Where better to thaw from this bitter winter than within the salty four walls of the Lexington on a Thursday night. Last night, despite below freezing temperatures outside, Londoners squeezed into the Islington boozer for a gig well worth braving the cold for.
Part of Line of Best Fit’s Five Day Forecast, the show was opened by rising star, alt-indie artist Luce Rushton; followed by eclectic, genre-defying six-piece, Blue Bendy, and headlined by buzzy Nottingham newcomers, Divorce.
Existing somewhere between grunge and country, the quartet of 20-somethings brought together a rich mix of generations, with many of the loudest sing-a-long-ers being older, pint-clutching gentlemen. They opened softly with melancholy track, Sex & The Millennium Bridge, before shifting gears and turning up the anger for Pretty, as well as The Birds.
"This is the most full we’ve seen this room – and we’ve played it quite a few times," declared co-vocalist and bassist Tiger Cohen-Towell, who shone centre-stage, sporting a pearlescent Adidas corset.
Between songs, band members took turns regaling the crowd with anecdotes while the others scurried in the background prepping for the next track. Although hilarious – and not necessarily to their disservice – filling every silence meant leaving any kind of mystique at the door. We even got the lowdown on the best Korean chicken in north London.
For a band named Divorce, the harmonies of lead singers Cohen-Towell and Felix Mackenzie-Barrow were wed to one another in complete synchronicity. This is a band that knows themselves, their sound, and one another, inside out. Cohen-Towell’s voice in particular captivated the room, filling the space with guttural arias that deliberately cracked at their crescendo.
They played for 50 minutes, though it felt more like five. Towards the end of their set, they asked for quiet to perform the acoustic version of That Hill, before erupting into their addictive, jig-inducing hit, Checking Out.
The only improvement this show needed was more voices from the crowd chanting furiously along with them. Like onlookers watching a therapy session unfold, next time we’ll be ready to ride the emotional highs and lows of Divorce.
