The Boxer Rebellion. Liverpool Barfly. 20th January 2008

So it’s been quiet on the Rebellion front for a while…
Having released their 8 track album sampler in January 2006, as follow up to “Exits”, two years on the fella’s are still here. Continuing their mission to grip you with their stunning presence and sound, rather than joining thousands of others who become victims of short-lived commercialism, TBR are more concerned with finding the right kind of record deals, and a good home/foundation for the second record.
Most importantly, this mini tour seeing stops at: London, Glasgow and of course Liverpool, is a beacon of light that the fight and the music has never been more alive; an important message for dedicated fans.
Being somewhat an underground band based in London, unfortunately most of The Rebellion’s gigs take place in that area; leaving places such as The Midlands deprived of seeing what potential and promise this epic quartet holds.
From a personal point of view, tonight’s performance was a journey of sonic sounds and emotion; having not been to one of their gigs in almost three years, since they last played at Stoke Sugarmill, having got a slot on the Jim Beam Tour in March 2005.
Having closely followed the band since the beginning and since the last time I had the privilege of seeing them, I must have dreamt of this moment a thousand times; envisaging their development, their aura and the beautiful sound waves. I was practically on the edge of my seat for the entire of the hour and a half coach trip there. A part of me was also scared. Scared that I’d forgotten what made this band so special and unique to me, only surviving on video footage and other fan’s photos from London and European dates, posted on their message board up until tonight. But all was not forgotten.
Despite it being a dark, murky and wet Liverpool, it did set the scene quite compellingly and romantically. The Barfly, tucked away in a corner of Liverpool was cunning in letting impatient fans wait outside just a little bit longer than promised, building up a huge, buzzing atmosphere. 20, Maybe 30 of us outside stood talking of them, their website, the “wicked like” debut album Exits, and the orientation of the band, (though one guy mistook Todd for Nathan when telling his mate about the band, I managed to refrain however from correcting him. Having no cigarette smoke to blow into the Mersey night air, I felt I would look too much of a fool and not rock ‘n’ roll enough to go over and elaborate on the details), I saved my excitement for inside. It was like a first date after all this time, yearning to see them, butterflies in the stomach…
The Barfly is a small and intimate venue, perfect for The Rebellion; they’re not destined for the Stadiums of the world, as their music has an embracing effect of hitting out at you at a personal level, something which would be lost if leaping to mega stardom. A nice amount of people were also in tonight which created an ambience to compliment their music.
Then here it was…after three years. A completely haunting and fascinating set and my God was it good! Big drum poundings from Piers, melodic guitars, and singer Nathan Nicholson’s caressing of sounds and the microphone was superb! Hitting off with (vinyl only) recently released single “Evacuate”, which sounds fucking massive on record alone; those rip-roaring riffs from Todd Howe just made the whole night.
Old gems from Exits were unleashed as well as surprising the audience with their old B-side “These Walls are Thin” and they charmingly dedicated “Soviets” to the fans in the house.
And that’s what it’s all about. You know they’re past proving their devotion and commitment, tonight proved that regardless of everything else, they’re in it for the fans. They have great juxtaposition of being graceful, yet enforcing in sound, drawing you in with their wistful, stomping, alternative rock, but to be honest you can never put you’re finger on just what their magical quality is. And that’s part of the mystery, the performance, The Rebellion. However, maybe it was just me, but it was a short set, approximately 40 minutes, not enough to satisfy my craving of 3 years!
Definitely check this band out. Even if their music isn’t your cup of tea, you HAVE to see this band purely for their aura. Their talent, ambition and sound are utterly unbelievable. That alone will leave you jaw dropped, despite the astounding fact that not enough fuss is made of them.
Their journey and history is intriguing enough, never mind their material, and tonight’s short set in some respects didn’t do them justice of showing how talented they are. We wanted more TBR. Before us tonight stood a true band that’s faced it all, and truth and defiance lies within their musical vendetta. So, being truly amazing and seeing them affirm their promise and delights in store with album two, there was only one last thing to remember…Don’t leave it three years until I get my next Boxer fix!