Photo: WENN/Andrew Trendel
Hype alone clearly brought much of tonight's crowd here, but the sheer class of a band with so much promise left them begging for more.
Fresh from returning from their US tour, Hannah, Dot and Dan are clearly in high spirits for this homecoming show - as are this sold-out Brixton crowd. From the sultry simmer of opener 'Hey Now', the audience erupts into cheer at the most unlikely and tender of moments - when you have as many dramatic pregnant pauses as London Grammar, that's a lot of whooping and hollering. Either way, you can tell the profound effect this has on the band - humbled but comfortable in the conviction that tonight is a victory lap that sees them exist on a scale as big as their ambition.
We reach an all-too early climax with the power-pop cacophony 'Darling Are You Gonna Leave Me'. It's criminal that was omitted from the album and left hidden on an EP, but it speaks volumes of the calibre of London Grammar, to do so with a track that most acts would gnaw their legs off to have as an A-side.
They've been dogged by lazy comparisons - because all female-fronted bands must share some common ground, yeah? Well, whatever. Seeing London Grammar live truly renders them in a class of their own, freeing them of all other reference points. Hannah Reid's stratospherically operatic vocals dominate their album, but on stage the amplified subtle but byzantine guitarwork of Dan Rothman and the wondering tropical-tinged trip-hop percussion and synth-mastery of Dot Major come together to form a considered but captivating opulence of sound. Blend that with a warmingly tight-knit chemistry and it makes for an utterly enthralling live experience.
Well, for most anyway. The only downer comes from the vast shower of shits that descended upon Brixton tonight, far more interested in their own conversation than in anything happening on stage. There are times when the constant rumbling murmurs run the risk of drowning out the intimate intricacies of LG's sound, but the band are far too involved to let the tossers win.
There's plenty to focus on, mind. The hypnotic crescendo of 'Metal & Dust' begs that the band should explore their more dramatically danceable elements in the future, while the utterly gorgeous 'Flickers' and toweringly tender 'Strong' raise the heart the back of the throat.
Returning for an encore with their cover of Chris Isaak's 'Wicked Game', the band successfully translate a classic into a scorching work of contemporary genius - highlighting the extent to which London Grammar are the sound of NOW. Sadly, as the screams of adoration see the band off the stage, it's clear that it ended all too soon. Here's hoping that they're the sound of tomorrow too. They've too much left to offer.
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