Youth Club + More @ Camden's Proud

It takes guts to command the space of a stage on your own, especially when your as petite as Naomi Mclernon of Plastic Rebellion. However I don't think being self-conscious even occurred to Naomi as she took boundless confidence to every inch of the stage. The grunge-styled  blonde siren and her deck spinning partner in crime took the crowd for a ride with  haunting vocals accompanying night-fuelled urban vibes.  Are stage presences alter-egos or an expression of the wildness that we all have tucked away inside us? I was a tad nervous approaching Naomi after her set but I had no reason to be as she seems to keep her attitude reserved for her sets, meeting Naomi off-stage I was  met with a softly-spoken lady, genuinely pleased with the positive reaction to her performance.

Plastic Rebellion

Waking Volcanoes, a Essex based Indie Rock band who succeed in stripping away all pretensions with on-stage banter ('I can tell I'm hitting the right notes from the faces of the people in the front row') were the next to take charge of the room. Switching between intricate, melodic guitar work and unapologetic riffs, alongside deep vocals courtesy of Pat Watt, Waking Volcanoes sent ripples of excitement across the crowd with their unique set arrangement.

The crowd suddenly fell still and a stunned silence spread across the room as the party-goers stopped what they were doing and looked on in awe as the silhouette of underground European darlings Bloom Twins were set behind a haze of blue smoke. Being seen on stage was not a necessity as they layered their powerful vocals upon one another which echoed around fascinated ears. Identical twins from the Ukraine certainly grabbed everyone's attention but it was their electronic beats and ethereal harmonies that kept the room in awe. Recently attracting the accolade of the music press, I fully understand the foothold that they have as Bloom Twins are a band that you don't watch, but experience.

Plastic Rebellion, Waking Volcanoes and Bloom Twins were the bands that I discovered that night, but Youth Club were the band that I was there to see. Youth Club sent youthful energy rippling through the crowd for the launch of their aptly named ep 'Colours' with tracks such as 'She's A Dancer' which nobody stood still for. Youth Club are charismatic brothers Danny Blanco and Joe Fran who joined forces with the talents that are Gerrard Duffield and Rees Broomfield. Bringing smooth R 'n' B vibes to the dancefloor of Proud which merged with classic club beats, Youth Club created a memorable night in Camden as a party spirit rippled through the warm, spring night. Hopefully I'll be able to catch Youth Club live again soon as I am planning on making their ep the soundtrack to my summer.

Links

Plastic Rebellion

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/plasticrebellion?fref=ts

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/plasticrebellion 

Waking Volcanoes

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WakingVolcanoes?fref=ts

Twitter: https://www.facebook.com/WakingVolcanoes?fref=ts

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/wakingvolcanoes

Bloom Twins

Facebook: https://soundcloud.com/wakingvolcanoes

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheBloomTwins

Website: http://www.bloomtwins.com/

Youth Club

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/weareyouthclub?fref=ts

Twitter: https://twitter.com/weareyouthclub

Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/weareyouthclub

BAMBI at Camden's Barfly

With the recent release of their debut single 'Reap From The Dying Love', BAMBI  hit the Camden scene  on Friday 13th. The night wasn't unlucky for anybody involved as they played one of my favourite intimate venues, Barfly.

The band have already been featured on NME's Radar,BBC Radio One's 'Introducing with Jen and Ally', BBC London and Hollyoaks alongside catching the attention of Tom Robinson, Absolute Radio and XFM. The BAMBI lads managed to deliver these promises without any pretensions. Placing their unrivaled, contagious energy into their stage presence and musical delivery, BAMBI created an electrical atmosphere in the room. My usual taste in music are songs that include just one aggressive guitar line, so when I saw that there were not one, not two, but three guitarists, not including the bassist, I was rather dubious. However the intricate layering worked wonders and created a vibe not dissimilar to The Foals whereas the echoing vocals brought to mind certain elements of Echo and the Bunnymen.

The set was a relatively short one with just six songs, but I found that this was still quite impressive given that they have only just released their debut single and the accompanying video for it. With their casual, down to earth personalities, the only place that BAMBI can go from here is up, up and away. Although I hope the bassist does recover from what I assume is stage fright, as he tucked himself away at the back the whole time.

