New York-based collective pays a visit to London’s new venue Omeara.

As December cold is slowly creeping up on us we keep seeking an escape in the cosiness of warmer tunes. Luckily, there are still bands who know how to light a spark with fresh talent.

It is a Monday night when NYC-based outfit, Thirdstory, is about to take to the stage at recently opened venue in South East London, Omeara. Redesigned in a vintage style but with modern twist, the place sees 300 people awaiting tonight’s headliners with a high anticipation.

Before the trio even reveals their presence, the loud cheers arise building up the excitement. It is indeed their first, out of two sold out shows, making the expectations even higher. What’s more, as the guys unveil later on, it is their second ever appearance on London music scene.

After a few words of introduction, the bewildered artists commence with their set announcing that they’ve got an hour and half to spin some tunes. Shortly we are being presented with their infused R&B refined version of soulful pop.

It is all about collaboration with these guys as we can see Ben Lusher and Richard Saunders proceed with smooth transitions on keys, adding Elliott Skinner‘s skills of switching from electric to acoustic guitar in between songs. However, what strikes the most is their array of instrumentation, vast in its simplicity because it mainly involves vocals used as instruments.

The trio has released debut Searching EP earlier this year and the tracks taken off of it stand as the most relevant on tonight’s setlist. Gripping and dulcet timbres coexist in symbiosis of sounds as they shape the three-way tuneful harmonies.

Respectively, melodious Grows Old gets a big hum along and bold hip sways while their latest single G Train is surely more upbeat of a tune. The guys even allow themselves to share some insights from their love life and explain the story behind the track. Well, I assume we can all relate to the subway / tube part of the song in a way.

Thirdstory have emerged on music scene uploading cover tracks to their YouTube channel. Tonight seems like another great chance to showcase the songs that made their fans fall for them in the first place.

The more chilled version of Taylor Swift‘s Style follows alongside the fiery Drake’s Hotline Bling what naturally makes this gloomy Monday feel more like a Friday night.

What’s more, the cover of Sam Smith‘s I’m Not The Only One and the band’s Searching For A Feeling create definite standout moments. The first, as the trio’s first ever upload, is a graceful nod to the grand beginning whilst the latter shows well-crafted songwriting skills at their best.

However, despite the fact the band presents some fresh ideas bringing vocal instruments to the mix of electronics and hip-hop production, the entire performance falls a tad flat in the middle of the set. Their simultaneous harmonies seem synergic and somehow accompany each other what surely is not an easy thing to accomplish, but they don’t utterly translate into the live format.

Reasons may vary as the tracks leave the unfinished effect behind at times or perhaps they’re over-rehearsed, or the crowd unnecessarily shouts when a moment of silence is required. Either way, the whole reception might be slightly ruined but you can never fully control the audience.

Undoubtedly, Thirdstory possess the ability to form euphonious sequences so effortlessly that each song reverberate with a vivid sensation. Perhaps, they just need more time and more practice to fully transform into a better live act.

Nevertheless, next year will certainly be huge for the trio as their highly anticipated debut album is in the making, and judging by the individuals they’ve got on board, including Grammy-winning producer Malay (Frank Ocean’s “Blonde” and Zayn’s “Mind of Mine”), it will be quite a something.