Live
Sad Boys Club
Notting Hill Arts Club, London
June 21 2019
Words: Linn Branson
The last time Little Indie caught up with fellow Londoners Sad Boys Club it was down in Brighton in May where they played as part of the Alternative Escape. On a miniscule stage no bigger than a spread broadsheet, they may not have blown the roof off, but they did blow an amp went before they hasld even started, followed midway by the lights going out and proceedings halted. Running late, we had to make our excuses and leave in order to move on to the next act, never knowing whether or not they ever finished that set (they did).
Tonight in west London's hipster haven of Notting Hill, they showed what they can do on a good stage and with a good crowd. It's kind of a new track showcase too, having released 'Mirror And Me' the same day. There's a Friday evening buzz in the downstairs room, and whether the Boys have roped in fans, or a combination of those and others fancying a free gig, there's the makings of a good show.
They kick off with 'Dead Fridays', another new song, making its live debut. But it is 'Silverlined' which follows that gets the crowd dancing, and singing along as if they had known it for as long as frontman and lyricist Jacob Wheldon himself. One of the first songs he wrote for SBC, Wheldon's description of it as "danceable melancholy" is apt, though probably not too many here, right now, are too taken up with the words, just the melody and feel, of which there is plenty. As there is with '15/01'. Named after a diary the singer etched at a questionable point in his life, it nudges a Cure-like vibe to the spiky songwriting, and flowing rhythm section.
It might be all too easy to dismiss SBC as just another indie pop band on the surface, with their bright, shiny tunes and likeable quality that translates easily to a live setting. But there is shade too, that comes in Wheldon's considered, often very introspective, writing. New song 'Mirror And Me' he had, in an interview with Little Indie earlier in the week, revealed it to be "the most vulnerable I've been on record". Lyrically about his own admitted body image difficulties, it is a paradox as to see him here - bedecked in red Nirvana tee, running fingers repeatedly through dark, curly hair, and coyly enticing the fans out front like the capital's answer to Matt Healy - you would assume this is someone with oodles of assurance. An unfamiliar number obviously to most resulted in talkers starting up on the intro, though thankfully settling in once the vocals come in.
The Fred Macpherson (Spector) co-write 'Don't Let It Get To That' (from last year's debut EP, 'Yeah People Talk But You’ve Forgotten How To Live') and recent single, the summery, but wistful, 'Chic Chic' follow. Penultimate number, 'American Spirit', comes with big, catchy chorus as Wheldon's pitch-roaming vocals, tell how "it gets dark in the city / that's what makes you look so pretty / That's what makes you look so pretty with a cigarette". If one hadn't already looked at the setlist, any fan would have by now been wondering if the set closer was going to be the one which had started things off for the band just over 18 months ago; and as soon as that moody guitar line opened, you knew it was. 'Know' still contains all those emo-indie elements which made it a standout debut back in the end days of 2017. By midway, a sweat-drenched Wheldon is met with crowd-dancing, singing and moshing, to end what has been a really good performance from a band who you know you'll have to see again just for the enjoyment.
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