It was with great anticipation that London quartet Bastille arrived on our shores, and a fully sold-out Corner Hotel showed just how much Australian fans have been appreciating their efforts.
Sydney indie five-piece Tigertown were given the essential task of setting the evening’s mood.
Their soaring vocal talents and smooth guitar bridges moved the crowd into a bizarre yet graceful lull. The vocals by singer Charlie were projected loud and proud, and guitarist Chris’s riffs perfectly complemented their range.
The band’s stylised take on modern indie was met with much crowd appreciation, and they no doubt picked up a greater following thanks to the show.
Enter Bastille, stage right, with no time was given to acclimatise to their presence. The Brits got straight down to business, delivering a performance designed to cram in as many songs as possible.
The strong English twang in Dan Smith’s vocals is notable in the way it distinguishes Bastille’s indie sound from the masses. Not that it stopped the crowd from singing along very audibly and enthusiastically, and at times even louder than Smith.
You would be forgiven for thinking you’d be transported to the plains of Africa, with glorious drums and mesmerising electronic harmonies being triumphantly led by Smith.
Demonstrating the lung capacity of an Olympic swimmer, the singer held perfect pitch while spontaneously running around the stage and jumping up and down – a feat best deployed in “Under The Weight Of Living.”
The hour-long set didn’t seem to affect his energy levels, his excitement and movement growing with every song. Mainly drawing from their wildly successful album Bad Blood, it was essentially hit after hit.
Smith’s eccentric English accent delivered a truly awe-inspiring “Things We Lost In The Fire”. Even after making his way to the back of the crowd, receiving some sweaty loving, and marching back to the stage, this barely detracted from his performance.
Songs like “Flaws” and “Laura Palmer” were accomplished with ease, but also given a particular kind of intensity. All Bastille songs have a special meaning and message, but at the same time the band don’t take themselves too seriously. They’re always more focused on delivering for the audience.
What made Bastille’s performance truly great was the live setting offering far more than what’s found on their recordings. Not only in terms of the vibes from the crowd, but also the way in which the music was delivered.
While Bastille delivered a fantastic set with many stand out songs, it was “Icarus” that took the cake for best-performed. It was fun, energetic and captured the crowd at its pinnacle. The combination of Smith and the group’s backing vocals was soothing, but also delivered with an air of spontaneity.
It was no surprise that Bastille kept their best for last, with a rendition of “Pompeii” left to reverberate around the room.
By far their most recognised song, Smith barely needed to sing, with the crowd bellowing the sing-alongs back to him unprompted. And as the “walls came tumbling down”, the crowd used the last bit of their energy to send off the British quartet with a terrific farewell.
