A homecoming party is always that bit more special than your regular celebratory bash. So when notorious revelry kings Rudimental returned to London for the first time in months, it was always bound to be a messy night.
The dynamic Hackney four-piece were back in their homeland for the iTunes Festival after an extensive tour of the globe, and they didn’t waste any time easing into their return.
“We love London town,” bellowed DJ Locksmith, bounding out on the stage in front of lights blazing the name of the band around the circular Camden venue.
Accompanying him? The rest of the Rudimental boys and their famous entourage – two lead vocalists, three back-up singers, trumpets and saxophones blasting out brass madness and a crazy drummer combining to crash out the carnivalistic chaos with which the group are now synonymous.
The dynamic Hackney four-piece were back in their homeland for the iTunes Festival after an extensive tour of the globe, and they didn’t waste any time easing into their return.
“We love London town,” bellowed DJ Locksmith, bounding out on the stage in front of lights blazing the name of the band around the circular Camden venue.
Accompanying him? The rest of the Rudimental boys and their famous entourage – two lead vocalists, three back-up singers, trumpets and saxophones blasting out brass madness and a crazy drummer combining to crash out the carnivalistic chaos with which the group are now synonymous.
"When Rudimental dropped a cover of Shy FX’s jungle classic ‘Original Nuttah’, the place went wild. We were bouncing around harder than a kangaroo on a trampoline screaming back the legendary lyrics..."
A frantic introduction got the crowd going, and the group built on their bouncing intro with a jazzed up version of album track ‘Give You Up’ – which then transcended into the full drum and bass banger – and ‘Right Here’, the steel drum driven anthem near enough impossible not to love.
Given that the iTunes Festival is an event with free ticketing – meaning the crowd is a mix of loyal fans and those who happened to get a penny-less pass – it’s pretty impressive that the crowd were so behind the gig.
If anyone can win over an audience, though, it’s Rudimental. The sheer mass of musical madness and the hypnotic energy being churned out from the stage is scarily easy to get lost in.
Bouncing next to a group of like-minded revellers as the group unleash ‘Not Giving In’, one sweaty twenty-something shouts out ‘I don’t even know who these guys are – I’m into heavy metal music!’
It certainly doesn’t seem to have affected his enjoyment or hindered his dance moves. Even if you don’t come to a Rudimental gig as a fan, it’s more than likely you’ll leave as one.
Given that the iTunes Festival is an event with free ticketing – meaning the crowd is a mix of loyal fans and those who happened to get a penny-less pass – it’s pretty impressive that the crowd were so behind the gig.
If anyone can win over an audience, though, it’s Rudimental. The sheer mass of musical madness and the hypnotic energy being churned out from the stage is scarily easy to get lost in.
Bouncing next to a group of like-minded revellers as the group unleash ‘Not Giving In’, one sweaty twenty-something shouts out ‘I don’t even know who these guys are – I’m into heavy metal music!’
It certainly doesn’t seem to have affected his enjoyment or hindered his dance moves. Even if you don’t come to a Rudimental gig as a fan, it’s more than likely you’ll leave as one.
It’ wasn’t all the same old, same old from the producers either. New material came in the form of ‘To Cool To Love Me’ and ‘Breathe’, the former a solid song lacking an addictive hook, the latter a banger that goes ballistic at the drop. Caught up in the moment, the crowd lapped it up.
Emile Sande feature ‘Free’ brought a big crowd reaction, but the piece de resistance of the homecoming set came as it began to draw to a close. When you’re in London, there’s one song you can always rely on to make the locals go wild – whatever the day, whatever the occasion.
When Rudimental dropped a cover of Shy FX’s jungle classic ‘Original Nuttah’, then, the place went wild. We were bouncing around harder than a kangaroo on a trampoline reverberating the legendary lyrics back at the stage.
Emile Sande feature ‘Free’ brought a big crowd reaction, but the piece de resistance of the homecoming set came as it began to draw to a close. When you’re in London, there’s one song you can always rely on to make the locals go wild – whatever the day, whatever the occasion.
When Rudimental dropped a cover of Shy FX’s jungle classic ‘Original Nuttah’, then, the place went wild. We were bouncing around harder than a kangaroo on a trampoline reverberating the legendary lyrics back at the stage.
"Rudimental prove once again that they deserve their reputation as one of the best live acts around..."
Feel the Love capped the regular set off with a bang, the signature heart signs taking to the air across the crowd and Mark Crown absolute slaying his trumpet solo to make the crowd lose their minds.
Five or fifteen choruses later and it was time for a brief break and an encore. The song the crowd had been ‘Waiting All Night’ for (Geddit?!) smashed through the speakers to end a night that can best be described as a freakin' crazy indoor carnival.
Rudimental prove once again that they deserve their reputation as one of the best live acts around. They always provide an occasion to remember and the feel-good vibes get the audience mad.
Never let it be said that drum and bass is all about a computer screen.
Stuart Kenny
Five or fifteen choruses later and it was time for a brief break and an encore. The song the crowd had been ‘Waiting All Night’ for (Geddit?!) smashed through the speakers to end a night that can best be described as a freakin' crazy indoor carnival.
Rudimental prove once again that they deserve their reputation as one of the best live acts around. They always provide an occasion to remember and the feel-good vibes get the audience mad.
Never let it be said that drum and bass is all about a computer screen.
Stuart Kenny
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