British India @ The Gov, 17th April ’15
British India hit The Gov for one big sold out show riding on the back of the successful Nothing Touches Me which is packed full of singles in waiting.
The mood was good with The Crows and Power having good wins. The supports were top shelf with Horror My Friend opening first up followed by the find of the night The Grenadiers. These guys played a ripper of a set and the crowd responded accordingly really getting in to these hometown lads.
British India are no strangers to The Gov and is almost a home away from home. With a career spanning ten years and some five albums the expectations for what they were about to deliver are somewhat higher now these days. On the strength of their new album I was expecting to be well and truly bowled over but on reflection I was a bit disappointed as it seemed for the most part they were going through the motions. Conceding that they were hung over from a big night in Darwin is not a wise statement to make when people are parting with their hard earned to see and support these guys. It seemed as if they really struggled to get out of first gear most of the night and being plagued by some sound issues early in the set didn’t help the cause.
I’m not sure what front man Declan Melia was thinking in his choice of beanie which at times was pulled down over his face. Opening with Wrong Direction it was Safari and This Dance Is Loaded which fired up the loyal folk. It was a hark back to the early days with Outside 109 off their debut from 2007. New tunes Spider Chords and Suddenly are great songs but really didn’t hit the mark on the night. If it was time for a bit of passion to be injected in to the set it was due right now. Melia talked about the previous night in Darwin and the four hour plane flight where he was starting to feel good.
Continuing with the theme of the new album the song about the girl who doesn’t exist – Angela – was well received. To push things along a bit the band returned to the treasure trove of hits that fans never tire of hearing. Run The Redlight, Tie Up My Hands, Council Flat and Vanilla saw the crowd find voice and energy which gave the band a lift. Not sure how the Coopers reference went down with Melia suggesting “as long as we don’t drink Coopers we’ll get on just fine”. I’m not sure if it ironic or well placed but I Said I’m Sorry followed. The night finished on This Ain’t No Fucking Disco which later morphed in to Black & White Radio which sent the crowd in to hyper-drive bringing out the crowd surfers.
The expectations of British India are so much higher for these guys who are talented but for me this sub par performance was a let down.
Whether it is rummaging through vinyl at record stores such as Clarity and Title finding hidden gems to scouring the internet to find that album by the next big thing or chasing bands to get that elusive autograph and photo his passion is music all the way.
- Aversions Crown - January 27, 2017
- Sick Of It All - January 19, 2017
- Refused - January 11, 2017
