IN THE CROWD: BRITS WEEK 25 CONTINUES WITH CLEAN BANDIT AT LONDON PALLADIUM

BRITs Week is upon us! Produced by AEG presents, BPI, DHL and War Child, the charity for supporting children affected by conflict. The work that War Child does is so imperative, these gigs help raise the funds to provide the care and protection for the children who’s lives have been devastated by war. Since BRITs Week inception in 2009, over £7,430,000 has been raised thanks to the support of all the various gig goers over the years. These are truly special shows with artists of all calibers, in historic venues you  wouldn’t expect.

All images by Patrick Gunning

This being my first BRITs week show, I was very excited. Clean Bandit in the decade since they emerged have become one of the biggest names in the UK pop scene. Their masterful blend of classical instrumentation, mixed with modern dance and world music influences, while also having the reach to feature any artist they think of is quite a treat. Going into this show tonight I was just expecting the band themselves, a few guest appearances and a nice mix of the two albums they released, New Eyes in 2014 and What Is Love? In 2018.  

What the crowd got instead, was something a little different and more grand, which did suit the fact that the venue for tonight was the historic London Palladium theatre. As you sat down, there was a sheet of paper on each seat, with a 14 track listing for a yet-to-be announced album (the eagle eyed people at the show will have guessed the album name by now) asking you to fill out some feedback on the new tracks.  

The lights dim as the three members of Clean Bandit walk on stage with a nice smoke effect for extra theatrics, and then the curtain rises as they open with classical instrumental into a dance break. The lights get brighter, a tunnel gets illuminated with  projections of trains alongside a huge screen imitating a departure board, as singer Yasmin Green joins on stage to perform ‘Real Love’. Followed by ‘Symphony’, lead singer Grace Chatto explains that they wanted to use this special performance as a listening party for this album in progress.  

My favourite thing about this show, is how it mixed in the new tracks with the old ones while giving new life to older material. Similar to Mura Masa’s live shows with singer/performer Fliss performing features of various artists. Performers jump on and off the stage, violinists pour out of the tunnel, interpretative dancers appear in the balcony stalls, one of Clean Bandit ends up hitting the decks on a suspended platform. Even with all the theatrics, it felt extremely intimate due to the little chats the band would be having with the collaborators about the tracks they were about to perform. It was a refreshing element for a live show, anecdotes about member Jack Patterson being the "Token White Boy" in recording camps in Jamaica, before jumping into new track ‘Company’ was a sweet moment to watch.  

Mixing in a few more big hits, ‘Solo’ to 'Rockabye’ to big fanfare, as again these guest vocalists including Kirsten Joy and Daramola really elevate these huge UK tunes. Two more new tracks are played, including a ‘Sweet Like Chocolate’ cover by garage legends  Shanks & Bigfoot, and a fantastic verse from North London rapper Ndotz on ‘Make him  Watch’. The absolute highlight however, was the reworked version of ‘Rather Be’ titled ‘2s  & 3s.’ Upcoming South East London rapper Leostaytrill absolutely floated through this dreamy drill reworking, as Jess Glynne magically pops out to hit that iconic chorus.  

It's again what made this night so much more exciting than originally expected. The band seem to be at the point of fame where they have a desire to experiment again, these newer tracks feel slightly less mainstream and more aimed for the dance floor. I know that  sounds trivial to say for a group built around dance/pop music, but all these new tracks don’t feel designed to be top hits. They have the essence of collaboration and movement more than anything. Take songs like ‘Lifestyle” with its bumping house beat, ‘Beddoob’ which genuinely felt like FKA Twigs was a big inspiration for its glitchy chorus. 'Touche' brings Grace back into the vocalists shoes once again and does it triumphantly. ‘Tell Me Where You Go’ is easily the winner of all the new material, with its sharp synths into a  satisfying drop with slight breakbeat elements. Nearing the end of the night, Johannesburg native Lloyiso joins the band, with Grace sharing a tender moment with  him, as he performs an improvised (Fantastic!) snippet of ‘Symphony’ leading into another new track ‘Believe.’ 

25 tracks later, we finally reach the encore, which is of course ‘Rather Be’. Jess Glynne  jumps back out in a white jumpsuit as everyone finally gets up from the seats to have a good old boogie. Clean Bandit definitely showed out stronger than I was expecting, utilising the charity event setting to create a one-of-a-kind concert experience. It's nice after going to gigs for nigh on a decade now, I’m still getting surprised. Bring on album 3.