Brand New - London Astoria - 28/1/04
4/5
By: Samantha Hall
'I wanna stay eighteen forever... so I can stay like this forever.'
Somewhat twee, yet the true essence of Brand New. And to every kid at tonight's show, this band are their band. Even if in five years few will remember Brand New, for now, the US emo-hawks form the essence of the time; the soundtrack to disparate teens' lives.
And, yes, the Long-Island quartet put on an intense, immense show; ambient shafts of uplighting grace frontman Jesse Lacy through many an acoustic number, house-lights throb through heightened moments of poignancy, and their projected, famed astronaut floats gracefully throughout on a cornfield backdrop.
Curiously too, the band's encore mysteriously seems to last longer than their initial set; recent single 'Sic Transit Gloria... Glory Fades' as their finale piece naturally prompts every grubby smile a glow, even on a night such as this one, where the goose-pimples peep below tartan, rah-rah skirts and side-partings are soaked through with melting snowdrops. Dedication abound, it's the coldest eve of the year yet and half the trains have been cancelled, yet the venue is still bursting to the brim full; wonder how many of these believers will be curling up amid the grounds of Waterloo station tonight... Seemingly, the sacrifice of a warm night's sleep is no mean feat to the devoted.
For, bands such as Brand New are the coke to fuel future obsessions - the moist, sticky, Lynx-filled air a reminder of the emotive infatuation for such core, topical and relevant music as this. To this generation - f**k Mr Blair and the opposition, even f**k the church and traditional political gurus. There's not even Kallabah bracelets or Che T-shirts here tonight. These guys are the ones with the answers - and why...? Simply 'cos they care.
Artists in this article: Brand New
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