You should have heard the collective squeal-scream (Screal? Definitely not ‘squeam’ though) of fans during last May’s Wanderland Music and Arts Festival when Karpos Multimedia announced Bombay Bicycle Club’s performance for July. It was the same screal–with more applause this time–that reverberated throughout the World Trade Center
when the award-winning English indie rock band gave their Filipino fans enough reason to venture to the venue through a monsoon evening. Almost needless to say, it was the fans’ energy that made frontman Jack Steadman gush out: “I haven’t been to a country where were greeted with such love.” That’s how we are here, gentlemen.

After a spirited opener from rising local act She’s Only Sixteen, Bombay Bicycle Club started smooth with hits “It’s Alright Now”, “Shuffle,” and “Come To”. The band seemed to pattern their set to a fevered dream. They shifted from the pounding “Evening/Morning” (notably, where bassist Ed Nash was treated with full-on spotlight treatment during the short bass guitar break before the second verse), to the pleasantly cruising “Luna,” to the South Asian-inspired “Feel,” to the dynamic oscillations of “Whenever, Wherever,” “Always Like This” and set ender “So Long, See You Tomorrow”. The encore composed of “What If” and “Carry Me” drew out Bombay Bicycle Club’s raw power, a fitting end to a spectacularly produced show. Without taking away anything from Liz Lawrence’s superb backing vocal work for the band, only the presence of album collaborators Lucy Rose (a recent personal favorite, thanks to her Wanderland showing) and/or Rae Morris would have made Bombay Bicycle Club’s Metro Manila performance more perfect.

More Bombay Bicycle Club Live in Manila Photos

* Special Thanks to Karpos Multimedia

View and Listen to the Bombay Bicycle Club Live in Manila Setlist as a Spotify Playlist at https://play.spotify.com/user/12136315233/playlist/7aZFfMlBLMosQg50kByirU

Words and Photos by Peter Tolibas