Black Country, New Road ‘Live at Bush Hall’: an orchestration of friendship, celebration, and resilience 

‘Look at us, BCNR, friends forever’, shouts the 6-piece band in the opener ‘Up Song’, as they return without frontman Isaac Wood. Wood’s departure from Black Country, New Road is not the first reshuffle the band has experienced since their debut in 2018. Indeed, when they were once known as Nervous Conditions, their then-frontman Conor Brown was accused of sexual misconduct. BCNR then emerged, buoyant, and found success in their two following albums, ‘For the First Time’, and ‘Ants From Up There’. So, when it was announced that Isaac Wood, who stunned on tracks like ‘The Place Where He Inserted the Blade’, will be departing on account of mental health issues, the band was not entirely destined for doom and gloom. Talent runs deep in the Cambridgeshire group – vocal duties are shared between members, all so individual in their sound. ‘Live at Bush Hall’, recorded over 3 days of live shows in London’s Bush Hall, proves the bands utmost adaptability and resistance.  

9 songs, 47-minutes, Live at Bush Hall has me wanting more by the end. Seriously, the FOMO from not going to one of these shows myself is killing me. Calling back to ‘Up Song’, camaraderie is at its core – the palpable passion that is felt throughout ‘Ants From Up There’ is unshaken, despite losing their (seemingly) most integral member. They’re maximalist as ever, massive orchestration sweeps Bush Hall as Tyler Hyde takes centre stage to open the show. Hyde masterfully leads 5 songs across the project, equipped with a Mitski-esque charm. ‘Laughing Song’, despite the title, is utterly soul crushing lyrically and vocally from Hyde. Her inflictions are just perfect, reading like a theatrical monologue amidst the crashing, percussive underbelly of the track. “How we laughed, you made me laugh… what does that say? When I have that accepted no one else will ever me make me laugh like that – ever again”: knife in the chest.  

Hyde is joined by Lewis Evans in ‘The Wrong Trousers’, a beautiful ode to Isaac Wood. Evans reminisces,“‘A Lot’s Gonna Change’ on a rooftop, our tune, we made something to be proud of”. The track is vulnerable, a letter of acceptance for the tumultuous change that the band underwent yet not forgetting Wood behind (referencing Weyes Blood here cuts even deeper into the wound). Evans also leads ‘Across the Pond’, a hearty song full of pomp and the theatrics of being lovestruck. Playful, ‘The Boy, is a three-chapter tale brought to us by May Kershaw and Evans, which feels like a medieval frolic in the forest.  

Fans of BCNR will be familiar with ‘Turbines/Pigs’, formerly known simply as Turbines. A piano ballad, keyboardist May Kershaw takes the reigns this time. Every second of this song evokes emotion. “Don’t waste your pearls on me, I’m only a pig”, trembles Kershaw atop the sparkling piano accompaniment, before exploding into a full, brassy, instrumental outro.  

The track is almost 10-minutes long, but we know BCNR can hold our attention with ease – take ‘Basketball Shoes’, one of the group’s most popular songs standing at 13-minutes long. The last 30 seconds of ‘Turbine/Pigs’ is, rightfully so, dedicated to the audience’s cheers and almost disbelief of such a seismic performance.  

BCNR had said that they would not perform any of their Wood-era songs live, and this is evidently not to their detriment. Live at Bush Hall proves just how talented the group are – all so characteristically distinct in their sound. From Hyde’s deadpan performance of ‘I Won’t Always Love You’ to Kershaw’s pained performance of ‘Turbines/Pigs’ (no, I won’t stop going on about this song EVER), they have demonstrated their multi-faceted abilities to deliver something so quintessentially BCNR without their frontman. The group excite me massively, with a fanbase growing rapidly, and appreciation of their work doubling upon each listen. If you haven’t already, I highly urge you to give this album a listen.  

Live at Bush Hall is out now.