Photo: Press
In an unusual turn of events over the past few years, Clean Cut Kid have gone from something of an unknown indie-folk band to an electric guitar-driven outfit. Even stranger for a somewhat new band, every track that they have released has been championed by almost every Radio 1 DJ. They've even gone over to LA to take part in SXSW.
All of this has happened in just one year, and another landmark they can now add to their ever-growing collection would be their first sold-out show in London. A sold-out show in 100 Club, nonetheless. But the band were joined by another band also on the up, VITAMIN.
VITAMIN boasts an easy-to-digest sound that is proudly pop. The four-piece create the most Radio 1 friendly sound since Nick Grimshaw found his voice. And at the very young age of 21 their drummer is the oldest in the band, whilst their lead guitarist is only 19.
Though the band have ventured from Leeds to London in the past, this was their first London show that sold-out prior to the date. And the band lapped up all the attention they were getting. Whilst a Clean Cut Kid audience would be comprised mostly of guitar junkies, VITAMIN’s intricate compositions made up for the lack of rough that their sound skips on.
For a young band though, one thing was abundantly clear, and that was their musicianship. VITAMIN left nothing to be desired in terms of their playing ability, and their front man had the swagger to come with that, as he was constantly goading the crowd to come closer and participate. The venue may well have only been half full at this point, but their stage presence would make you forget that.
As it was only a two-band show, next up was Clean Cut Kid. With all their merits being flaunted on a broad platform such as nationwide tours, and the occasional trip across the pond, a good delivery was always expected. Even still, the band managed to pass such high expectations.
Already, after only really being in the limelight for just a year, the band’s set was full of crowd pleasers. In fact they even opened with one of their most popular tracks, ‘Runaway’. And whilst the band left their indie-folk sound behind them, the troubadour-esque way in which, frontman, Mike Halls, interacts with the crowd is still there.
Between songs he’ll happily explain what every song is about, giving this strange feeling of intimacy to the show. His wife, and keyboard player, Evelyn Halls joins in with talking on stage, that creates this wonderful feeling of actually being a part of the band.
They run through a set of still unreleased material, new songs such as ‘We Used To Be In Love’, and some that were presumably purposely left unnamed, the band’s sound can go from a love affair with the quiet and simple sound of chord bashing straight through to guitar solos that leave the crowd, quite literally, speechless.
Clean Cut Kid announce their latest single ‘Pick Me Up’ to quite an ecstatic response, which even saw local “celebrity” Jamie Laing slip on his dancing shoes. A short wait, and an encore ensued playing an incredible rendition of the band’s b-side ‘Jean’, to which Mike Hall asked the crowd if Londoners call their grandmothers ‘Nan’.
Not for the first time during the evening the band played to a nearly silent crowd that respectfully listened to the spine tingling track. ‘Jean’ features everything Clean Cut Kid are quite simply best at, whether it be their vocal harmonies, or simple, yet, awe-inducing guitar lines.
To close the night they finished with their first release, ‘Vitamin C’ to the crowd’s approval. Whilst it was a solid ending to a very well played show, the crowd still appeared to be hungry, but their next single is surely only around the corner.
