LIVE REVIEW: As It Is @ Corporation, Sheffield
AS IT IS have been incredibly busy in 2026. The band’s eponymous sixth album released only two months ago in July, and it seems as though they’ve only had a weekend or two of respite between touring dates. Their So A-Live tour kicked-off in Torquay, a week before we headed down to see the group make their debut at Sheffield’s Corporation.
Opening the night were emo-pop FLG labelmates, GREYWIND. It’s an exciting period for the group having found new energy with their newest album Severed Heart City. The ever-chatty and charismatic Steph O’Sullivan happily fed off the energy of the crowd, with their huge choruses sung back by the loyal with ease.
Rating: 7/10
AS IT IS are still a lot of fun. Almost 15 years since their formation, they’ve had ups, they’ve had downs, and a hiatus thrown in for good measure. Their new self-titled record simultaneously reaffirms all we know about them as a group, but angles them in a direction that even they may be unsure of.
Joining the stage en masse, AS IT IS got straight to it, opening with the first track I’m So Alive! – the crowd loved it. The ensuing setlist jumped back and forth between material that’s over a decade old, and newer songs aged in their months. It’s fairly clear from the crowd which tracks are the best-received: a polite sing-song for every song from the new album is contrasted by an actual circle-pit (yeah – at an AS IT IS show), two-steps and emotional tears during the deeper-cuts of the earlier albums.
Each date it seems gets its own handful of wildcards – with Relive The Story making its first live appearance since 2022, (having only enjoyed a handful of plays anyway since its release in 2014), and The Reaper reminding everyone that this band can do heavy when they want to. It’s not just the crowd that move around with fervour, you can take the kid out of pop-punk, but… you know the rest. Patty Walters bounces around the stage despite the guitar weighing him down; and once free of it, completes a full cartwheel. Because: of course. Drummer Foley almost pushed the kit off the rear-riser with the stages sandbags not keeping put. Speaking of shenanigans; Ben Bliss stole some drumsticks to rattle away rhythms during moments of rest.
Undeniably, the newer material is still taking its time to permeate into the crowd – give it another six months and those songs will find their voices among the audience, but even after three months, the latest tracks don’t (yet) carry the gravity of the material of old. What can’t be understated is AS IT IS’ energy and commitment, the live set is virtually faultless, and still an enjoyable watch.
As their most popular single, Dial Tones is the only track that AS IT IS can end the set on; again, an example of their nostalgic popularity.
Rating: 8/10
Check out our photo gallery from the night’s action in Sheffield from Rhys Habefield Media here:
Like AS IT IS on Facebook.