I don't think 'Brilliantine' is a real word. But if it was it would be a suitable adjective for Koko, capturing the essence of the rather kitsch, velveteen surroundings that are the hallmark of this venue, making it the perfect London date for BSP.
Another significant plus point for the venue, they have Happy Hour up till 8 pm - Conclusion - money saved: zero; pints consumed: doubled
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Happy Hour or not, the punters who arrived early got real value for money from support East India Youth. Great to see him take the larger stage. Somewhat divided opinion on the sound, on the one hand the usual 'support band' set-up that rather muffled some of the more intricate meanderings of his songs, but on the other hand made for a mesmerising soundscape that elevated the atmosphere right to the dome atop the building.
BSP took the stage with the rarely-aired Heavenly Waters, a brooding instrumental piece that builds over 6 minutes. A fitting overture to this set that you felt the band were happy to put together, unfettered by a recent album release and thus comprising a wander through back numbers galore featuring Fear Of Drowning and It Ended On An Oily Stage.
The pace was characteristically slowed as Hamilton took centre stage to lead on four songs including Loving Animals, after which we went in for a long, long home run featuring title track off latest album Machineries Of Joy and the punchy Zeus
It's tempting to label Remember Me and Waving Flags as the crowd pleasers but the crowd remained in superb voice chanting along to the crescendo of the anthemic instrumental number Great Skua.
Carrion and All In It were mashed together to bring the set to a climax, the former containing the lyric "Always, Always, Always The Sea; Brilliantine Mortality" making hairs stand up on backs of necks and leaving us to mull over whether it's really a word.
Tickets for tonight's show in Cambridge and Folkestone tomorrow are HERE