I had been informed that Crystal Fighters were one of the best acts at Wilderness Festival this year which a Brightonsfinest review had also endorsed, so I was genuinely excited to see the band live at the Dome in Brighton, albeit on a Monday night in mid-November. Although the event was surprisingly not sold out it was nevertheless a revelation and a brilliant evening as the Crystal Fighters recreated a virtual summer festival atmosphere in the hallowed auditorium, with the Dome floor rammed to capacity, arms joyously swaying in unison, girls and boys jumping on the shoulders of friends to heighten their involvement. Flags waving and beach balls descending to make this a night to remember.

Boxed In started the evening off and gave an excellent account of themselves, vibing up the audience with their electronic/psychedelic performance, making the most of their strong Brighton connection in the shape of band member Jack Benfield (on guitar and keyboards) and Oli Bayston (singer, songwriter and record producer) doing an excellent job of getting the audience in the mood for the main attraction. Brightonsfinest have followed their progress for some time, including reviewing their last album. While I still have to come to terms with Oli’s vocals personally there is no doubt Boxed In have found a growing audience through strong production, as well as the quality of the music, which has enabled them to progress to a new level as a band capable of headlining major venues in their own right.

I had never seen the Crystal Fighters before and, having allowed their first two albums to regrettably pass me by, I was keen to see how this essentially original London band, with deep rooted Basque influences regarding inspiration, instruments and music (including their very name), would win me over and cast out the cynicism I greet most acts with these days. I am so pleased to report that if they are not ‘the best festival band on the entire planet’ they are damn close.

Sebastian Pringle as a front man was a refreshingly welcome surprise with a most engaging manner. The more I got to hear the songs the more I grew to like his vocal performance in a sort of Supertramp way. At the same time he brilliantly stage-managed the whole performance with an expertise and wistful authority. Superbly supported by Graham Dixon (guitar) and Gilbert Vieich (electronics/guitar/percussion), who provided a real powerhouse performance, not forgetting the terrific drumming of Daniel Bingham and the energetic and driven vocals of Eleanor Fletcher and Louse Bagan who commanded the front of stage superbly throughout the night, keeping the audience spellbound.

Stand out tracks of the night include, ‘Good Girls, All Night’ (from the new album Everything Is The Family), ‘Love Alight’ (dedicated to Andrea Marongui) and ‘Plage’ (one of the encore tracks of the night with large beach balls descending from the ceiling of the Dome) but from the opening song ‘Follow’ the whole performance was superbly and magnificently orchestrated. I left the Dome with a huge smile on my face having been thoroughly entertained, basking in the goodwill and sheer enjoyment of the evening. The gig also made me keen to catch up on their back catalogue and, should you ever feel down, play one of their tracks: it will do you good and next time they are in town definitely go and see them. I hope they will return to Brighton next year to make an appearance at Together The People Festival which would be most fitting.
Frank

Read our interview with Crystal Fighters here: brightonsfinest.com/html/index.php/spotlight/1921-crystal-fighters-interview-2016
Read our review of Everything Is My Family here: brightonsfinest.com/html/index.php/12-music/1914-crystal-fighters-everything-is-my-family

Website: crystalfighters.com
Facebook: facebook.com/crystalfighters
Twitter: twitter.com/crystalfighters