Saturday 24 March 2012

The Day I Finally Saw Them

If you know me, you know that going to gigs is one of the most pleasurable things in life for me. I can't count the number of bands I've seen over the years ...and I still get that fluttery butterfly sensation in my stomach before each gig, whether I'm working or not.

Sheer excitement mostly - there's nothing like the thrill of seeing old favourites...where you know each word of every song, and they all bring some happy memories.There's the pleasure of discovering new talent -perhaps it's a support act you've not come across before....and then there's the sheer serendipity of being in the right place at the right time to watch a band whose music you love but you've never been able to see before.

That happened on Sunday.I've been meaning to see Bombay Bicycle Club for ages.I love their music...have their albums, but each time they've played near me I haven't been able to go.I've either had something else planned that I can't get out of , or I've been reading the late night news .
So imagine my utter surprise when I found out that Bombay Bicycle Club were playing in Perth ----eleven thousand miles away from home. And I wasn't workingIt was meant to be don't you think?

The boy obviously thought so too....and guess what my Mothering Sunday present was? Yep, tickets to see them at the Astor , a theatre in Mount Lawley.
It's a rather lovely venue in a buzzy part of Perth. So there was me, The boy and Camo( a lovely mad Aussie who turned up at our place for Christmas last year wearing poncho and sombrero -he'd just arrived from South America) .What a night....

One thing's for sure...Bombay Bicycle Club are a tight band.From the moment they appear on stage, we're swept up into song after wellcrafted song.Jack Steadman on  vocals and guitars may be the frontman, but, drummer Suren de Saram excells.He doesn't miss a beat all night and his relentless rhythms make each song oh so much funkier live.

That's not to say that Jack Steadman doesn't shine....he's got a chameleon like voice which adapts so well to each song but he hides behnd his hair for the first few songs before letting rip.  Jamie McColl gives such solid support on guitar too.

The audience loved them....dancing and singing along to each song from the opening "How much sleep can you swallow"to the encore "Shuffle".All in all a life affirming night, and guess what the Boy and I played in the car on the way home?

In fact I've had this track on repeat every day recently. Driving to my favourite beach, with the sun and sea on my left...and smiling....I give you Bombay Bicycle Club and "Lights out, words gone"...

In the meantime I'm off for a road trip (although not on my bike) to Margaret River....home of surfing and wineries - what an award winning combination.


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