Kasabian – Beat the Clock

Outside it is a cold damp winter night.
The pink stage clock counts down time until lift off.
And bang on time it is Bumble Bee and the Brixton floor pulsates into life.
Kasabian is arabic term for butcher (the name also has  modern day associations with Linda Kasabian – and the Charles Manson clan) combine this molotov cocktail with the art decor Ottoman setting of the Brixton Academy and the band hit the ground running.

l was last here was for Verve – the only soul wearing an orange shirt ! and experiencing a startling set which was simply breathtaking as Ashcroft and co played throughout their wondrous album, Urban Hymns and the sweet scent of pot heighten the spirit.

A great view from the raked floor at Brixton Academy Sergio Pizzorno the lead guitarist and muse has a penchant for feathers as we discovered in Brighton in 2011 ( for  their Velociraptor tour ). This time he is sporting a vulpine tail he is literally Fantastic Mr Fox !

The brilliance is their harmonies they create, the unique voice of Tom Meighan the leader singer and of course the prestigious back catalogue that can be plundered. Weaving their way thru the core albums – mostly as you would expect from 48:13, but West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum, Kasabian, Velociraptor and Empire are all featured with an absorbing light show.

The trumpet is evident especially on Thick as Thieves and the quartet of ‘winsome female strings’ dressed in tight fitting skeletal garb are alluring in the background adding a magical depth.

The only downside was just too much bass which swamped the musicality, in Brighton you could more clearly distinguish the sum of the parts. Still here the atmosphere in this relatively small auditorium for 2000 souls ensures a special atmosphere. Fire brought the house down and LSF was sung to the echo walking out down the street and into the tube station with a chorus of understudies !!

December 4th Brixton Academy Song List

• Bumblebeee
• Shoot the Runner
(with ‘Black Skinhead’ intro)
• Underdog
• Where Did All the Love Go?
• Days Are Forgotten
• Clouds
• eez-eh
• Cutt Off
• Bow
• Thick as Thieves
(with ‘People Are Strange’ outro)
• s.p.s.
• Club Foot
• Re‐Wired
(with ‘Word Up’ outro)
• Treat
• Switchblade Smiles
• Empire
• Fire
• Encore:
• Stevie
• Vlad the Impaler
• Praise You
(Fatboy Slim cover)
• L.S.F. (Lost Souls Forever)

Posted by: Fawkes