Live: Eliza and the Bear

6th October

Ruby Lounge

4/10

Last Monday I went to the Ruby Lounge for the first time ever and quickly fell in love with the place. It’s a really cute venue, with velvet curtains and a fancy bar.  I didn’t go for a sightsee though, but instead to watch Eliza and the Bear and their support, Lisbon.

Lisbon kicked the night off well, with strong vocals, heavy drums and cyclical guitar riffs that worm their way into your psyche. Their more upbeat tracks like ‘Hustle’ sound like Little Comets fronted by Willy Moon. Honestly, I might actually have preferred them to what was to follow.

As the seemingly never-ending string of Eliza and the Bear members walked on stage, the crowd looked on, enamoured.  To kick the night off, they launched into arguably their most well-know song—that one from that Bulmers advert, also known as ‘Friends’. This was a pretty brave move and, honestly, I don’t think it paid off. Towards the end a divide was created between the die-hard fans dancing to every song and the bored people chatting in the back, who had lost interest a while ago.

There was something about the band that reminded me of watching All Time Low in my less-cool teenage years, complete with a scarily preteen-looking crowd. Like All Time Low, their songs have that quality where they are instantly recognisable, with big, repetitive choruses that were made to be sung along to. Sure some of it felt like filler, but their fans seemed to enjoy it.

Despite the energy that the band put into their set, to me it felt like a bit of a damp squib.