THE BEACHES: LONDON, ENGLAND
Credit: Meg Moon
“Any of you can marry me!”
Is that shout coming from the crowd or the stage? Both, actually.
First, it was from the crowd, with a guy starting the night off strong. But throughout the show, The Beaches’ love for London was speeding towards engagement offers for the crowd, too. 90 Day Fiance, anyone?
The four-piece pop-infused rock band, made up of Jordan Miller (bassist and lead vocals), Kylie Miller (guitar and backing vocals), Leandra Earl (keyboards, guitars, and backing vocals) and Eliza Enman-McDaniel (drums), took London’s heart away last night and no one wanted to steal it back.
Even though it wasn’t their first time in the city, they've returned to London as part of their Blame Brett tour with a sold-out show, guaranteeing it won’t be the last time either.
They launched into their set with ‘Kismet’, one of the more fun and lighthearted songs on the record that describes the exhilarating feeling of running into your crush again and again. Though the band was sick, joking about how they constantly get each other sick, partially thanks to kissing each other, they still brought their incredible vocal and instrumental powers to each song of their set. Sometimes Jordan and Leandra brought the songs into a more comfortable octave for their strained voices, which allowed the best belts and shouts to come out continuously through the set.
There isn’t any competition in a band with four incredible rock stars -- they each have their moments to shine, with both their band members and the crowd entranced. Their individual stage presences are captivating: whether it be because they seem effortless as they perfectly smash out a solo on their respective instruments or because they know exactly how to get the crowd even more hyped with something as small as a hair flip.
With songs like ‘T-Shirt’ and ‘Me & Me’, the band fully let loose, timed to when their cold meds kicked in. ‘T-Shirt’, a surf-pop and rock headbanger that includes the hilarious line of ‘I’m not sexy, the itty Bitty Titty Committee’ featured a moment between Leandra and Jordan. They were teasing Jordan about her membership in that committee, with some up close and personal dance moves between the two.
‘Me & Me’, the Sex and The City-inspired anthem, was dedicated to all the single ladies in the crowd with Leandra shouting, “I’m single and I’m ready to fuck all of you!”
Credit: Becca Hamel
“Guess you need some good fucks for the next album,” Leandra joked in response.
And while Jordan, and the rest of the band, get to experience some high doses of catharsis throughout the show through performing Jordan’s break-up lyrics, Leandra got some shining time on the mic, too. One notable time was when they took over Beach Weather’s part in ‘My Body ft Your Lips’, a song about the age-old idea of getting over someone by getting under someone and throwing away the concept of love for a little longer.
It was incredible to see how different members of the crowd reacted to different songs, as the album Blame Brett covers a variety of relatable and personal experiences about love, breakups, and the ever-evolving chaos of figuring out your own emotions. Like ‘What Doesn’t Kill You Makes You Paranoid’, a raw and rousing song about social anxiety after a breakup. A lot of heartfelt singing from the crowd and the stage on that one, no doubt.
And since it’s the Blame Brett tour, after playing through hits and bits of their expansive discography and their latest album, they ended the night with the still-viral ‘Blame Brett’: a song that needs no description beyond an example of what happened during the song. From the first note, everyone was singing along to the song, and halfway through, Jordan shouted “Who’s ready to fucking blame their exes tonight?” A lot of people were, no doubt. Shown by the many people near the barrier held up signs saying “Blame” and their exes' names -- and one unlucky duo in the crowd was holding a sign saying “Blame Me”. Ouch.
Even with the kissing (and Guinness-sharing) spread colds the band were fighting, the show was spectacular. The vibrant energy, strong vocals, and skilled instrument playing set apart The Beaches from many pop and rock bands. It’s true what they say, why date a rock star when you can be one?
Alex Shukri
★★★★★