By Luka Cutts, Fourth Year Medical Biochemistry
The UK-based band brought out all the English emos to march to their cult album colourmeinkindness and some extras, including some never-before-heard bangers. Not without being preceded by an impressive supporting line-up of American bands Midrift and Anxious as well as London hardcore band Dynamite.
You can easily gauge Basement’s sound and fanbase through their supporting acts. For example, Midrift’s nu-gazy sound symbolises the new fans coming in from apps like TikTok, the same sort of sound that blew up their song ‘Covet’. They provide a fresh interpretation of the band’s grey and numb tones, reminding me of artists I love signed to Dead Air Records.
London band Dynamite represented Basement’s heavier side of hardcore and support for local talent. They were an ode to the band's older fans, to the noise that originally lured fans in. From videos, I could tell Bristol and Manchester didn’t turn up as hard for them as London did, but the passion was all there in the performance.
Last but not least, Anxious summarised Basement’s fourth wave emo fandom. Being signed to Run for Cover Records, they definitely shared the magic that comes with being a band under the label. Anxious performed with arguably more energy than the main act and won over the crowd with ease. True talent to watch out for!
When it came to Basement, they made sure to send all their respects to the bands before, dedicating a song to each band as if they were their own influence. The camaraderie and wholesomeness continued with lead singer Andrew Fisher thanking the audience for the chance to perform to a sold-out show.
Basement started on a boom. I came all prepared in my Converse, ready for some moshing, and was flung to the centre of the pit with their opener ‘Are You the One’. This moshing ritual continued for five more songs, with ‘Bad Apple’ stoking the crowd the most, until their two new songs were played.
The first song was slower compared to Basement’s usual hardcore style, sounding more mature and less angsty than the rest, but in a way that wasn’t disappointing and still true to their sound.
Their next song was classic Basement with that rhythmic, catchy guitar supported by equally punchy drums. I was immediately two-stepping, signalling the guy next to me to join, but he couldn’t. Who comes to a hardcore show and doesn’t know how to two-step?
Right after, they jumped back into their classics for a further seven songs, the majority being from colourmeinkindness. My favourite song ‘Pine’ came in second-last and the crowd favourite ‘Covet’ followed shortly after, supported by the roar of the whole crowd at the top of their lungs. To say it’s a viral hit is an understatement, but you can’t help feeling they deserve their flowers, especially with how humble the band is.
After the show was over, I was left with thoughts of how quickly it flew by, how good Electric was for moshing and Basement’s peers in the genre. Basement started off in the scene touring with band Daylight (now Superheaven) and drew close parallels to other bands such as Title Fight and Turnstile.
It is hard not to compare them side-by-side to these other melodic post-hardcore titans, and when you do, Basement leaves some room for improvement in terms of variation. Despite this, their new music does show much promise, and with all the demand, the band is more than capable of pulling off even greater albums in the future. Not-too-distant band The Story So Far managed to pull it off, and I believe Basement can too.
Arianna Balsamo
Basement didn’t fail in providing their angry perspective on mundane life, and moshing to them amongst their equally angry fans brought me a night full of memories. In the words of Brand New, I want ‘just one more late night Basement song’. Learn how to two-step.
Featured Image: Epigram / Luka CuttsDo you like hardcore gigs?
