Saint Motel at Scala

Music lovers are probably already fans of Saint Motel, even if they don’t actually know it. The group’s saxophone-thumping hit My Type has been used in Phones 4u adverts for almost three years now in the UK. And while having your song featured on prime time television is a great achievement, last night Saint Motel showed the sold-out crowd at London’s Scala that they have so much more to offer than just one catchy jingle.

Right from the start, the Los Angeles-based musicians dazzled the audience with their brand of infectious indie pop. The emphatic Cold Cold Man had concertgoers screaming and dancing and it was only the first song.

It can normally be hard for any band to maintain such a consistently high level of energy when performing, but the Californian crooners showed no signs of backing down during the 90-minute set. Lead singer A/J Jackson carried himself with an air of cool that only Californians know how to really pull off. Along with the rest of the group, he used every inch of the stage and even jumped in with the crowd to sing the feel-good number You Can Be You.

The audience were as much observers of the show as they were an integral part of it. Jackson designated every clap, whistle and ad-lib to them and even if they didn’t know the words everyone was compelled at least to take part.

Live instruments played a huge part in the exhilarating atmosphere of the gig. Everything from a saxophone to a trumpet, and even a modest tambourine, all added an extra nuance to the cheeky and sexy Sweet Talk.

With a show jam-packed with euphoric songs and electrifying performances, the only way Saint Motel could have possibly ended the night was by going even higher. And that’s exactly what they did when they closed with the ecclesiastic Born Again, which could have easily been mistaken for a church sermon.

A band like Saint Motel is bursting at the seams with charisma and creativity, so much so that they deserve a much bigger venue than Scala to truly show themselves off. As this was their second ever gig in London let’s hope when they return they’re given both a bigger venue and larger audience, because they deserve it.

Yusuf Tamanna
Photos: Nick Bennett

For further information about Saint Motel and future events visit here.

Watch the video for Move here: