Their works are usually described as pop punk or alternative rock and have been likened to those by Pale Waves, Avril Lavigne, and Bring Me the Horizon.
South Arcade were formed in Oxford in 2021[1] and comprise Harmony Cavelle, Harry Winks, Ollie Green, and Cody Jones.
[3] After naming themselves after a sign at Westgate Oxford,[4] they released "Danger" in 2023,[5] followed by "Silverlight" that September[6] and "Nepo Baby" in January 2024.
[3] Reviewing a February 2024 As Everything Unfolds support slot at The Exchange in Bristol, Jack Ridsdale of Distorted Sound Magazine described the band's wares as "snot-nosed pop punk" and likened "Unaware"'s melodies to those of Pale Waves;[13] around the same time, LeftLion's Ben Blissett wrote of a support slot for the same band at Rescue Rooms in Nottingham that South Arcade blended "some metal elements with pop punk" and incorporated "guitar riffs which were reminiscent of Avril Lavigne but basslines that could belong in a much heavier band like Bring Me the Horizon".
[17] The band have cited inspiration from music of the 2000s including Avril Lavigne, Gwen Stefani, Limp Bizkit, and Linkin Park;[4] for 2005, they cited pop punk, nu metal, Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Limp Bizkit, and Linkin Park.