On the 30th October, Brudenell Social Club was the busiest I had ever seen it. Swarms of fans had congregated to see Basement play one of only three UK dates on their 2014 tour, after two years of silence from the Ipswich based melodic hardcore/pop punk band since their split in 2012.  We made our way to the front in time to see the band stroll on stage, before I was belly flopped on by a girl who had climbed onto the stage and jumped off within the first 5 seconds of the first song, punching me in the ear as she landed on me. This was the theme for the rest of the night, the crowd deranged with excitement, seeming much better at jumping on people than catching them. Luckily Basement delivered a fast paced and polished set that was worthy of their enthusiasm and surely lived up to expectations.

Their set comprised of their best-loved songs from their 2 previous albums and EPs, including ‘Fading’, ‘Yolk’, and ‘Bad Apple’, also debuting tracks such as ‘Summer’s Colour’ from their latest, more mellow and sentimental EP Further Sky. The lead singer, Andrew Fisher, expressed his gratitude throughout, saying there was a reason they had only chosen to perform in London, Manchester and Leeds, as they are the best places to play. The highlights were undoubtedly ‘Covet’ – which saw the audience jostle to be closest to the band to sing the emotional lyrics into their faces – the lively ‘Canada Square’, and their final song ‘Cricket’s Throw Their Voices’. Fisher introduced the last song with the command ‘Get on the stage, jump off the stage’, and the audience willingly and unrelentingly complied. It was an exciting, memorable evening, and we can only hope that this reformation is interminable.

https://soundcloud.com/runforcover-1/basement-covet

Patsy O’Neill

photos: youtube.com, Mitch Pinney