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Review: Bastille at The Brighton Centre

Review: Bastille at The Brighton Centre

The Brighton Centre was the last stop for Bastille on the Give Me The Future tour following an impressive eleven date tour! I’ve been wanting to see them for a few years now and I was excited to not only see them but to photograph them too! I’ve been a fan since they were just starting out with their first album Bad Blood, back in 2013, this tour celebrating their 4th release and third number one album.

I got to the Brighton Centre just in time for the doors and made my way into the main room. There had been a change of times for the evening as one of their support acts, DYLAN, had unfortunately had to pull out due to illness. As a very short notice replacement, Bim took to the stage to perform a short set before the second act. As one of the touring backing singers for Bastille, she has such a powerful, beautiful voice and she had the whole crowd transfixed to her.

Next up were The Native, a five-piece indie band from Plymouth who are relatively new to the music scene. They took to the stage like seasoned pros, really holding their own and showing everyone why they have been making waves in the alternative scene and have the backing of BBC Introducing. Their set was filled with catchy, synth-rock bangers which included their single ‘Blindsided’ and my favourite, ‘Time’ which was written about growing up in their small, hometown.

Finally, it was time for Bastille to take to the stage and I was so excited about their performance. I could feel the anticipation building up around me as the ambient music faded and the main lights went down. Their set started with two new songs ‘Stay Awake’, which saw vocalist Dan Smith emerge at the top of the set-up before jumping down below, and ‘Distorted Light Beam’ which is such an energetic song and had everyone dancing along, even the photographers alongside me.

Throughout their 100 minute set, the energy levels only seemed to rise as Dan skipped and bounced and jumped across the stage. As well as the new songs, they made room for their older hits too. Like the early appearance of a revamped ‘Things We Lost In The Fire’, and 2016’s ‘Good Grief’, which got fans jumping and singing along in harmony.

There were a few times when the band had to stop as a few crowd members required medical attention and made sure to not start until they had been helped by the security team. Bastille are a band that really care for its fans and does not take any of this for granted. Throughout the entire show, the band had massive smiles on their faces and with every interaction they had with each other, you could tell how much it meant to them. Dan spoke about how happy he was being back amongst us all and how much it means to him that we were all spending our Bank Holiday Monday with them. During ‘Happier’, he climbed up to the barriers and then much to everyone’s delight, jumped into the crowd and immersed himself by dancing and singing along with everyone. I’m sure there were some very happy fans that night.

The last song of the main set was of course ‘Pompeii’ and was started off on the piano with a different arrangement to slowly build up to the main melody. Jumping down onto the front of the stage, the familiar drums and now unmistakable hook echoed throughout the room giving me goosebumps and a sense of excitement seeing how this band has grown since I first discovered them through this song.

They really are a phenomenal band to see live and I urge everyone to see them if they get a chance. I cannot wait for them at Victorious Festival, they are one of my top bands to see that weekend and would highly recommend everyone else goes to see them too. 

Photos: Hannah Victoria Kenyon


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