BAMBI: 'Reap From The Dying Love' Review

With the name BAMBI, many would visualize a wide-eyed Disney character, frolicking with his woodland creature friends. This is not the BAMBI that has recently exploded onto the London scene. Having only formed as little as 7 months ago, their unique and original sound has caught the attention of Tom Odell, Professor Green and Mark Ronson, all of whom they have supported.

'Reap From The Dying Love', their debut single which will be released on the 17th November, grabbed my attention and held me captive. The melancholic, intricate intro combined with James' haunting vocals crafts a gothic feeling, not dissimilar to the sounds of Echo and The Bunnymen. This couples well with the Victorian romanticism in the imagery of the lyrics (She's the Jekyll to my Hyde) which creates overall an ethereal atmosphere with the harmonizing vocals, but the track is still deemed danceable by Jordan's work on the drums.

Give it a listen here https://soundcloud.com/bambihq/reap-from-the-dying-love

If you like what you here you can pre-order the single here: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/reap-from-dying-love-single/id725207921

Still can't get enough? Than make sure that you catch BAMBI at Camden's Barfly on the 13th December.

The Front Bottoms Return to London Town

Greil Marcus wrote in his publication 'Lipstick Traces' in 1989:

'At Winterland people pushed, but not, it seemed with anger or fear, but with delight, almost as a greeting.' 

This is how I greeted, and was greeted by, the punk followers of The Front Bottoms on the night of the 23rd April* at Camden's Barfly. Usually at punk concerts, I have had to nudge, elbow and tut my way into defending my small standing space on the floor, but the camaraderie at this concert was unique with it's imported all-American friendliness in terms of the unwritten rules of moshing. Although I emerged from the venue covered in bruises and feet so frequently jumped on it was painful to walk, I had a massive grin plastered across my flushed face. But the best way to begin any story,  is well, at the beginning! 

I met Matthew Uychich (AKA DJ Pumpkin...bless!) by the merchandise stand as I entered the venue and so I took the opportunity for a little chit-chat until the support act came on. The support came from a male solo artist, whose name eludes me but I will get back to you on that one! Although his music was on par, average it did include many comical elements which created a relaxed atmosphere. As The Front Bottoms opened with The Beers, I was at the back of the crowd but with the soaring, electrical pulse that suddenly filled the room I found myself unwittingly by the front of the stage in under five seconds time! For those of you who have heard the Front Bottom’s self-titled debut album you would know that the appeal is in the unpolished acoustic, scratchiness of the Punk 'record it in your bedroom' vibes. However at the gig, they managed to keep this appeal while performing the songs from their debut at a faster, electrical manic pace. Matthew and Brian were joined on stage by session musicians which gave their songs a more polished and professional edge to when I had seen them previously last year. This was demonstrated in the teasers which they gave from their next album 'Talon Of The Hawk'. I managed to catch a quick interview with the session bassist following the gig and asked him about the new, professional direction which The Front Bottoms were taking, which he replied was due to funding for a better recording studio and the new album would be a lot more refined in it's quality. 

Jumping and moshing by the front of the stage was exhausting but between songs, Brian indulged in a bit of banter with the crowd with jokes that my Grandad would have been proud of (eg: 'I was wondering why that frisbee was getting closer and closer.....and than it hit me' oh dear!) which gave us a minute or two to gasp for air.One thing that you should understand about The Front Bottoms is that their fans don't like them....they LOVE them with every sinew. This manifested itself towards the ends of the set as everyone became a crowd surfer and as they closed, we all stormed the stage and caught up in the manic euphoria, I threw my arms around Brian's neck and gave him a massive kiss on the cheek. Every kiss has a meaning and this one meant 'you are fucking awesome!!' 

Me and DJ Pumpkin 

Although The Front Bottoms are an American band, you should definitely try and catch them when they return to the UK. Their second album to be released in the UK, Talons Of The Hawk is due out next week. 

*The delay in writing this up has been due to a very hectic schedule due to final year exams so apologies