Bob Vylan are a punk rap duo from London who ripped onto the music scene in 2017, and have been making waves at gigs and festivals ever since. You might not hear them on the radio much, because there’s still some music that upsets advertisers, but that doesn’t make them not one of the most important bands to form in the last decade. And when the drizzle and drain of a Monday night does not deter a gig from being utterly electric, you know it’s been a good one...
But first, the support: to kick off the night we had Panic Shack, a band I’ve been lucky enough to see three times this year. Initially I thought this fiery, fun five piece from Cardiff was an unlikely pairing for a Bob Vylan gig, but it soon clicked - in the same way that Vylan explores the identity of being a modern Black British man, Panic Shack brings a vitally fresh female perspective to British music. Songs such as I don't want to hold your baby, Who's got my lighter?, and The Ick are filled with amusing and tenacious lyrics, and singer Sarah 'Hardbeats' Harvey kept up some great show-womanship for the 45 minute set, with a relentless power in her voice (and avery pleasing Welsh accent).
Watching the crowd warm to them was particularly fun - I wasn’t sure if people looked a bit wary at first considering the slight clash of genres - but as they powered through the set, with synchronised guitar dances and obviously having a great time themselves on stage, the audience was won over. Afterwards in the smoking area I was pleased to hear a group of lads gushing about how great they were and desperately Googling their name.
Fun, heavy, witty, loud - Panic Shack are everything I want from a band in 2023.
Next up, London rapper Kid Bookie, who I wasn’t familiar with, but has been producing music since 2014. Backed by a full band, Bookie brought a nu-metal rap sound, and having previously worked with artists such as D-12, Fred Durst and Corey Taylor, there was a clear nostalgia for the early noughties, including covers of Slipknot and Radiohead’s Creep.
Bookie’s high energy performance encouraged a good old mosh pit, which carried on for the rest of the night, and his statement that the night was a ‘celebration of living’ seemed to resonate with the crowd, who by now were having a pretty high-spirited Monday night.
After Kid Bookie, as we waited for Bob Vylan to hit the stage, I was amused by the choice of interim music: Ol' Dirty Bastard, Jamie T, ABBA… It was an odd hodgepodge of genres. The penny eventually dropped when I heard Bobby Vylan’s voice dropping in over ABBA’s Money Money Money and I realised the playlist had been cleverly curated with a particular cash coveting connection.
And now, for Bob Vylan. A much needed powerhouse on the UK music scene right now, who perfectly reflect the undercurrent of anger and apathy running through Britain.
While it hits heavy, a Bob Vylan show is never just about the music. “We’ll start as we always do, with some meditation and light stretching,” frontman Bobby instructed as he took the stage, before the wall of heavy distorted guitar kicked in. Instead, Bob Vylan is a call to arms, dropping conversation, politics, humour and storytelling into a musical fury that feels like a great release when in the audience.
A big part of Vylan’s work is exploring what Britishness is for people who don't look white; a second or third generation of Black British people who have repeatedly experienced othering in the homeland they have always known. Songs like We Live Here and I Heard You Want Your Country Back present a well-justified rage towards this discrimination, while ruminating on what exactly makes Britain great. Other themes, of systemic poverty, toxic masculinity, and the economic inequality that has mushroomed over the past thirteen years, are just as vital, with tracks such as GDP and recent single He’s a Man eloquently playing with these issues.
Along with several amusing onstage quips (“They call us the Fred Perry Mafia - respect the wreath!”) Bobby lightheartedly encouraged the audience to get the security working by crowdsurfing. I don’t know how many sweaty, shirtless men those security guards got passed throughout that ninety minutes, but it was a lot. There were also more thoughtful moments however, such as asking the male heavy mosh pit to allow space for women and non-binary folk at the front, and a heartened, powerful speech against the current genocide in Palestine.
But within all of this political furor the vibes are affable. There is no detriment in sound or force from being a two piece (Bobby Vylan on vocals and Bobbie Vylan on drums, with the guitar and other musical parts played through a backing track) and the sounds from the stage were infectious, heavy and catchy too.
“If we can do this, you can do anything.” Bobby said at one point. “When we first started making music we thought, ‘who’s going to listen to punk rock music made by two black guys with no guitar on stage?’ ...Well here we are.” And I’m really, really glad Bob Vylan are here. For the sounds and the fury, this is a band we need in 2023.
Bob Vylan performed at Rock City on 20 November 2023
We have a favour to ask
LeftLion is Nottingham’s meeting point for information about what’s going on in our city, from the established organisations to the grassroots. We want to keep what we do free to all to access, but increasingly we are relying on revenue from our readers to continue. Can you spare a few quid each month to support us?
