Summer Camp – a band whose sound is truly symbolic of those hazy summer moments. You know the ones: lying on the beach in the sunshine breathing in the salty sea air, the nights of drinking too much strawberry cider, the smell of dew on the grass carried by that gentle evening breeze and the taste of that sweet summer crush on your lips. All of that wrapped up in a strong American 80s vibe with a modern British twist is the brilliance of Summer Camp and what proves them to be so amazingly addictive.
My addiction has grown somewhat within only a few hours as Gemma (the best friend) and I had the joy of watching them perform live last night at The Rainbow in Birmingham. It wasn’t a massive venue with the biggest crowd which to me was an added bonus. Intimate gigs are always the best and you leave buzzing and feeling privileged that you’ve experienced something wonderful with only a small group of others.
The level of talent radiating from the band was immediately obvious as they began their first song Welcome To Condale. The singing duet consists of quirky Jeremy Warmsley and the beautiful Elizabeth Sankey, also an engaged duet off stage who clearly posses a love for one another which cannot be hidden and is shared during their performance. Both own incredible voices; powerful and complementary to one another and when combined creates a sound like no other. This was proved further when performing songs acoustically; walking through the crowd at one point singing Losing My Mind with only Jeremy’s guitar which they dedicated to Spencer- one can only assume someone they hold close to their hearts as the importance of that dedication seemed to overwhelm Elizabeth and the crowd as a soft ambience spread amongst us whilst we softly sang along. That was another fantastic thing about their gig; the raw emotion behind their songs, something which seems easily lost in translation in today’s music as record companies attempt to create that popular song that everyone will love. But they’ve managed to keep it real and have a given their art a meaning which is what music should be about. The reason why this works so well is not only because of their obvious talent but due to their personalities too. Both are confident yet personable and quick witted, with Elizabeth cracking out several lines in response to some hecklers which had the crowd cheering for her.
Now I can’t write about the band without mentioning their session drummer Will Bowerman: the hotty who sits behind that dazzling drum set and got some amazing moments to steal the thunder and explode the songs into overdrive. When Elizabeth introduced him he seemed somewhat modest, in keeping with the band’s seemingly humble personality. The stage set-up was good, featuring a screen in the background playing clips from those 80s classics such as Footloose (a nice emphasis on the retro vibe) which meant the band was pretty much in a line and we could see everyone. I always feel sorry for the drummers who are usually stuck at the back, almost forgotten about when it’s their sound which completely changes the feeling of a song and is an important touch which ties it all together.
To sum up, it was an absolutely amazing gig which has sky- rocketed Summer Camp to the top spot amongst my favourite bands. As they tour around the globe this year I suspect the addiction will spread and we will see them rise to success with the potential to becoming the music scene’s benchmark for breakthrough talent.
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