Trampolene roared back into headline show action this week, with 2 sold-out shows at London’s Lexington. The welsh band returned with a statement, showcasing two nights of chaos and indie rock antics, following several quieter years.

This wasn’t just an opportunity to get back to the live shows, but a chance to deliver new material to their adoring crowd. With four new songs on the setlist, The Lexington felt like a peak behind the curtain into the future of Trampolene.

Tres Kings opened on both nights, to the sold out crowds of 200 people. The Kent trio took the opportunity in their stride and even threw a couple of new tracks into their performance.

The Lexington itself, served its purpose as an intimate music venue. The bands are at close quarters to the crowd, where the front row bleed onto the stage. It’s perfectly suited to a band like Trampolene who thrive on the connection with their cult following. A well-worn, top-of-the-staircase sweat-box.

Trampolene has quietly transitioned into a 4-piece band of late. Jack Jones (Vocals and guitar), Wayne Thomas (Bass) and Kyle “Mr” Williams (Drums) are now joined by Wayne’s younger brother Lee on guitar.

NIGHT 1

The opening night had the lingering sense of the unknown. It had been a while since Trampolene have performed to their own crowd of this scale, and just as long since their fans had seen them in a setting like this.

Fear not though, Kent trio Tres Kings were on hand to boot any uncertainty to the kerb. Oozing with nonchalant calmness, they roared straight into ‘Antenna’. Drummer Rhu Fuller counted them in as his brother Lacs ripped into an elastic baseline.

Frontman, Wez King, looked the epitome of cool as he allowed the crowds initial reaction to wash over him before roaring into the opening verse.

This energy continued as they ploughed into 2025 single ‘Scuba Diver’. An upbeat, groove-led track that’s built for the live stage. By now the room had packed in, and it was clear they had already won the crowd over.

It’s a daunting task performing to crowds of this size, even in a support capacity, but King and the Fuller brothers didn’t let this faze them an ounce. If it did, it didn’t show on stage. There was no rushing, the songs and no forced theatrics, they were playing the hits how they should be played, with confidence seeping out of every note.

Following the fast and thunderous opening tracks, this discovered confidence continued into new song ‘Roll Up Your Sleeves’. This fresh song landed on the room of fresh ears. The catchy chorus reverberated around the box-room walls of the Lexington. Particularly Lacs bass, which incited a bop and sway from the crowd.

The trio strived on through the set, held together by the Fuller brother’s tight-but-forecful rhythm section, giving King the opportunity to flex the vocal and guitar combination he thrives with. He showcased this during solo tracks ‘Officer’ and ‘Cool Kid’, which earn their place amongst the Tres Kings hits.

At this point they reached the unreleased ‘ET’ (More on that coming soon). It featured a catchy chorus that allowed King to flex the range in his vocals. As he ferociously strummed away at the guitar he bellowed the chorus “I’ll stay up. Watching ET with you”. Rhu’s drums crashed their way throughout, without overpowering King, and Lacs kept things tight with a driving baseline.

They followed this up with a Tres Kings classic ‘Wake Up The People’, originally released before the band split some five years ago, but certainly one to warm the crowd. Rhu announced to the crowd that this was one to move around for, and they obliged.

Rounding off their set, the trio played a brand new song, called ‘Brass Monkey’s’. Once more, the now packed Lexington took to the hit and joined them in the funky groove. Arms swayed and heads bobbed, and it was clear the trio fed off the energy until the very final note.

They rounded off with one very loud chorus that could be felt by all inside the venue, and probably a few outside too, before vacating their positions to loud applause from the crowd.

This paved the way for Trampolene to set up, as tension and excitement rose in unison. After what seemed like no time at all, the familiar Simpsons intro rattled around the pent-up Lexington walls.

As Homer Simpson gave one final “Tramampoline” bellow, their hit ‘Gotta Do More Gotta Be More’ penetrated the eardrums of all in range. Jack Jones darted out of the dressing room, showered the crowd in his water, and took his position front and centre.

As he donned a fur-lined parka in an already sweaty room, he looked in awe at the crowd all crammed in the top floor of the venue. He gave himself a moment to take it all in, before welcoming the crowd with a hint of a smile.

“Good evening Tramps. Welcome to The Lexington.” As the rest of Trampolene joined him on stage, he announced to the crowd that they were being recorded.

The band roared into life as they started playing ‘Sort Me Out’, now firmly nestled as the opener at their recent run of shows.

Trampolene sets aren’t just made for watching, you get dragged into the action, and this was no different. It felt like everything had been turned up just that little bit extra. There was a playful glint in their eyes as the realisation they were back playing headline shows dawned on them.

They carried this energy into ‘You Do Nothing For Me’, which led into Jones‘s announcement that a new track called ‘Help Me Get Off My Face’, was about to be debuted.

It felt like the start of Trampolene pulling into a new direction musically, as Lee Thomas opened proceedings with a heavy and dirty riff. It was an instant winner with their adoring crowd, and Jones ripped through some high pitched vocals.

The Swansea quartet continued with their classic ‘It’s Not Rock & Roll’. On this day, in this environment it had real growl in the bass, Wayne Thomas at his brilliant best. For a song they’ve played forever, this extra snarling bite felt like a new lease of life. It was swiftly followed up by another new track ‘What you Gonna Do About It’.

Jones and Trampolene have built a history of performing spoken word serenades, as much as they do indie rock classics. For these nights ‘Ketamine’ was reintroduced to the setlist to serve as a poetic reminder.

This poem has morphed into a call and response moment with the crowd, and this time the rest of the band maintained positions on stage, providing a suspenseful musical backdrop to Jones’ prowling performance.

Classics like ‘Thinking Again’ and ‘Imagine Something Yesterday’ have well and truly cemented their places in the setlist by now, giving the revellers an opportunity to sing along.

In typical Jack Jones charm and wit, his attempt to start a pub quiz was thwarted as quickly as it started. You never know where Trampolene will draw the line between the mess and the fun, but unexpected is usually peering around the corner.

Twirling a scarf plucked from the crowd, parka zipped to the fur-lined hood, Jones continued to conduct both the crowd and the band through ‘No Love No Kisses‘ and onto ‘Beautiful Pain’.

Next up was another new song on its road test, ‘Stop Killing Me Sarah’. Again, it was loud, gritty and dirty and the crowd loved every second of it. Sometimes new songs break a set, but these additions seemed to have sharpened it.

Jones meandered through a poetic masterclass of ‘Poundland’ and ‘Uncle Brian’s Abattoir’, ahead of the final new song of the night, ‘Here’s Johnny’, although he claimed the title is a “work in progress” favouring “Here’s Jonesy” himself. It’s another angry sounding, energetic song that whisked the audience off their feet.

Jones, Thomas x2 and Williams weren’t done there. Fan favourite ‘Alcohol Kiss’ took it’s usual spot at the foot of the setlist, but met this time with a dose of the old chaotic energy.

The 200 people all sung back and Jones fed from the unified chorus. Technical issues only seemed to fuel him more, forcing him to share a Pete and Carl-esque microphone moment with Wayne Thomas.

As they reached the final chorus, he slammed his guitar to the ground with a rattling thud that was felt around the room, wheeled the mic stand around before discarding it in a similar fashion, and threw himself on top of the crowd. For 10 very long seconds, the crowd steered him in every direction. He threw himself back on stage and smashed a cymbal in one final rebellious act.

Just a stones throw from HMP Pentonville, it felt like a fitting setting. As ever with Trampolene, the magic hadn’t quite finished. Not until Mr Williams cartwheeled across the stage.

NIGHT 2

A sense of deja vu lingered in the air upon arrival to The Lexington for the second night’s shenanigans. Tres Kings and Trampolene sound-checked the same songs, prepped the same setlist, albeit a bit more fragile following the opening nights festivities.

Fragilities were cast aside as Tres Kings returned to wow the crowd for another night of indie rock and roll debauchery, from behind three pairs of sunglasses.

As they powered through ‘Antenna’ and ‘Scuba Diver’ faces old and new bustled and swayed to the music, which spurred them on.

‘Roll Up Your Sleeves’ sent was a glimmer of joy pulsating through the three of them. Wez King looked the exact depiction the song title eludes to, with his shirt sleeves rolled up, tattoos on show and trousers held up by the braces. The song itself is extremely catchy, and you could spot audience members on their second night singing/humming along.

Once again, they powered through ‘Officer’ and ‘Cool Kid’. Both of which King takes the lead in an upbeat manner which drew the crowd closer. It felt like he conducted the fans below.

Once more, ‘ET’ held its place in the setlist before ‘Wake Up The People‘ allowed them to let loose and go wild. As they built towards each chorus, Rhu bellowed “It’s time to wake up’ from behind the drum kit, leading to a wild response from the onlooking crowd.

