Last seen on the cover of the NME draped in England’s red and white, The Libertine’s best mate Johnny Borrell and his band Razorlight have been the focus of the much fabled media ‘buzz’ which swarms around bands or artists that displays that extra special sparkle, pre-empting their heady trip to stardom before they’ve really earned it. Indeed, the buzz around Razorlight has now taken off as a force of it’s own, spreading at a rate of epidemic, forcing people into a sweaty flush of excitement as they wait anxiously for the release of their debut album (now due out for June 28th). Today, however, marks the release of their excellent third single ‘Golden Touch’, which, although not quite serving as a full antidote, does manage to temporarily repress the contagious rabid desires many people are quietly harbouring in anticipation for the full LP. To celebrate, Johnny treated fans to an intimate acoustic set in the basement of Covent Garden’s Fopp, with the rest of the band turning up for the final songs.
The band’s floppy haired front man has already made a small reputation for himself as an obnoxious, bolshy, wholly arrogant, yet ultimately very talented rock-star in the making, previously claiming that, amongst other things, he was greater than Bob Dylan. However, in the wake of all his self-assured promotion, subsequent interviews have slowly picked away at this pompous image to reveal a much more sensitive, thoughtful, wholly charming and ultimately very talented musician beneath, that today’s performance dutifully reflects. Armed only with the acoustic guitar, the crowd are hushed as he recounts musical tales of love and loss and happiness and hardship, which subtly ooze a genuine modesty and heart-wrenching honesty. Everyone here is familiar with the band’s capability to rock hard as a four piece so it is genuinely enriching to witness the music performed unplugged, devoid of all the glamorous bombast that playing electrically can sometimes inflict.
It's interesting to note that despite the album not being out for two weeks, the majority of the enraptured crowd sing along to every sacred syllable their idol utters, alluding more to a religious hymn recital than a raucous rock and roll event. Oh, the power of the download. After his hollowed-out, solo rendition of ‘Up All Night’, Johnny gives a beckoning nod and miraculously the other three members of the band appear to rapturous applause, adding a fret more intensity to the final two tracks, ‘In The City’ & ‘Golden Touch’, which cause a surge of people to push even closer to the infinitesimally small stage upon which they stand.
Suddenly the excitement cools and fifty minutes after it’d begun, it’s over. People hang around to chat with the band and get a few things signed as DIY leaves the basement and returns to daylight, safe in the knowledge we may have witnessed the best new band of 2004. Their debut album, ‘Up All Night’, could, with a bit of luck, become the summer’s essential purchase, and with the tragic, inevitable demise of The Libertines, Razorlight might just usurp the title of the most exciting band in UK rock.
ThisIsFakeDIY