In many ways, Omeara, Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons’ new venue in SE1, is the perfect environment in which to hear The Horrors. Like them, it’s dark, gothy and a magnet for a trendier-than-thou clientele.
Yet last night’s commanding performance was also a reminder of why Faris Badwan & Co have long since graduated to playing much bigger spaces than this.
After unpromising beginnings, when The Horrors seemed nought but hype and ambitious haircuts, the Southend five-piece have received a Mercury nomination for 2009’s Primary Colours and broken the top 10 with their latest two records: 2011’s Skying and 2014’s Luminous. When they release their next record, V, in September, they’ll do so as one of Britain’s premier purveyors of garage-rock. Machine, the lead single from the forthcoming record, got things off to a flying start. Built on pneumatic beats and Badwan’s sonorous vocals, it had all the hallmarks of a future favourite.
Accompanied by more strobe lighting than a night at the nearby Ministry of Sound, they continued with the echo-laden guitar and woozy synths of Sea Within a Sea — part Joy Division, part Talking Heads.
Dividing the hour-long set between old favourites, such as Still Life, and hitherto unheard songs, The Horrors reminded us of their past while providing thrilling snapshots of their future — one in which the rooms will get bigger and bigger.