Rounding off the set with another rendition of ‘Brass Monkeys’, it was clear there was a number of new Tres Kings fans in the crowd. This felt like a real poignant moment in the bands history, following their reformation just over a year ago. They met all expectations of opening for Trampolene and left everything they had on the stage.

As the room was plunged back into darkness, the familiar Simpsons intro ‘Gotta Do More Gotta Be More’ burst from the stereo, and Jones kicked the night off in a similar fashion to where it was left previously, this time sporting a fluffy cardigan.

The rest of the band joined him quicker than the previous night, as he welcomed the “Tramps” fans back to The Lexington. Perhaps with a few more scratches and dents, Jones‘s guitar had stood the test of the night before.

He once again announced the gig was being recorded before ripping into ‘Sort Me Out’. A brief mistake caused a momentary pause and a cheeky nod toward the man on the cameras “Cut that please”. Before the crowd had finished laughing, they finally shifted into gear and played ‘Sort Me Out’ how it should be played.

‘You Do Nothing For Me’ is known for its scratchy riff and loud vocals, and Jones bathed in every pause, taking a moment to let the words levitate in the air above the crowd, before he snatched them back and made them his own.

All this before a second rendition of ‘Let Me Get Off My Face‘ and ‘It’s Not Rock & Roll’. The other new song debuted on these double headers is called ‘What You Gonna Do About It’. I’ve been fortunate enough to catch it once before, during a support slot for Public Image Ltd a month ago, where it was given a run out.

It feels heavier and grittier than some of the back catalogue that came before it, and Jack Jones channels his inner Justin Hawkins to bellow the chorus as loud and high as he could, piercing the ears of all nearby.

Jones performed another spine-tingling rendition of ‘Ketamine’ before ‘Thinking Again’, which he labelled as a “big song in Azerbaijan”. Coming from their last album ‘Rules of Love and War’, the chorus leant it’s hand towards the crowd joining in, and suddenly the room crooned in unison.

This pattern continued in ‘Imagine Something Yesterday’, as the room shook with cries of “It’s not who I am, it’s who I’m gonna be”. This prolonged chorus only rose and rose to higher volumes before Jones cried “How long’s this song, been living in me” at the top of his capabilities.

Minus a scarf to twirl this time, the set powered into ‘No Love No Kisses’ and then it was time for Mr Williams to showcase his musical talent away from the drum kit. He opened ‘Beautiful Pain‘ with a gentle violin solo that slithered through the crowd, gracing the four walls of the venue.

‘Stop Killing Me Sarah’ debuted to another group of Trampolene fans, and played the second time to some dedicated fans, before Jones took the reins for some spoken word poetry. First up, ‘Poundland’ was up to its usual best.

The 200-strong room all bellowed “Shabba do wah, shabby do way” at the right time conducted by Jones, and Mr Williams added some moments of impact from behind the drum kit.

Jones quipped that he has many uncles, but before he could finish his punchline the rest of the band had already begun the introduction to ‘Uncle Brian’s Abattoir’. Always a hit on the Trampolene setlist, the receptive crowd all sung the Peter Doherty lines back at Jones, and his soothing Welsh accent rolled over the verses.

I didn’t think ‘Alcohol Kiss’ could be as spectacular as the night before, but I was swiftly proved wrong. Jones threw himself into the crowd not once, but twice, demolishing a mic stand as he went. On the second time, I caught a glimpse of his Adidas trainers in the air, but no body amongst the crashing sea of people. Suddenly his head popped up from nowhere and he retook the stage one final time.

Mr Williams cartwheeled his way off stage, as ‘Come Join Me in Life’, another spoken word staple from their arsenal, bellowed over the speakers. I took a moment to reflect on the two nights indie rock chaos I’d just witnessed.

Tres Kings announced themselves to a fresh audience, alongside some familiar faces, and certainly did themselves proud. Keep an eye on the Kent rockers, as there’s plenty more plans already in motion.

As the lyrics ‘Come Join Me In Life’ rang through the venues stereo in Jack Jones‘s unmistakable delivery, it felt like a real poignant moment in Trampolene history. It’s been several years since the last album, but the new songs offered fans some vital hope.

Hope that something is quietly brewing behind the scenes for the Swansea group, under new management and with the facilities to really drive the history of this band into a bold new chapter.

Review by Brad Halcrow for THE SONGBIRD HQ

All photography / videos by @Denno_photography_ for THE SONGBIRD HQ