James Arden checks out the garage rockers latest album.
The Christian rock band from Brighton bring religion to the masses.
Recipe for modern R'n'B album: liberal helpings of guest rappers and an overdose of sexual euphemisms.
Sitting next to the hub of testosterone in Fibbers that night (two boys), we instantly wondered if we’d mistakenly stumbled into the topshop lock-in…where were all the guys?!
After momentarily pondering over the possible reasons for this gender imbalance (was there some sort of sporting event on?), the first support act, City Dukes, appeared and it all became much clearer. Not a bad show from these Yorkshire schoolboys who, despite sounding pretty similar to Razorlight, Kings of Leon et al. managed to pull it off convincingly. Swiftly following them was Breakout Project, a rap-metal group who harked back to the days of p.o.d. (you all bought it…) but, still, left your ears hurting.
Needless to say it was a relief when Flamboyant Bella finally appeared on stage, with their unobtrusive Kate Nash-esque songs inspired by “teenage life, alcohol consumption, summer and good music”. The group, formed of three boys and a girl, seemed to have a fairly small but devoted following of fans, admittedly aged between 14 and 18, but nonetheless singing along to every word of the perhaps self-consciously gritty tunes.
‘No need for heroin, you’re my only sin’
Songs comparing love to drugs are always going to grab your attention, especially when you’ve got lyrics as insightful as ‘No need for heroin, you’re my only sin’ and ‘You’re my LSD, can’t you see you’ve got me tripping off the walls’. Subversive stuff. Maybe they should Talk to Frank. Still, you can’t accuse them of self-pity - even the songs dealing with depressing issues left you feeling upbeat from the preppy bass-lines and cheeky cockney charm.
Overall, these guys have definitely managed to capture the sound and atmosphere of the current London music scene. With a female lead singer brandishing a Stella and a mockney accent, ironic lengthenings of the word ‘short’, and, most importantly, a synth and an imaginative use of fairy lights, they seemed to have everything a band needs these days to make it into the charts. All fun, but if you’re looking for something new, you won’t find it here.
Flamboyant Bella continue to play dates around the UK, you can check out their MySpace here.
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