Been Stellar: Scream from Brudenell, LDS
Late as per. I march furiously down Hyde Park Road on my path to Brudenell Social Club, my footsteps mimicking the beat of the pulsating rainfall. Cars stream by, spewing water back at me
in protest of my appropriation of their drive. There’s something artistic about the damp
November night. Not artistic like the techno-jazz fusion project some guy at a pretentious
cocktail bar told you he’s conducting out of his student home basement, artistic like the
contemporary cacophony of a bustling New York City street. Like the New York City streets that
have inspired the alt-rock troupe Been Stellar. Convoluted analogies aside, there’s a beauty to be
seen in trudging through the maze that is Hyde Park, undeterred by rainfall, motivated by a
craving for live music. A craving for music that has been ever-growing since my recent
overindulgence at Live at Leeds in the City, a craving that had left my heart empty and my ears
bereft, a craving that Been Stellar were ready to satisfy.
That was the night’s objective, New York’s latest passion project Been Stellar. No- not the bloke
from Zoolander, although likeness to the name has been recognized by the band themselves,
Been Stellar are an alt-rock/indie/dream-pop/shoegazey/god why are there so many damn
genres??? five-piece band fighting out of New York City. Touring their debut album Scream
from New York, NY released this June, the five-piece have touched ground in the UK and after
being given the chance to see them live I snapped my editor’s hand off. Been Stellar by name
Been Stellar by nature, as my listening experience of them thus far has been well… Stellar, but
could they do it on a cold, rainy night in Leeds?
Trading New York for Yorkshire, the Manhattan musicians stood tall on the hallowed Brudenell
community room stage, the famed golden ribbons as their backdrop. The crowd filled the room,
initially far from rowdy, standing stagnant and proud with their pints of iridescent fluid. Their
stale demeanour would eventually fall, but Stellar had their work cut out for them. The band’s
entrance was subdued, reserved, quietly confident. They needed no party tricks nor guises to
make their point. They simply launched into their tightly crafted set, knowing they had
something special.
This tightness gave a crisp live edge to their brilliant music, accentuating the terrific roughness
of their sound, dragging in the static crowd for early songs ‘Passing judgement’ and the title
track of their debut Scream from New York, NY. There is a wonderful dread Been Stellar’s
music creates. There’s this giddy anxiety that arises in the pit of your stomach from Slocum’s
harsh lead vocals crashing against the gritty racket the entire band creates. You hang on to every
word, every note, every growl down the microphone. The raw and rowdy melodies build and
build, trepidatious yet intoxicating, and then; nil. The respite brings clarity and the grip is
relinquished, leaving you grief-stricken over the tunes that once were, mimicking the snarky
past-tense nature of the band’s name all too well.
‘Manhattan Youth’ provided a lovely levity, a welcome exception to this rule. After the barrage of
the opening songs, the bouncier and more vibrant track was the final nail in shattering the
audience’s stoic facade, freeing them to bask in the sound. Guards were lowered and Been
Stellar had the crowd in the palm of their hand, without the need to muddy the set with
speeches between songs as so many bands do. Whilst I do typically enjoy the musical fourth wall break that is artists waffling to the crowd, I didn’t miss it with Been Stellar, leaving their
presence shrouded in their music only added to their tight, precise and premium sounding set.
In the metaphorical toolbox of artists, there is arguably no handier tool than understanding how
to craft a set list and knowing the lull would arrive not long after the halfway point, the
American quintet course corrected and pulled out a stretch of more dream-pop infused
numbers. Personal favourites of mine ‘Pumpkin’ and ‘Takedown’ were standouts, receiving a
very Northern, “they really are cracking these mon” from my journalistic partner in crime (my
sister who fancied a cheeky Monday night Brude trip). Welcome to England my friends.
Having caged the beast long enough, the five-piece unleashed their heavier sound to ring around
the rafters as they closed their show. ‘I Have the Answer’ drew what was a definitively Stellar live
performance to a close (semantic satiation has fully gotten a hold of stellar now my apologies). I
re-emerged onto the dreary Hyde Park streets, heart filled, ears ringing and musical cravings
perfectly satisfied. Been Stellar, you are thanked for your service! And reader, you are
encouraged to listen to the New York phenoms as soon as bloody possible.
Words by Dan Brown.
