Live Review: Boston Manor, Movements and Jools | Electric Brixton | 10/2/2022
Trotting on down to the hustle and bustle of South London’s answer to Oxford Street, we bore witness to the triumphant return of the Seasiders' finest Boston Manor on the opening night of their headline tour – Welcome Back To The Neighbourhood, alongside special quests Movements and Jools for a celebratory collective release of glorified carnage at the Electric Brixton.
Jools
Originally scheduled for the summer of 2021, Boston Manor and company postponed their headline tour due to public health concerns connected to the spread of emerging COVID variants; Thankfully, with inching ever closer to a somewhat cautious yet normalised state of “living”, patrons of the Electric were pumped, primed and ready for a night they wouldn’t forget.
Kicking the night off in a haze of blue shadows and an unrelenting wall of sound blaring through us at any given time; Jools’ mainly spoken word infused noise rock sensibilities split through eardrums with such abrasive rhetoric, which seemed to instantly transport us to what felt like the musical rendition of a contemporary political rally. With such intensity riddled within the works of these Midlands firecrackers, their energy on stage seemed to dither in places that unfortunately halted the potential for several moments.
Jools held quite a substantial amount of power behind their statements which not only had the first mosh pits underway well before the midpoint of their set, but also made a substantial impact via a PSA from a noticeably absent member of the band for the majority of their time on stage. Nearing the end of their set, it was revealed by front man Mitchell Gordon that they wished to pay respects to their 7th member of the band, Kate Price who acts as the bands co-writer and stylist. Entering the stage and staying for the remainder of their performance after preaching to the crowd about the importance of women’s safety especially in the wake of the tragic murder of Sarah Everard, Kate’s impassioned speech on the importance of living without fear of being targeted by predators is a subject that seemed to transcend all ages, genders etc. with unified cheers echoing throughout the venue, especially when she stated “society should count itself lucky that women like me want equality and not revenge” right before launching into their anti-sexual harassment blaster ’97 Percent’.
In retrospect of the ups and downs associated with their performance at the Electric, there is an undeniable potent potential lingering within these empowered misfits; they possess the kind of rowdy spirit needed to fulfil the aims of a lasting revolution, whose only true downfall is the ability to harness a fully fledged sense of cohesion and control over the energy of themselves and the space around them. It’s still early days for them, but they’re possessed of unquestionable talent and the true inner strength to speak truth to power.
Score: 5/10
Movements
Hitting the stage with a comforting ease reinforced by a crystal clear approachability factor, Movements gave us a 45 minute dose of Californian alt-rock perfection as they blurred the lines between the clean beautification of solemn sincerity and the rough ramblings of an unfortunate soul, which fully enraptured a densely populated pit.
It’s obvious this band are particularly well liked among Boston Manor devotees, as the air of suspense left in the wake of Jools departure was initially altered by Movements sudden presence on stage. Halfway through their second track of the night crowd surfers began to appear out of nowhere, while the performance at large seemed to create the essence of psychedelic hysteria, which was positively intoxicating as frontman Patrick Miranda led the throng through the full effect of their carefully crafted multi-sensory overload.
The vibe barrelling through the crowd just seemed to reinforce a chilled connection of ever mounting enjoyment, as each and every song seemed to almost one up the previous while the banter became increasingly blissfully twee, including confessing that their love of the British Isles seemed to stem from the thought that “eating beans for breakfast is awesome!”, learning what the definition of “Peng” was as well as sincerely asking the crowds “…are we painfully American or is it just me”.
While the cute adoration for all things British sent patrons into a warming chuckle, it made the commands for the eruption of the pit an instant desire that the audience had to do justice – and they definitely didn’t disappoint. After the breakout of a wall of death spurring on perpetual moshing throughout the remainder of their set – even on the slower tempo tracks, spirits were running high and for some completely saturated in beer as the band headed into their closing numbers including the obvious fan favourite track ‘Colourblind’.
To say that this performance was “impressive” would be an insult to just how epic and hearty the night became, because of their inclusion on the roster.
Score: 8/10
Boston Manor
In the limbo period between the incredible performance from Movements and Boston Manor’s eventual start to their set, the tension coursing through the air was enough to make anyone a little jumpy. Finding the perfect spot for attendees’ eyes to be fixed to the stage felt like a gigs version of Location, Location, Location set during the Goldrush. Such anticipation of a frenzy nearing the front of the stage was no different as the pit’s already squished state was continually getting more and more bloated by the minute; when suddenly the arrival of electro palpitations racing through the crowd, left several positively startled as the venue seemed to instantly transition into London’s coolest hardcore EDM club.
Signalling the arrival of Boston Manor’s presence on stage came the familiar ramblings of The Thick of It with the ever ingrained quote “…it’s a fucking lockdown, right now!” it continues, “…this is the fucking Shawshank Redemption, but with more tunnelling through shit and no fucking redemption”, before the band made themselves known with the first half of the show dedicated to the hype building heavy poundings that kept the onslaught of crowd surfers and walls of death a permanent fixture. Even passive observers witnessing the entire pit sucked into the camaraderie of dedicated moshers, would note that due to the sheer exuberance unfolding, it maintained a distinct layer of sweat penetrating the air; the collective state of joy coming from all corners of the space, only seemed to immerse everyone further into the performance, that began to border on a call and response experience.
Clear crowd pleasers included renditions of their latest single ‘Desperate Pleasures’, their anti-content/media basher ‘Plasticine Dreams’, the toxicity laden romantic tale of ‘You, Me & The Class War’ as well as the anthemic flourishes of the stadium bait ‘Halo’ which acted as the band’s unforgettable finale. For an hour long set, Boston Manor saw no room to miss out on achieving the ultimate night of full scale debauchery with their opening night of a whirlwind tour across the nation; It was the closest thing to perfection, if only a string of microphone feedback issues hadn’t plagued earlier songs in their set.
Score: 9/10