Before arriving at the Wedge you could tell this was more than just any excuse to go out on a Saturday night, the headliners have certainly built up a huge local following with this evenings gig having sold out a couple of weeks in advance and if last year’s appearance at Victorious Festival was anything to go by, then they could easily have doubled ticket sales if it wasn’t for the venue already being filled to capacity.
So choosing a main support act may prove a difficult one for such an occasion but Deluxe Flamingos delivered with their synth led electronic dance music, I missed the beginning due to being elsewhere for that much needed pre-gig beer however Deluxe Flamingos were a fine choice to get things going – there may not have been much crowd interaction but the dance beats helped make it feel more of a club night than a gig and with the Wedgewood Rooms already filling up they seemed to go down well among the audience.
It was however Kassassin Street that we were all here to see, so with the crowd pumped up the local lads took to the stage to a massive cheer and it was straight into a couple of live favourites with the crowd singing along as images were projected onto the backdrop and one of the walls to the side of the room.
If it weren’t for the fact this was indeed a homecoming for the band you would easily be mistaken for thinking they were from out of town and that they have built up a reputation with hit singles and lengthy tours (that is if you’ve never walked past the road from which they took their name), after all they’ve certainly been making a name for themselves via the likes of BBC introducing and when it comes to releasing records Kassassin Street have drip fed us the odd song here and there online rather than numerous demos and EP’s.
The first of those songs being the intriguingly titled “The Royal Handkerchief Ballet” having come out some time last year, it’s an introduction to the band and one that got them noticed in national music press such as the NME and the riffs still sound great when played live this evening.
It’s when singer Rowan Bastable introduces “Centre Straight Atom” that you start to realise exactly why these guys have become big on the underground circuit, the crowd reaction says it all and the song itself pulsates with a combination of baggie indie along with the danceable side of latter day Primal Scream.
There’s an excitable confidence about the band too, they’re humble enough not to take their potential success for granted when playing smaller venues or travelling the country but looking more than comfortable playing festivals or, like tonight, their own sold out gigs.
With their aforementioned singer the band have a great frontman – when he’s not singing/playing he’s happily dancing around at the front of the stage encouraging the crowd to do the same, whilst the talent that is drummer Nathan Hill constantly spins his sticks in the background to become a secondary focal point.
When you look around the audience too, long gone are the days of just playing to their mates (although that’s of course not to say they don’t have plenty in attendance) but the balance between 90’s indie and 60’s psychedelia draw in those of a slightly older generation than the band themselves, whilst songs such as recent single “To Be Young” still sound fresh and modern helping to make the Kassassin Street appeal widespread across all ages.
Many a local scene have their own band destined to be “the next big thing” that are believed will go on to higher levels of stardom, but when it comes to living in Portsmouth you can’t help but think maybe this time around we really do have something pretty special for the rest of the musical world.
www.kassassinstreet.com
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