It feels as though the smoke machines are working over time as this patient crowd are waiting for Bastille to enter the stage. The production level is above and beyond and it’s clear they’re not here to mess around; they’re here to turn this show out. Dan Smith‘s voice is so unique and it’s a pleasure to listen to it in the flesh. As they get the ball rolling, they play 3 songs from their ‘Bad Blood‘ album in a row and there’s not a single person in the room that’s standing still. The stripped back version of ‘Oblivion‘ gives the room a chance to show off just the beginning of what they’ve got to offer back to Bastille. ‘Quarter Past Midnight‘ is the end of the slower songs for now as Dan & co barely take a second to breath with this full energy show. Dan’s microphone is lifted over the crowd multiple times encouraging this Brummy bunch to get as loud as they possibly can.
As you reach the back of the venue, you can see just how many people are here for a good time and there is dancing in abundance – it’s not to be missed! A roar of cheers and applause fills the venue as Dan thanks everyone for coming and letting us know that this is their ‘Give Me The Future‘ tour as the album was released earlier this year. The ice is broken between Bastille’s frontman and the audience as he lets us know that the next song – ‘Give Me The Future‘ is his favourite one off the new album and tells us ‘we can dance as badly as he does’ (to which many people oblige). As we get to ‘WHAT YOU GONNA DO???‘ we’re treated to another one of Dan’s talents as he picks up a guitar and joins in with the rest of the band.
‘Survivin’‘ receives a much warmer welcome than expected and leads us into what can only be described as the “Club night” portion of the show. We’re given ‘Good Grief‘ next which is one of the wildest songs of the evening and confirms that the classics are the favourite tonight. The room is set aglow with phone torches as they slow it down for a minute with ‘4am‘ though the chorus of “the devil’s got my number” makes it clear that no one is ready for the night to end yet. ‘Happier‘ & ‘Run Into Trouble‘ take the roof off the place as there’s not a single person who isn’t singing at the top of their lungs. There is an arena sized noise coming from the audience and the atmosphere isn’t far behind either.
As the night comes to a close, we’re given one of the best covers of all time; ‘Of The Night‘. It’s impossible to not have a good time to this song and looking around, everyone feels included and is simply warming up for ‘Pompeii‘ which quickly becomes THE loudest song of the night. From start to finish, there’s not a person on stage who isn’t giving their all. The fact that they fill the gaps with interludes and use a screen to make a complete show means you definitely get your money’s worth when you buy a ticket to see these guys. Dan climbing up onto the balcony during ‘Happier‘ is just the icing on top of this very delicious cake.
