In love with witches, inside by stitches: Gogol Bordello, London, 14/12/17

Where to start with Gogol Bordello? The Gypsy punk band have been touring tirelessly since 1999 and have known at least 20 members. 

Ukranian-born Eugene Hütz is the group's tenacious frontman, and other members come from Ethiopia, Russia and America - to name but a few.

Last week's Brixton Academy show was in support of Gogol Bordello's seventh studio album, Seekers and Finders. Before the Gypsy punks took to the stage, Lucky Chops, a brassy funk band from New York were charged with warming up the crowd.

Whether or not you know Gogol Bordello's music, it is impossible not to enjoy yourself during one of their live shows.

Left - Eugene Hütz, Right - Thomas Gobena

As soon as Break Into Your Higher Self started playing, the crowd was energetically jumping around. As the evening continued, this energy was simply amplified as older tracks started to be played.

Particular favourites included Alcohol and Start Wearing Purple, but songs from the new album were just as well received.

Passionate moshing continued throughout the show but, as is always the case at punk gigs, the crowd was respectful of anyone in difficulty.

Each member of Gogol Bordello is captivating to look at. Bassist Thomas Gobena has an exceptional blue beard and Sergey Ryabtsev on the fiddle reminded me of Jeremy Corbyn...

Hütz and his drum

By the end of the night, Hütz ended up crowd surfing on top of a large drum. He even invited a girl from the crowd to climb up with him.

The energy from this band is immense and incessant. It was an amazing send off to the strange year that has been 2017. If you haven't seen Gogol Bordello, make sure you do in 2018.

Cause I've been waiting on you: Future Islands, London, 21/11/17

'Are they a new band, then?' asked someone in the audience. Far from it. The members of Future Islands have been performing electropop music together for over ten years. Lead singer Samuel's reputation precedes him, his energetic dance moves make the crowd wonder how his knees haven't given up yet. 

It was with great excitement that Future Islands headed to London to take over Brixton's O2 Academy for three days this week. Samuel told the crowd that it was the biggest show they've ever done to date. This tour is in support of the band's latest album, 'The Far Field'. And look how far they've come...

With a huge back catalogue to choose from, it was good to see the band didn't solely focus on their new record. Instead, many tracks came from 2013's 'Singles' album, which arguably propelled the synthpop trio to stardom. Future Islands today are Samuel T. Herring (vocals), William Cashion (bass), and Gerrit Welmers (keyboard).

The set started with 'In the Fall' from the 2010 EP. Then we entered 'The Far Field', in which 'Ran' was particularly successful. If you haven't seen the music video yet, I highly encourage you to do so.

There was a good mix of tempos during the set, allowing Samuel to take short breaks from his grooving. After 'Balance', 'Long Flight' was well received and got the crowd dancing. When the lead singer is clearly enjoying himself and is care-free, the crowd are more inclined to act in a similar way.

From left to right: Samuel, Gerrit, William

Often an artist relies on funky backing images to enhance a performance, but Future Islands simply had a white screen behind them. It reflected the stage lights effectively - and at one point blinded me - but meant the focus really was on Samuel and his interaction with the crowd. 

One memorable act was during 'A Song For Our Grandfathers' where he seemed fully lost in the moment. As he ended the song with 'I hear the ghost whisper / And those old eyes watching me / But I feel safe,' he stopped moving and raised his hand up in the air.

Aside from his dance moves, Samuel's vocal range must be mentioned. On the albums, it's clear he can quickly change from a relatively high pitched note to a guttural howl, but in person this was hugely amplified.  

Future Islands in their element

My particular highlight was the final song, 'Fall from Grace'. When the song reaches its climatic scream 'Before you go, please tell me / "Was it all inside of me?", the stage went black apart from a single spotlight on a kneeling Samuel. It was incredibly atmospheric and a perfect ending.

The show is very much centred on Samuel and his dancing, but praise must also be given to William and Gerrit. William in particular kept a stoic expression throughout the entire set, only smiling when we applauded at the end. I think he enjoyed himself, really.

Future Islands are quite a crowd pleasing band. If you simply want to dance along to the synthy beats, you are more than welcome to. If you stop to listen to the lyrics, however, a chill runs down your spine. 

Thinking about Manchester and looking to the future

It feels like I've had a crazy month or so and I feel sorry for neglecting this blog. I have been lucky enough to see The Jesus and Mary Chain, Los Campesinos! and Kate Tempest while I've been 'away'.

Before I continue, I must address the atrocities that took place in Manchester last Monday. As a huge fan of live music, and having lived in Paris when the Bataclan attack took place, it really affected me. To deliberately kill young children during what should have been the best night of their lives is both cowardly and sickening. I'm very grateful to my parents for allowing me to attend concerts on my own since I turned 14, and believe it is essential to keep living and enjoying the things that make life worthwhile.

I saw Kate Tempest on Saturday and would like to thank the staff at Brixton for making us feel completely safe. It was incredible to see such a diverse mix of people enjoying her politically and emotionally charged performance.

I've added a few more gigs to my calendar for this year including The Smith Street Band in July. I'm also considering getting The National tickets for September and Future Islands for November, and while I definitely want to see them I'm also finding it hard to think ahead to those cold winter days right now. That being said, I have bought tickets to see Enter Shikari at the end of the year.

During my seemingly constant train journeys recently I've stumbled across a band that I like, so thought I'd take a moment to enthuse about them. (I stress that, while they are new to me, they are almost certainly known to others).

Car Seat Headrest

My dad recently bought Car Seat Headrest's twelfth album, Teens of Denial, which was my first taste of this American indie rock band. I instantly identified with the music style, lead singer Will Toledo often shouts on the songs which reminds me of The Front Bottoms or Modern Baseball.

I'd recommend listening to Car Seat Headrest loudly on your headphones, it made a big impact on my commute to work.

As is often the case with me, I've discovered this band far into their career... Now it's time for me to go through their back catalogue!

Songs: Not What I Needed, Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales

Stay safe, keep doing what makes your heart race and stick together. As Kate Tempest eloquently put it: the point of life is live, love if you can, then pass it on.