BLACK MIDI
VENUE THE VILLAGE UNDERGROUND, LONDON DATE 08/03/2023
On what is one of the coldest nights of the year so far, it’s a strange testament to Black Midi to see a hoodie being flung with wild abandon from one side of the venue to the other. But then again, is it any weirder than seeing one chap standing in the smoking area outside wearing just a vest on his torso as freezing rain lashes down from the sky? “It’s a bit cold,” he tells astonished ticket holders as they make their way into the cavernous environs of the Village Underground.
Perhaps this is a bizarre preparation as Black Midi bring Hellfire – their third album – to vivid life on the last of four sold-out shows, where each is focused on each of the albums they’ve released thus far plus a “mystery” night. Whatever it may be, what is abundantly clear is the level of devotion aimed at the band from their dedicated constituency. From the moment they hit the first note, the venue erupts; there’s no contemplative beard stroking over their musical merits or the meaning of it all here, but an unrestrained physical reaction that sees a frenzy of jumping and moshing. Make no mistake; the temperature inside is whacked right up.
What also becomes immediately apparent is that Black Midi are playing with a deadly intent. Last summer’s outdoor show at Somerset House in the heart of London found the band in an overly frivolous mood that counted against them. Gone are the pointless AC/DC and Kate Bush covers (although a snatch of Black Sabbath’s Symptom Of The Universe makes a brief appearance tonight, as does comedian Harry Hill for a 30-second romp through rapper Cardi B’s I Like It), and in their place is a focus on what makes them such a formidably potent live act. Morgan Simpson confirms his status as a powerhouse drummer of considerable note as he shifts from frenetic rolls to steady beats and all points in between during a breathless reading of The Race Is About To Begin. Elsewhere, Cameron Picton doesn’t so much play his bass and utterly pummel it as singer-guitarist Geordie Greep shreds with an intensity that must surely leave grooves in his guitar’s neck.
Though they’ve emphatically denied that they tackle politics and current events, Black Midi whip up an entirely contemporary sound that reflects the chaos of the here and now. Making nods to Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band’s Trout Mask Replica and the Discipline-era of King Crimson, this is music akin to the screams in the heads of that demographic that wakes up each night at 3am in mortal fear of how to eat and heat. And with Hellfire thematically concerned with “scumbags”, this isn’t too difficult a conclusion to arrive at.
This isn’t to suggest that Black Midi aren’t without humour. By his own admission, Geordie Greep is living vicariously through the flawed characters that populate Hellfire and such are their extremes that laughing remains
the only viable option. And only the coldest of hearts would fail to be amused by Greep’s introductory and exaggerated voice over in the style of a boxing MC as he makes the claim for Black Midi being
“the hardest-working band in the world”.
Black Midi are also smart enough to understand the difference between an album and a live performance. Rather than simply replicating Hellfire’s running order, tonight it’s rejigged to satisfy the ebb and flow of the live experience while inserting older cuts such as 953 and Reggae. Consequently, the Hellfire material hits with a greater force. Witness Welcome To Hell that finds the band turning up the heat, while the heaving audience sings along to the insistent and nagging riff that beats at its heart.
Overwhelming, exciting and, on occasion, irritating – sometimes all at the same time – Black Midi make absolutely no concessions in the pursuit of their vision. And quite rightly so.