Issue 153

Bees create a buzz...

26th February 2007

You might know them as 'that band from the car advert', but to dismiss The Bees in that manner would simply be unfair. As they set upon a nationwide tour to promote their forthcoming album, Octopus, Swansea's Sin City was blessed to be able to stage what proved to be an awesome display of what The Bees are truly capable of.

Having opened the tour up in Wrexham the night before, the band kept it Welsh for the second night of what is to be a fourteen-date tour. The night opened with brilliant support from the soulful Candie Payne, whose Sixties-influenced brand of indie-pop set the night up perfectly.

Payne, incidentally, is both sister to a member of The Zutons and a member of The Stands. With an confident, understated performance that did much to impress a healthy crowd at Sin City, the stage was set for the feature attraction to walk on and immediately soak up the enthusiastic reception that awaited them. Opening with Wash in the Rain, the Isle of Wight band immediately imposed themselves on the audience, greeted with a surge of people towards the stage like moths towards a shining light that had that instant been turned on.

With the opening song out of the way, it gave license for the band to air some of the newer material that will be found on Octopus. Embracing styles that defined their previous two albums, The Bees' have sought to refine their sound into what they see as a complete sound. Taking elements from a wide variety of genres, including reggae, ska and world music, the crowd - that had drawn people from all over South Wales - showed an appreciative reception for new songs such as Left Foot Stepdown, Listening Man, and new single Who Cares What The Question Is? that will appear on Octopus.

Amongst the new material, the band almost casually threw in some of their more well-known tracks, just as Jamie Oliver would casually throw an onion into his latest dish. One thing that does strike you about The Bees, especially when hearing tracks such as One Glass of Water and Horsemen is that they seem to be a band that have always been waiting in the wings, but never properly embraced as they perhaps ought to have been. That said, the band seem unfazed by it and are confident that Octopus could be the album that really makes The Bees known in much wider circles than they currently are.

In a pulsating set that lasted over three quarters of an hour, the setlist was dominated by newer tracks but that was to be expected. The ease at which older material sat alongside the newer tracks was just as impressive. One of the night's highlights, however, was an epic, euphoric rendition of Free The Bees' instrumental, The Russian.

The constant shuffling amongst the band between instruments also serves to bewilder you if only for the sheer talent possessed by each member of the band. Lead singer, Paul Butler, for example, managed to switch between guitar and drums, trumpet and keyboards throughout the set, whilst other members also boarded the instrument merry-goround to awesome effect.

As the set drew to a close with airings of the delightfully charming A Minha Menina, and the anarchic Chicken Payback, it just wasn't enough for the demanding crowd who were treated to a brief encore before the band disappeared into The Kingsway night. The Bees may not indulge in frantic flying-V kicks and radical sloganeering, but that doesn't mean their music is any less credible, or enjoyable. In fact, it would be hard to argue that when it comes to a stageshow, The Bees' enthusiasm for what they are doing, and their own self-belief puts them in a class of their own as a band that are buzzing their way to the top.

Pete Hayman