Music / indie
Review: The Big Moon, Rough Trade
Ducking out of the torrential and relentless January rain, a hundred or so soggy punters pile into Rough Trade’s live room to celebrate the release of London indie heroes The Big Moon’s sublime new album Walking Like We Do. As you’d expect on a foul winter’s day, it’s a fairly subdued room when the quartet hit the stage. They take it in their stride though, joking about the DIY setup and that they haven’t got a setlist planned. Kicking off with an oldie, ‘Sucker’ is still as fun as ever and shows their indie-punk chops are undiminished.
The new album, however, is a real explosion of texture and invention in comparison. Opener ‘It’s Easy Then’ takes in sedate piano, a big chorus, an Isley Brothers homage and even a trumpet solo from Fern Ford behind the drum kit. Fern is later subject to hijinx involving the venue’s projector screen, but it does mean we get to fake the drama of the encore as it’s pinged back up to reveal the beaming drummer.
The lyrics are smarter, the pop references bolder and the confidence that comes with years of performing together is obvious from the note-perfect guitar solos, to the knowing grins shared between the band. Swapping instruments throughout the new songs “cuz that’s what you do on second albums,” The Big Moon aren’t sticking to any conceptions painted by their time promoting their Mercury nominated debut.
is needed now More than ever
The departure isn’t so wild as to leave people behind, but the growth is undeniable; older songs now stick out like a sore thumb. ‘Take a Piece’ is pure earworm, while ‘Waves’ weirdly nods to Randy Newman in its opening minutes. With the dizzy punk joy of older tunes like ‘Cupid’ to appease more way fans, The Big Moon will be able to craft formidable sets on their full tour next month, but the songs from ‘Walking Like We Do’ will surely leave the biggest impression.
Closer ‘Your Light’ marries a modern Fleetwood Mac reboot with some of Jules Jackson’s most impressive prose. “Maybe it’s an end ‘cuz this don’t feel like a start, but every generation probably thought they were the last” is a gut punch cutting across the millennials in the crowd terrified of climate and the older heads who remember the Cuban missile crisis. All in all, The Big Moon just want to spread some joy, and who can begrudge them that. At a short 40 minutes, everyone’s left wanting more. Luckily they’ll be at The Fleece in February, bag a ticket and get down for some hip-shaking taste of pop paradise.
Listen to The Big Moon’s latest release Walking Like We Do here: https://open.spotify.com/album/0Z9W4KdFjlAUNGjXx3CVZU
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