At the end of last month (30/03/14), I went down to The Institute, Birmingham's (tiny) Temple to see Bipolar Sunshine. It had been one of the longest days ever and so was just ready for a nice chilled set to unwind to.
I had heard that Indiana was supporting but had never heard of her before the event, so of course I went straight to YouTube. Here's what I found, and if I'm honest, it really did not impress me - I'm pretty sure that I didn't even finish it in the end. Safe to say I wasn't too excited for her set. When the band stepped on stage and played their first song I was extremely taken aback... they were great!! It wasn't until a couple more fabulous songs in that the singer announced that her name was in fact Layla. That explained why the sound was a lot different to that in the song I heard. Layla was fantastic though. Since watching her kill this set I've already written about her here and here. Her personality was just contagious and you could tell that she really loved music - sort of reminded me of a more cheerful version of Elena Tonra. A surprising set but an amazing one too.
Next up was actually Indiana. In fairness, she wasn't bad and the set did get better as it went on (despite a lengthy microphone malfunction). The crowd really loved her single "Solo Dancing" but I just was not drawn to her - the set didn't engage me and I didn't feel connected. Either way, her musicians were good, and the set was pretty mellow. Call me old fashioned though, but there were a few too many electronic things for my liking - I would always much rather a classic band set up. All in all - underwhelming set.
Finally, the main event - Bipolar Sunshine. Before coming I'd heard his most well known singles like "Fire" and "Where Did The Love Go" and I didn't really know much else by him, but I was stood front and centre nonetheless. The band came on and I have to say every single member was looking super (special shout out to the bassist's shoes). Bipolar Sunshine himself is just a very cool cat. After this show there are a lot of new favourites that he has provided me with - "Rivers", "Drowning Butterflies" and "Love More Worry Less" are definitely among the list. The overall musicianship and banter between the musicians themselves was fantastic - made for a really great atmosphere. I found myself laughing and smiling a lot more than I was even cheering at this show - I just had a genuinely fun time. When they ended I was still smiling - uplifting gig and a perfect end to a stupidly long day!
Overall Rating - 7/10
Here are some pictures from the night...
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