It's quite a confined and intimate space at the Bullingdon, with its capacity of 250. So after a couple of years on the road and 6 months in the studio Oxford 4 piece, Glass Animals were visibly ready to cut loose!
As a warm up for their upcoming tour of northern and southern hemispheres, and a new album (How to be a Human Being) just finished, they decided to put it out there again for their hometown nearest and dearest to have a bit of a bop.
Who are Glass Animals? You may recall their debut album Zaba – this was a Spotify phenomenon, reaching number 1 in the US Alternative chart and it received much critical acclaim here.
Tonight there was no hiding in plain sight before their thousands of fans in the States or Australia; for Dave Bayley, Drew Macfarlane, Joe Seaward and Ed Irwin-Singer – this was up close and personal.
Some say they are an indie psychedelic band; others categorise them as ethereal R&B electronica, driven by the percussive force of drum and bass, suffused with blurred synths and bonkers lyrics. They are favourably compared with the likes of Alt-J or James Blake; influences range from soul to hip-hop to R&B and all shaken together.
To be honest, trying to slot Glass Animals into any groove is a futile task, much as trying to pin down some of their lyrics, '…mind my wicked words and tipsy topsy slurs…' ('Gooey') rather sets their direction of travel – so we just enjoyed the ride!
'Black Mambo' (influenced by the Crystal Meth driven storyline of TV hit Breaking Bad) kicked us off and the familiarity and muscle memory of live work quickly overcame any feared rustiness. Having played over 150 gigs in the last 18 months this was a great launchpad for the set. Their confidence and stagecraft have clearly blossomed.
Familiar tracks laid down from Zaba, included the atmospheric 'Gooey', the dreamy lullaby that is 'Hazey', the darker beats of 'Toes' lightened by the gentler 'Cocoa Hooves'.
But we wondered how the new stuff would shape up? Three new tracks were introduced live for the first time last night.
'Life Itself' will be the first single and it's already getting a great reaction. Drawing on experiences and characters encountered from their time on the road there is strong accessible vibe and I expect it to be on plenty of playlists in coming weeks. 'Youth' and its new sibling 'Season 2 Ep 3' were introduced and went down a storm; always nerve-wracking to reveal new stuff, but there was no dissent from the reaction in the room.
They are a good studio band (which you'd expect from executive producer Paul Epworth and their labels Wolf Tone/Horizon's careful and creative oversight) but live… live, you are carried away by the buzz, beat and energy; it's sexy and sensuous stuff.
At his best Bayley reminds me of Matt Bellamy (Muse) as he inhabits the lyrics and holds his audience.
Bringing proceedings to a close with the rhythmic 'Walla Walla' the crowd demanded more and we got a slinky GA cover of Kanye's 'Love Lock Down' followed up by the upbeat xylophonic 'Pools' – just enough to leave us wanting more.
They've well earned their spurs through gigging including across the UK and Irish festival scene including Glastonbury (twice), Coachella, and Longitude and beyond. This summer they will play Wilderness and Electric Picnic and on this performance they will be a must not miss slot!
The new album is due out at the end of August 2016, check them out live and enjoy the dancing!