Author: birminghamreview

Writer Jasmine Khan / Photography Andrew Roberts

The Sunny is a bit busier than I’ve come to expect on Tuesday evenings. As I walk down the narrow steps into M9’s first headline gig I can hear the thud of the bass and covers. It looks like it’s going to be a backing track kind of evening.

The first support Corbyn is emotive and talented, if a bit nervous with his eyes more on the ground than in the audience, fully in his personal flow but not quite ready to share it with us. There are a few bops and sways but it feels we’re waiting on Corbyn to give us permission to let go.

It’s a nice crowd and he finishes to applause and shouts of “slay”.

The next act Bundiny brings more interactive energy and much more eye contact, performing to the audience and taking up the stage. The room isn’t filling up, but the crowd’s much more reactive already. There’s an old skool hip hop feel coming through the speaker; Bundiny’s rap is sharp and clear.

“I wanna hear all of you singing this one, it’s my biggest single.”

I can’t say I know it, but one guy in the front keeps up with the lyrics as they swim from Bundiny’s mouth.

At times the beat feels pretty basic, but the flow is full of imaginative, pacey rhymes. Bundiny also offers up some vocals and while they’re a little shaky, his tone’s definitely there. A bit more confidence and I reckon he’s got it down.

Not missing a beat, Bundiny comes to the front of the front and raps rapidly into the audience. Confidence is not something he’s lacking now as his lyrics paint the hard work and hardship needed for success.

You know from the expression on his face he’s not fronting.

In the break between songs he sends love to his supporters which is always appreciated. “This is my dream,” he grins and then runs the next track, whose beat offers a bit more of that variety I’ve been searching for.

“I spit real passion when I open my mouth.

“Pain and joy when I open my mouth.”

At the end of his set Bundiny says that this is his first gig – definitely one to watch.

After a quick stop at the bar, the headliner M9 (previously known as J Mizzy) claims the Sunny’s stage. I started listening to M9 back in 2020 and his sound has moved from rap based hip-hop and grime to having more of a focus on vocals and alternative sounds.

That being said he’s running 25 minutes late, so M9 better be worth the wait.

As he starts the vibes change, it’s more intense, the bass feels deeper and the beats are layered and textured in a way we haven’t seen all night. The audience shouts back the end of the chorus of the first track and it’s clear who we’ve all come to see.

M9’s in his feelings when he performs but it’s a shared collective experience. His flow is melodic and the rhythms reflective. S4 from Nottingham joins M9 on stage and I’m getting LA hip hop, driving in open convertible cars and as if by magic the smell of California sober fills the room.

The next song has more movement and there’s a couple dancing at the back of the room. M9’s singing and I can’t decide which I like more, the flow of the vocals. You can hear that guttural growl at the bottom of M9 vocals that makes you know it’s real.

“No you won’t, no you won’t walk these roads alone.”

He brings another surprise support on stage for ‘Free Fall’ and Cartebranche closes his eyes before releasing an energy that seems to have been building inside him for I don’t know how long. It’s all over his face and the crowd shouts “oi” loudly in response.

This feels like one of the first hyper local gigs that I’ve been to where people are listening to the artist at home because they know the lyrics. M9 is accessible and engaging, dancing across the softer sides of hip hop and RnB.

The last track ‘Indigo’ maintains the reflective vibe of M9’s set, behind me are tens of phone lights adding to the atmosphere. The crowd’s not massive but it’s dedicated, and for me it makes all the difference.

For more from M9, click here for his Spotify page. 

For more from Bundiny, click here. 
For more from Corbyn, click here. 

For more from the Sunflower Lounge go to www.thesunflowerlounge.com

 

Writer Jasmine Khan / Photographer Connor Pope

The Hare and Hounds Venue One is bustling with anticipation at 9:30pm on the Monday before Christmas. I struggle to push my way through bodies on the dance floor to the smoking area, in need of some quick air and a moment to collect my thoughts before The Nature Centre arrives on stage.

Made up of Beth Hopkins on vocals and alto sax, Oli Pyper on vocals, bass and synths, Hamish Campbell-Legg on drums, and Bird on guitar, I’ve been meaning to catch up with these hard to place locals since this time last year. And with a room so full in our current economic climate, it feels like my drizzly outing might possibly be worth the hassle.

Back in the venue, I notice festive red lights bathing the stage matching the timeless ‘Please respect the vibe. No phones on the dance floor’ sign to my right.’ Is it ever enforced?

Christmas ballards play in the background and saxophonist Hopkins tunes up on stage. The show is about to begin.

The Nature Centre’s first number brags some tight, funky jazz, firmly punctuated by the persistent twang of the bass and the strong kick of the drums.

Then, the next track completely twists the room’s energy with Hopkins switching up the saxophone for vocals, which blend between punk, folk, and indie. The sound swings, becoming more textured with the addition of a synth; the bass and guitar combined with the vocals bring an almost two-tone feel.

“You know what they say, get your best song out of the way first!” jokes frontman Pyper introducing the band. Then sternly, “This is not a Christmas gig.”

‘Forecast’ offers up another turn, tropical indie pop, with jovial harmonies and gentle cymbals. Bird’s rhythmic strumming paints rolling ocean waves, or summer breezes across vineyards, and Hopkins drops vocals just in time to pick up the sax and play the final notes of the songs.

Tight.

In ‘Maria’ I can hear a clarinet and it confuses me momentarily because the other instruments are all still present. The drums, guitar, and bass all groove and grumble whilst Hopkins now switches between vocals and flute, carrying the endlessly peaking melody with high note after high note.

