into the tightly packed room, which felt about half the size it actually is.

Ebbb began the night by pulling the crowd into a space that felt slightly unreal from the first note. Genre-blurring barely covers it. Walking in felt like stepping into The Roadhouse as the credits rolled on an episode of Twin Peaks: The Return. A mix of eerie electronic pulses and abrupt melodic changes that land incredibly well. It left the room off balance in the best way and set things up perfectly for the main act. Definitely catch them live if you get the chance.

This run of shows finds The Orchestra (For Now) right in their element. If their newest EP Plan 76 hints at controlled chaos, the live show makes it unmistakably clear. Seven people onstage, countless strings, abrupt shifts in tempo and sudden crescendos. There is precision in the way they build tension. At one point, frontman Joe Scarisbrick casually took a hit of his vape before launching into the next section, a strangely perfect detail for a band this unbothered by convention. The whole group move as if they’re following some connected internal wavelength, and the crowd absolutely eats it up.

This show came straight off the back of a sold-out hometown headline at London’s Scala two nights before, yet TO(FN) showed no signs of slowing down and looked sharper than ever. By the time the final song, Wake Robin, arrived, the room was completely locked in, riding every swell and collapse as if the whole place were breathing with the band. It was the kind of finish that leaves a room suspended for a second before anyone remembers to clap.

The band casually walked offstage after an hour-long set of pure chaos. They reappeared moments later at the merch table, chatting with fans and keeping the night alive long after the last note faded.

More Upcoming The Orchestra (For Now) shows:

December 4th - Portland Arms, Cambridge

December 5th - The Shackwell Arms, London

January 24th - KOKO, London