Indie rockers Razorlight returned to familiar ground last night in Camden. Johnny Borrell and Andy Burrows took to the stage for a stripped-back performance at London’s Barfly, marking nearly 25 years since the band first played the venue.
The pair’s performance came ahead of Razorlight’s forthcoming UK tour, which will see the band’s classic line-up play their self-titled album in full. It also puts the Camden venue in the spotlight as Radio X’s X-Posure Live returns there as a monthly event.
The stripped-back show featured hits including America, In The Morning and Before I Fall To Pieces. They also played a number of crowd-pleasers from the first album era, including Stumble And Fall, and fan-favourite deep cut, Don’t Go Back To Dalston.
While the pair might be preparing for a huge anniversary tour– including a show at London’s OVO Arena Wembley–Borrell admitted he never expected to be playing to rooms any bigger than the Barfly.
Speaking to Radio X’s John Kennedy afterwards, he said: “That was just a fantasy. When I formed Razorlight, it was the idea of doing exactly this; putting on a show that was fun and wasn’t dragging, and wasn’t boring.” And last night’s show certainly wasn’t.
While it looked a little different than their usual shows, the pair seemed in their element. The intimate setting suited them, and the duo comfortably worked through requests from the crowd, unfazed by slight technical issues at the beginning.
Light-heartedly treating the evening as a warm-up for their upcoming Wembley show, they called out “Thank you, Wembley!” and encouraged the audience to clap in unison. The arena-sized enthusiasm was there, even if the room was considerably smaller.
But the size of the stage makes little difference to Borrell. He told Kennedy: “I approach every show exactly the same, whether I’m in a small room like this, or a big place, and I never know what’s going to happen.”
He added: “Honestly, thank you guys; that was an incredibly beautiful reception. That was my favourite show of the year so far.”
Borrell wore his famous white trousers for the occasion and offered the crowd an explanation of how they had returned to his wardrobe. He said they had been found in his attic and recently resewn after a wardrobe malfunction.
Razorlight’s UK tour begins in Glasgow on November 26. The classic line-up will perform the band’s self-titled album in its entirety, making the record the focus of the upcoming run.
A headline show at London’s OVO Arena Wembley is scheduled for December 4.
