Bombay Bicycle Club sets first Manila show

FROM LEFT: Ed Nash, Jamie MacColl, Jack Steadman, Suren de Saram

Jack Steadman, who fronts the English indie band Bombay Bicycle Club, has a constant itch for new sounds. Sticking to a single style of music, he found, bores him and his band mates.

“If you don’t change what you’ve been doing, there’s  no point,” he told the Inquirer in a phone interview. Each of Bombay’s four records (the group was formed in 2005) evoke wildly contrasting vibes.

There’s the buoyant, if typical, indie rock debut offering “I Had the Blues but I Shook Them Loose” (2009); the folksy  “Flaws” (2010); the danceable “A Different Kind of Fix” (2011); the electronica-laden “So Long, See You Tomorrow” (2014).

“When you’re on tour, you’re [bound to] discover new things,” said the vocalist, who writes all of Bombay’s songs and sings them in a quavery croon. “When you come back, you have all these different ideas.”

In the lull in between the band’s third and fourth albums, the London-based musician traveled to the Netherlands, Turkey and India. A fascination with Bollywood laid the ground for “Feel,” a new single.

Known for the hits “Shuffle,” “Luna” and “Always Like This,” Bombay Bicycle Club—Steadman, Jamie MacColl (guitar), Suren de Saram (drums) and Ed Nash (bass)—is Philippine-bound for the first time to hold a concert on July 23 at the World Trade Center in Pasay City. Tickets to the show mounted by Karpos Multimedia, are available at all SM Ticket outlets (call 4702222).

From the Inquirer’s recent phone interview with Steadman:

It will be the band’s first time in the Philippines.

We’re very excited. I’ve heard a lot about the country from Lucy Rose (English singer-songwriter), who was there in May (For the 2014 Wanderland Music and Arts and Festival). She had a wonderful time.

Are you surprised that you have quite a following here?

It’s always amazing when we go somewhere new and people know every word to our every song. We like going to the stands after we perform to talk to the fans, ask what we should be doing—where to go,  what  to eat.

How did your travels to India and Turkey influence your latest album, “So Long, See You Tomorrow?”

I spent one month in Mumbai—writing songs in a studio, doing a lot of record shopping, [mostly] Indian pop music because I fell in love with Bollywood. I used the sounds as springboards; when something grabbed my attention, I wrote a song to it. That’s how it happened with “Feel.”

In Turkey, I stayed for three weeks with a family in the middle of nowhere, a quiet place. They kind of adopted me, taking me wherever they went. [But] I had a room to myself where I could just write songs.

Would you therefore say that your fourth album is the most complex?

We put a lot of care into it because we had a clear idea of how it should sound. We worked with a couple of producers, but it was hard for us to be satisfied. That’s why it took the longest time to complete.

Wouldn’t constantly changing your sound make it harder for audiences to latch on to your music?

Yeah, many would find it difficult. But the fans who have stayed with us for years find something consistent, something they connect with.

Which of your songs would you recommend to a first-time listener?

“How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep,” because it has all the aspects of what we do, like the traditional, almost folk-like opening melodies.

You have very interesting, quirky music videos. Do you have a hand in those?

Only the one for “Feel”; the others, we stayed away from because music videos are not our specialty. We just get many talented people to work with us.

We work with different people. There’s this friend of ours, Anna Ginsburg, who has worked on three of our videos—“How Can You Swallow So Much Sleep,” “Luna” and “Carry Me.”

A lot of indie bands fizzle out after a few songs. How do you stay afloat?

You just need good songs, and stay fresh and exciting.

(E-mail [email protected])

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MEN OF MANILA

Men of Manila

Men of Manila is a group of young men, 16 to 25 years old, from different parts of the Philippines, the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Favorite songs in their repertoire are top hits and pop classics.

Men of Manila will hold its first concert on July 26 at the Music Museum. For tickets, sponsorships and bookings, call Jun Isidro (0918-7383364).

‘Best Seat in the House’

Rony Fortich and friends Bituin Escalante, Audie Gemora, Cris Villonco, Red Concepcion, Menchu Lauchengco-Yulo and Michael Williams, will perform in “Best Seat in the House” on July 26, 8 p.m., at Teatrino in Greenhills. Call Teatrino (7212949), Stages (8181111) or TicketWorld (8919999).