Fresh off supporting mega-band Muse’s UK tour, Nothing But Thieves are back in Norwich with their own headline show at our biggest venue, the LCR. Teaming up with three-piece band Black Foxxes and indie icons Sundara Karma, we were certainly in for a right treat and a night of genuinely decent live performances.
Kicking off the evening, Black Foxxes gave a very modest performance, yet, that didn’t prevent them from absolutely shredding their way through their short setlist. It seems they’ve garnered quite a bit of attention from various music magazines as being good-looking newcomers, and it really comes as no surprise because they feel like the kind of band that have been doing it for years. If you ever get a chance to catch them I highly recommend it and I honestly hope they only get more attention from here, because they truly deserve it. They’ve got a solid sound and aren’t afraid to really get into it, despite being billed as the first support acts – the nervous ice-breaker period of any gig.
Following on from that, Sundara Karma arrived amidst the stage-smoke, complete with flowing hair, wavy shirts and limp arms; they’re most certainly the soundtrack to your summer break. Proper roll-your-windows-down-and-play-out-loud kind of band when you’re on your way to the beach or something. And honestly, I don’t mean that in any negative way. I hadn’t heard any of Sundara Karma’s stuff prior to this show, and since then, I can’t quit listening to them. Sundara Karma are the sort of band that you could be in absolutely to listen to, and it’ll still be just as enjoyable, and it also helps that they put on tip-top show. There’s a certain easiness to their sound, that when things get a bit fiercer, it pulls the rug from underneath you and you can’t help but get taken along in the current. Again, they’ve not got the biggest following going, but you can definitely tell they’re only going to get bigger from her,e and I’m most certainly looking forward to seeing them again at Reading – it’ll be the perfect setting for them and everyone’s going to love it.
And finally, we got to Nothing But Thieves. Having seen them support Young Guns during their Ones and Zeroes tour a while ago, I kind of forgot what they were like, I only had the faint memory of turning to my brother holding a pint and giving him the “yeah, they’re not bad actually” look. But it seems that since then they’ve really come into their own. Playing songs entirely from their debut album Nothing But Thieves, it was clear that the five-piece have got their look and sound thoroughly nailed down; they dictated the crowd and maintained their stage presence with complete confidence and I really felt like I was watching a band give it their absolute best.
Firstly, we’ve got to talk about the pipes on Conor Mason, the frontman. He’s got such a dynamic range and can maintain a wide variety of notes it’s no wonder they’ve supported a band like Muse, you can imagine them slotting in perfectly with that kind of gig. There were so many instances where you got little glimpses of Matt Bellamy coming through his vocal performance, it was genuinely exciting to see someone else achieve such a sound. I’m sure it must’ve looked a bit embarrassing, but whenever he poured out a long vocal melody, I firmly held my drink in the air and yelled ‘woo’ a few times because at the time it just made so much sense to.
But that’s not to say Mason is all that keeps the wheels of Nothing But Thieves turning because they’re evidently a cohesive group of people, each cog in the machine playing its part efficiently. You really get the feeling that you’re watching a tight group of people doing what they do best with the people they love most, especially when they pull the tech guy on stage so we can all sing happy birthday to him. Every player in this team is just as important as the next guy.
It was also pretty gratifying to see how humble Nothing But Thieves were to be playing at the LCR and in front of such a willing crowd as everyone was singing along just as loudly as the band themselves which, to me, was quite impressive considering they’ve only got one album. Everyone in the audience were avid fans, and I can totally see why. The band even took a moment to indulge in music that influenced them, performing an excellent cover of Where Is My Mind? by Pixies, and it started to make me feel far too sentimental, considering I was completely by myself. I’m gutted I had no one to share that moment with. Quickly got my phone out to film it for a bit, otherwise it didn’t happen.
And on a final note, it’s nothing but impressive that a band can play one album in its entirety and still make perfect sense during a live gig. More often than not, a band releases an album which only includes a handful of songs that are appropriate for live performances, yet every last song on Nothing But Thieves just worked. They ended strongly with Ban All The Music and I walked home with a jolly spring in my step because I just saw a good band play.
Words – Chris Hambling
Photography – Kayleigh Warren
