For anyone who’s witnessed an Idles live show before, they will confirm it’s an enticing and equally threatening spectacle to behold. Joe Talbot’s politically-charged lyrics sung under the backdrop of instantaneous raw punk is brought to further life on stage and the sold out Prince Albert crowd lapped it up from the offset.

Working within a consistent structure of intricate drumming, substantial bass and violent guitars, Talbot orchestrated proceedings to the obeying audience: “How are you all doing? Are you OK?”, he politely said as the band waited for guitarist Mark Bowen to sort out some technical issues with his guitar. The well-mannered pleasantries soon seemed like a thing of the past as the band opened at breakneck speed into ‘Faith in the City’; instantly setting the tone with a cacophony of instrumentation.

Almost the entirety of Brutalism feels like some form of cathartic release for Talbot and none more so than ‘Exeter’, which gained one of the biggest audience reactions of the night. The hardcode style bass-line may have started the song off but it certainly didn’t carry it on after Adam Devonshire managed to do the impossible and fully snap off the E-string of his bass guitar. However, in full punk style, it proved to be one of the show’s highlights due to the fact that it occurred at the perfect point in the song in which it slows down and unhurriedly builds up to allow Talbot to paint the scene of a bar fight. With Devonshire franticly tuning up his second bass, the band elongated the song for an extra two minutes before he entered back into the fray for the heavy climax; adding even greater potency to the finale.

“The best way to scare a Tory is to read and get rich,” the crowd screamed back to the band during ‘Mother’. It’s unassuming lines such as this that have propelled Idles into the public’s musical consciousness in recent months. That, and the fact that Talbot consistently gives the impression that he really believes in what he is singing, whilst simultaneously looking like he needs to be restrained in what are incredibly personal songs for him.

Meanwhile, ‘1049 Gotho’ transfers brilliantly into this sort of environment with its sharp guitars and piercing reverberation, whilst the militaristic drum beat of ‘Divide & Conquer’ is the band’s best live song. ‘Stendhal Syndrome’ was also a crowd favourite, despite the live incarnation not coming with Devonshire’s mesmerising dancing from the video. Old favourite ‘Queens’ drew some cheers from veteran fans of the band with its masterful balancing act between the thunderous rhythm section and dynamic guitar pair, before ‘Benzocaine’ carried on the frenzied pace; mosh pits, stage diving and beer spilling becoming more of a regular occurrence the longer the show went on.

Earlier in the night, Idles’ Bristol brothers and sister in arms Scarlet Rascal wowed the Monday night audience with their krautrock tinged post-punk. Framed by repetition, tense rhythms and an abrasive guitar-driven sound underpinned by the singer’s deadpan tone, the four-piece are a terrific act.

Opener ‘Pearl’, is one of the standouts, with the deep bassline providing the framework for the swirling sonic wave of distortion to take hold, whilst ‘Venus’ is longer when played live with its razor sharp guitars and the motorik charm of the rhythmic pair. The deliciously catchy six note riff of ‘Strange’ is another highlight, as was the Joy Division-esque ‘Woland’.

The elongated album and set closer ‘Last Day’ is perhaps the band’s finest effort though. Clocking in at over six minutes, the bass guitar and drums initially glide along at an unassuming pace as Luke Brookes attempts to muster the strength to ignite some vocal delivery. At the same time, delicate strumming patterns arrive at irregular intervals leaving the crowd in an unnerving state, craving for an intense crescendo. This assuredly comes in the form of a final three minutes of piercing textures, rolling soundscapes lying within a hub of melodic guitar work in a song that could only ever act as a climax to a gig.

This set up the crowd for Idles, who surprisingly finished their set with old track ‘Rottweiler’. However, it’s the socially aware album which has brought them into plain view. Brutalism has come along at the perfect time and the five-piece have managed to retain the raw intensity, meaningful soul and powerful emotion for their live show. Creating evocative music and a feeling of belonging in a room in the process.
Paul Hill

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