Bad Luck - Live Review

BAD LUCK. / RESCUE ROOMS, NOTTINGHAM / 7TH FEB 2025

Let us tell you about last night… We headed back out to our first gig in a while, to Nottingham’s Rescue Rooms to check out our long awaited faves, Bad Luck. 

Bad Luck. are a “midwest emo” band from New York City, made up of brothers Dominick and Joseph Fox alongside childhood friends Michael Sichel and Charlie Caruso. We have had our eye on this band for over 10 years since the release of their first album “Cold Bones” in 2014, and have been waiting for them to head to the UK to check out these emotive, punchy tracks live every day since. 

The guys hit the stage and wasted no time demanding attention from the already three quarters full room - which at 6.45pm on a random Friday in early February, was impressive (Depressive). 

Live Bad Luck. sound just like the records, but better. Feeling the songs ruminate through your body is the absolute joy of a live show, the vocal harmonies and raucous screams were goosebump inducing, the instrumentals more refined and technical than you’d expect. Also the banter with the crowd was perfectly awkward and humble, which amused us no end !

Calling this band midwest “emo” almost seems like an insult, emo harks back to an embarrassing time in all alternative millennial’s pasts, with terrible haircuts and a miserable demeanour. This is so much more than emo, but you know what yes, this is emotional rock music. Even the more upbeat tracks you feel in your heart and in your gut, whoever you are you can connect to these songs and feelings. Hits of the set for us were Willoughby, Love Song, I Wish That We Still Talked & Impressive Depressive. 

Having walked for hours during lockdown listening and having been through a few years of life’s worst shit, Bad Luck. have a real reverence to us, these tracks carried us through the worst and best of times, so seeing these perform live meant the world to  us. 

After a bulk merch purchase after the show we caught up with one of the guys who ensured us… a new album IS COMING! 

We hope with every fibre of our being that Bad Luck. will be back playing in the UK again and again.

If you’ve never heard of this band, we implore you - go find them now and listen.