Superfood and Bad Sounds at Dingwalls

Dingwalls, Camden was packed to the rafters as Bad Sounds took to the stage. The band, originally from Bath delivered a fresh, unique sound, blending conversational, old school hip-hop style lyrics with filthy funk-inspired bass lines and the occasional harmonica solo. Their electric stage presence had the house moving from front to back, and a stage invasion in the first five minutes of their set. Despite some technical issues the five-piece delivered anything but their name-sake.

Following on from Bad Sounds, headline act Superfood stayed true to the theme of funk. The four-piece from Birmingham went heavy on the garage-esque riffs and the almost playful Britpop lyrics. Opening with a track from new album Bambino, Where the Bass Amp? spliced fun, childish samples with a dirty bass line that really pulled the crowd in. Their record’s title, which translates from the Italian as “Little Boy” certainly reflects the group themselves; the smile on frontman Dominic Ganderton’s face was a dead giveaway that he was loving every second, as were the audience.

The youthful atmosphere continued with You Can Believe, a song from their first album in 2014, Don’t Say That. The careful balancing act these musicians pull off makes a refreshing sound that is somewhere between Britpop, garage, and funk – a unique sound but one that is excellently executed.

The smooth bass of Raindance paired with the nostalgic lyrics was certainly a down-tempo surprise, but a welcome one to be sure and certainly didn’t kill the vibe. Unstoppable, also taken from Bambino echoed tones of ska and had the room popping again. Double Dutch, on the other hand, was more of trip-hop blast from the past.

To round off their performance, Superfood, the band’s self-titled track with the lyric “You’re always hungry” left the crowd hungry for more – sadly, they’ll have to wait until February next year.

 

Connor James Ibbetson

For further information about Superfood and their new album, and future events visit here.

Watch the video for Unstoppable here: