A Special Time

A little while ago I went to see Flight Brigade for the second time.

The British indie rock band from London and Hertfordshire, mix grand orchestral sweeps and crunching anthemic guitars which creates an amazing atmospheric vibe and show influences of bands such as Arcade Fire or Of Monsters and Men, or other pop bands who refused to compromise their size for the sake of their sound.

Currently, the septet comprises Oliver Baines (guitar, vocals), his wife Miriam Baines (vocals, keys), her sister Dorry Macaulay (vocals, violin), Thomas Pink (guitar), Neil Blandford (drums), Tom Clay (bass) and Jonny Baker (keys). In 2015 Flight Brigade released their EP “Stealing Fire” (self-released) finished their first full-length album “Our Friends Our Enemies” in 2016 which was released via Rebel Cinema Records. The band wants to create music they love, addressing moving and emotional topics. Especially their mix between hard rough guitar sounds and the classical fragile violin makes every song sound different, as well as it creates a unique atmospheric vibe and a great ambience.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The concert took place at the Borderline, a 300-capacity venue in London. Opening the doors around 7pm to a mixed but rather older audience. Nonetheless, it was a highly energetic crowd who sang and clapped along right from the beginning of Flight Brigade’s set.

First band on the stage was the British duo Sweet Billy Pilgrim who formed in 2003. Previously having been a trio, the band released four albums and two EP’s. However, currently only consisting of, Jana Carpenter (vocals) and Tim Elsenburg (guitar, vocals), the duo wrote a new album called ‘Wapentalk‘ which has a simpler sound and harmonic voices, as well as it has the purpose to bring people together. Even though it was a calm acoustic set, the audience connected with the lyrics and soft melodies which created a nice atmosphere.

 

With Flight Brigade entering the stage, the energy increased immediately. Their music was perfect for the venue and the crowd clapped and sung along. It felt as if the music was crawling from the stage and wrapping around every person in the room. Especially the violin and keys mixed with the guitars and drums created a special ambience. The set consisted mainly songs of their debut album, but also two new unreleased singles which caught the audience and animated them to sing along.

Both, the light show, and acoustic were on point. Having settle but colourful lights and smog suited the music and helped to create the vibey atmosphere to support the lyrics. I think this kind of music need the space to speak for itself. The people also seemed to relay enjoy it as they sung and clapped or danced along. Unfortunately, there haven’t been that many people but those who have been there seemed to have connected with the music.

All in all, everyone, including the bands and audience, seemed to enjoy the evening and had a special time. It was a great gig with vibey music and a lovely down to earth band who absolutely appreciated the support of their fans!

 

 

 

 

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