There’s some sound issues but any worries are quickly placated as we’re assured it’s the “soul of the groove,” most likely frustrated at being silenced in between songs.

Up next it’s The Nature Centre’s latest release, ‘Parachute’, and yet again Bird’s fingers skate skilfully up and down the neck of his guitar, accompanied by the synth and Hopkins’ Slitsy head voice. It feels like a waterfall of treble notes cascading over my ears, and there’s a smidge of Latin flare.

The next two tracks are funny and interesting, a winning combination in any situation with lyrics like “Calling my cat Dog Face” and “Oooooo, the ghost of Eddie Bingo”.

The synths go nuts and so do the drums; The Nature Centre lets loose, indulging in a boogie for the first time all evening, and it feels like the set’s about to really get going.

But, wait … This is their last track? It’s a bit cheeky considering they’ve barely been on stage for 30 minutes.

The synth beeps and taps, the guitar and drums crescendo. The bass melts under the main sound and Hopkins is back producing immaculate warbling tones from the sax.

“Mmmmm you drive badly, I hate the way you drive,” grumbles Pyper, pulling the strings moodily on the bass.

“Like a bastard you drive,” he screams, “like a fucking bastard.”

So that’s it then? Sweet but disappointingly short.

What’s that? Making us their fool, The Nature Centre let us in on the big reveal. There’s a second set with self proclaimed “fringe” member Sean Murray.

I haven’t left enough words for this.

Murray’s bassy voice on ‘Blank Holiday’ has an even more gritty, British edge, which adds depth to the overall sound, now thick with three harmonies.

Pyper’s bass jumps up with the sax and guitar wrapping around the curve of Murray’s lead vocals at the end of each line.

In the breakdown, it gets rockier with Bird shredding the guitar and Campbell-Legg’s drums sticks blurr – The Nature Centre becomes harder to place. I understand why they describe themselves as avant garde pop, but maybe avant garde indie makes more sense.

“Look into my left eye – we’ve got one more song,” states Hopkins. What the hell does that mean?

The instruments on stage all skit, and it’s over.

My only criticism, still, is that it didn’t last long enough.

For more from The Nature Centre go to: www.thenaturecentre.bandcamp.com/ 

For more from Hare and Hounds go to: www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk

Writer and photographer Emily Doyle

It’s a nightmare getting out of town at rush hour on the last Saturday before Christmas. However, when you’ve been assured that Birmingham’s indie-rock elders Johnny Foreigner have a very special treat planned for early doors at their much-awaited homecoming show, the packed bus feels worth it.

At around 5:30pm, a healthy crowd has assembled in Venue One of the Hare & Hounds. On the floor in front of the stage are fairy lights, candles, and a toy glockenspiel. Johnny Foreigner are due at any moment, though drummer Junior Elvis Washington Laidley is stalling as his daughter hasn’t arrived yet. Bassist Kelly Parker leaves to don a Christmas jumper.

Dotted around the room are hymn sheets adorned with the band’s trademark ghost character. Audience members are encouraged to take a seat on the floor, and the front half of the room doesn’t take much convincing – who says no to a lovely sit down at a gig?

What follows is an intimate acoustic set of old favourites which prompts shy singalongs from the attentive crowd. Junior and Kelly add percussion and lo-fi synth lines to Alexei Berrow and Lewes Herriot’s guitars, and restrained vocal harmonies lend the whole experience an authentically homely feel.

The band seem pleasantly surprised by the turn out. Every time someone enters the venue a shaft of light and chatter cuts through the hushed room, but latecomers are quick to get the memo and have a seat.

When the fairy lights and hymn sheets have been tidied away, …and Upstairs, Nurses are quick to inject some energy into the proceedings.

The trio’s melodic soft-rock polyphony has a satisfyingly mathy backbone that’s perfectly pitched for a crowd who probably remember streaming this sort of thing on Myspace.

Guitarist Charlie McLeod and bassist Sam Crooks both studiously avoid taking centre stage, but the former’s joyously goonish guitar face speaks for itself. McLeod goes through three guitars in the short set: “I could waste ten minutes with tuning, but we’ve got places to be!”

Next to take us on a trip down memory lane are H_ngm_n, an unashamedly emo duo from Brighton. They’re so committed to the pop punk aesthetic that they’re wearing shorts and Vans in the coldest week of the year.

It’s fun, upbeat, and accomplished, and they’re not afraid to lapse into a palm-muted breakdown when the song demands it.

Recent addition to the Big Scary Monsters roster, Other Half, brings some refreshing heft to the line up. The noisy Norwich three-piece rattle through a fuzzy scuzzy set of post-hardcore that gets the room suitably excited. The searing vocal interplay and dissonant riffs are a palette cleanser to make your eyes water and your teeth rattle.

“We’re Other Half! We’re here to have a laugh!”

Of course, this is Johnny Foreigner’s homecoming show. After a few quiet years they’re back on the scene and as much fun as ever – they kick off their final set with a shrill rendition of ‘Jingle Bells’ before launching into a whistle-stop tour of fan favourites.

Any hesitancy about the nostalgia factor of the whole thing is washed away in sweat and beer as the crowd chants along to Alexei Berrow’s trademark vocals.

It’s a real Christmas gift, heartfelt and gratefully received.

For more on Johnny Foreigner go to www.johnnyforeignertheband.com

For more on …and Upstairs, Nurses go to www.andupstairsnurses.bandcamp.com
For more on H_ngm_n go to www.hngmnuk.bandcamp.com
For more on Other Half go to www.otherhalf.bandcamp.com

For more on the Hare and Hounds go to www.hareandhoundskingsheath.co.uk