O2 Forum, Kentish Town
“Whaddaya want?!”
Illuminated under the spotlight emitted by the overhanging recording box, Jack Antonoff and his band affront us (‘Straight from the studio’) with a familiarly jubilant 80’s pastiche from the recent release of their self-titled LP.
Far from the myriad recording studios usurped for Bleachers’ latest record, tonight the group find themselves on the latter two sold-out shows inside London’s Kentish Town - re-configuring the grimy ambiance with neat checkerboard flooring, harsh lighting, and the aforementioned ‘Recording’ sign shining effervescently throughout. Imminently reminiscent of the burgeoning pop-rock scene of U.S. singer-songwriters from the 80’s (a-la Springsteen), New Jersey’s latest iteration, fronted by producer-extraordinaire Jack Antonoff, proposes these vestiges in every which way for us: facade, fashion, feel, and upbeat fortune.
Whilst the group surge through their buoyant americana-tinged hits of late (‘I Am Right on Time’, ‘Modern Girl’, ‘Jesus is Dead’), this facade clearly runs deeper within Bleachers’ veins - reciting the Bruce Springsteen-endorsed track ‘Chinatown’, along with euphoric singalongs ‘How Dare You Want More’ and ‘Stop Making This Hurt’ strung from their 2021 LP, Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night. For each of these tracks inflect an effortless charisma, as well as an optimistic expulsion of anthemic energy in their transcendence to such a ‘thriving’ decade in popular music - complete with a comedic, if trite, quantity of sax and guitar solos to the crowd's content.
As the solos dissipate in one moment, a sustained b-flat note resonates through the venue. Antonoff describes the pertinent backstory behind this (eventually fulfilled) hit prior to their current days of fame and fortune, fought against the existential crises circulating his inner thoughts - yet one thought prevailed: “I was dreaming of you guys.” Launching into Bleachers’ inaugural hit ‘Rollercoaster’, an initiation of more straightforward, modern indie-pop commences, rattling through a slew of earlier hits including ‘Everybody Lost Somebody’, ‘Let’s Get Married’ and ‘I Wanna Get Better’. Pinned by Antonoff’s rewarding knack for optimistic lyricism enmeshed in equally saturated riffs and solos, the latter track concludes tonight’s exultant celebration of an era aided by the likes of Springsteen, Petty, Joel and Jovi.
Invited into New Jersey’s finest 80’s-esque studio, where the soundscape proved near-impeccable, Antonoff embodies the caricature of a spirited local birthed from this era - calling the shots and steering the ship on-stage to the fans’ delightful reminiscence. Whilst their latest LP appears scatteringly flavourless and trite on record, their live show proves colourfully coruscating tonight, uplifting a modern nostalgia for an 80’s pastiche complete with re-packaged sounds which arouse familiarity to us all.
7/10
Bleachers' latest self-titled LP is out now via Dirty Hit and can be found below.
Photo is courtesy of Frances Beach whose work can be found here.