Birmingham four-piece, Superfood, have accomplished an ambition that they set themselves roughly last year – to headline their hometown and London. They have risen from a group of mutual friends with a passion for making music, to a group adored by NME, alongside the likes of Peace and Swim Deep. Tonight, they certainly have proved their ever-climbing status.
The dimly lit club greets the first band of the evening; Black Honey. Hailing from Brighton, the band creates quite a stir in the audience. It would seem tonight that Superfood are not the only 90s revivalists as front-woman Izzy B Phillips swaggers and sways with as much grunge as a Nirvana tribute act. Calm husky vocals mingle with guitar sounds that would not go amiss in a Western. Black Honey suddenly switch on an intense energy, causing the vocalist to spiral into an onstage frenzy. With banshee wails and high pitched screams, the band deliver their new track ‘Spinning Wheel.’ There’s flamingo kicking, guitar dropping, beer throwing action from the stage, and it’s safe to say that the crowd is interested.
London’s own Yak then take over the stage, emitting up-tempo drum beats and drawling vocals. Yak creates a zany raucous atmosphere in the crowd, complete with manic dancing. At moments, lead singer Oli Burslem shrieks out his lyrics. The music sounds so driven and intense, it is almost impossible not to move in the audience. Psychedelic influences see Yak produce some bizarre keyboard sounds that could compare to those in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s 1980s musical: Cats. Although a frantic and noisy set, the audience is thoroughly warmed up, just in time for the main act of the evening, Superfood.
It’s clear why Superfood are headlining Heaven tonight. They are met with screams of excitement as they enter the stage against a funky screen displaying pulsing images that would not go amiss on a classic windows screensaver. The sounds of their latest single “You Can Believe” blasts out of the speakers. Bassist Emily Baker sways dreamily, creating funky riffs that mesh perfectly against crisp vocals. The Birmingham quartet play a successful and cool set, embracing the sounds of Blur and Brit-pop. Yet, limited crowd interaction does make the set feel, at times, lengthy and repetitive. It cannot be denied that Superfood’s single “Mood Bomb” goes down a treat, fuelling mass sing-alongs and dancing from members of the audience. Frontman Dom Ganderton warns the audience of the perils of not wearing earplugs before erupting into the catchy hooks of “TV”, a track that is possibly the highlight of the evening. The band continue to plunge into hits from their 2014 album Don’t Say That which is very well received. With this band creating exciting indie-anthems, Superfood leaves the audience hungry for more.
