Advertisement
Music

Bombay Bicycle Club, Abbey Road

“In iconic studio two Bombay Bicycle Club plays an hour-long set, and it’s clear from the off that they’ve moved up yet another gear”

For a band who clearly know their way around a studio – those complex arrangements will entail some clever button-pushing – it’s fitting that their new album is being launched at the world’s most famous.

Beneath the gaze of the Fab Four, Pink Floyd, Jagger and others whose pictures adorn the white walls of iconic studio two, Bombay Bicycle Club play a neat, hour-long set, and it’s clear from the off that they’ve moved up yet another gear.

The new material soars and bounces, allowing a bit more breathing room for the catchy hooks

Frontman Jack Steadman recently told the NME that ‘sampling’ has been an inspiration of late, which could have meant a worrying detour into Soup Dragons territory. But for an outfit adept at seamlessly adding multiple colours to their indie palette, this is no baggy-rock cul-de-sac.

Quite the opposite. From the serious groove of opening newbie Overdone to the rhythmic, reverb-heavy Luna, the new material soars and bounces and lifts off, allowing a bit more breathing room for the catchy hooks and choruses.

The band’s globe-trotting has also been an influence, evident on Feel, which flips a Moroccan, percussive vibe into a brassy pop mover. It sounds like Madness jamming with Tinariwen, and gets the young crowd shaking their beard fluff.

Advertisement
Advertisement

The bigger sound requires more hands on deck, so the Crouch End foursome are joined by a three-piece horn section, plus extra drums and keyboards, the latter adding a dusting of ’80s retro to one or two tracks.

A few from the back catalogue are aired, and whilst welcomed like old friends, they play second fiddle to their new, exciting cousins. Always Like This from the debut is the penultimate song, and Steadman misses his cue. “It would help if you sang along,” he chides the audience, but he’s too nice a guy, and later apologises for “being defensive”.

The set finishes with Carry Me, a dark, primal beat layered with a wash of choppy, passionate guitars. Destined to be a BBC classic.

So, very much looking forward to the new album – and the one after that, too.

Advertisement

Change a vendor's life this Christmas

This Christmas, 3.8 million people across the UK will be facing extreme poverty. Thousands of those struggling will turn to selling the Big Issue as a vital source of income - they need your support to earn and lift themselves out of poverty.

Recommended for you

Read All
The Selecter's Pauline Black: 'I had an uncle who thought Enoch Powell was the way to go'
Pauline Black in 1984 as a TV presenter on Hold Tight!
Letter to my Younger Self

The Selecter's Pauline Black: 'I had an uncle who thought Enoch Powell was the way to go'

This jazz festival born in the wake of the pandemic captures the heart of the Big Easy
The Rumble at NOLAxNOLA
Music

This jazz festival born in the wake of the pandemic captures the heart of the Big Easy

The Lightning Seeds' Ian Broudie: 'I'd rather not be remembered for Three Lions'
Letter To My Younger Self

The Lightning Seeds' Ian Broudie: 'I'd rather not be remembered for Three Lions'

I composed a piece of music made from the dying beats of my father's heart
Music

I composed a piece of music made from the dying beats of my father's heart

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue
4.

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue