Review: Bombay Bicycle Club @ The Gov
A decade on since their last Australian tour, UK indie purveyors Bombay Bicycle Club had everyone grooving along when they hit The Gov over the weekend.
Words by Tobias Handke
Image via @bombaybicycleclub (Facebook)
It’s been a decade since Bombay Bicycle Club touched down in Australia. Last here in 2014 touring their brilliant fourth album So Long See You Tomorrow, the intervening years have seen the indie quartet break up and then get back together, along with releasing two more albums, Everything Else Has Gone Wrong (2020) and My Big Day (2023).
Bombay Bicycle Club’s return to Adelaide saw a surprisingly large turnout considering the competition. Cold Chisel headlined the VAILO Adelaide 500 and two international comedy shows were happening simultaneously across the road at the Adelaide Entertainment Centre.
Arriving on stage to a warm reception, Bombay Cycle Club took up their positions and launched into, ‘Just a Litte More Time’. The crowd were into it from the get-go, waving their arms in the air and dancing along with reckless abandonment.
“It’s been too long,” frontman Jack Steadman told punters as the band proceeded to perform a mixture of tracks from all six albums. ‘I Want To Be Your Only Pet’ had everyone clapping along to the beat. Steadman got the crowd singing the chorus during ‘Lights Out, Words Gone’. The Radiohead-esque ‘Evening/Morning’ transformed into an explosion of jittery guitar riffs and powerhouse percussion.
As you would expect from a band who’ve been out there getting it done for almost two decades, Bombay Bicycle Club kept things tight, with everyone in the band knowing their role. Steadman, with his bald head, round glasses and collared shirt, looked like a high school teacher as he bopped around the stage singing and strumming his guitar. He and fellow guitarist Jamie MacColl were like two peas in a pod, feeding off each other’s energy and channelling that intensity into each riff. Bassist Ed Nash, long hair flowing with a permanent grin on his face, added a funkiness to proceedings, with drummer Suren de Saram keeping everything together with his skilled stickwork.
Bombay Bicycle Club were also accompanied by multi-instrumentalist Nathan Cox, revealing a layer of depth to the band’s indie creations, and vocalist Saint Clair, who shined on the soaring ‘Meditate’, replacing original vocalist Nilüfer Yanya.
Other highlights included the melodic ‘Good Day’ that segwayed into crowd favourite ‘How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep’, a frantic version of ‘Is It Real’ and a rousing rendition of ‘Eat, Sleep, Wake (Nothing But You)’ that turned The Gov into one big karaoke room.
Frozen margaritas were offered to the band’s crew in recognition of all their hard work on the tour before things were taken down a notch when the band wandered off stage, leaving Steadman and Saint Clair to serenade punters with the hauntingly beautiful ‘Flaws’.
The mellow vibes continued with the building ‘So Long, See You Tomorrow’ before Bombay Bicycle Club had the entire venue, including a couple of bar staff, grooving along to the synth-heavy ‘Carry Me’ and set closer ‘Shuffle’, which saw camera phones held aloft and people singing along with Steadman.
The inevitable encore came, with the band returning for indie anthem ‘Always Like This’.
Ending the show with a bow before disappearing backstage, Bombay Bicycle Club left everyone in attendance with a warm feeling in their chest and holding out hope it’s not as long between drinks before their next visit.
