Asobi Seksu at ICA

Last week would have been huge had I been able to see Black Kids on Wednesday at KOKO. Additionally, it would have been the first time I’ve been to back-to-back gigs at two separate venues. Sadly, due to unforeseen circumstances, I was not able to go.

At the least, I was able to see Asobi Seksu the following day.

Asobi Seksu would have been a band I’ve seen last year but for some reason I gave second thoughts as to buying tickets and let the event pass by. This became a decision I really regretted everytime a track from their two albums came up on my playlist.

Last week’s event was to be held at the Institute of Contemporary Arts (ICA) which is smack in the middle of London right along The Mall. It is a museum with exhibition halls, a few cinemas and a theatre for live music.

Like always, I was early but unlike other events, I did not have to queue outside the venue to get in which is a welcome surprise. After claiming my tickets, I roamed around the open exhibits and watched a few videos upstairs.

At exactly 7:30, the doors to the theatre opened and I leisurely walked in surrendering my ticket at the entrance. Yes. Surrendered and all I got was a stamp on the hand.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

At other venues, they usually tore off a portion of the ticket and then let you in with no stamps. Then again, most venues did not allow readmission as everything you need, food, drinks, and toilets are within the concert hall as well.

With ICA, the bar and toilets were outside the theatre. Sadly, this means I do not have anything from Asobi Seksu to pin to my wall.

When I got in, there was still hardly anyone around so I found my own corner and sat down. A random guy did start a random conversation to burn the time while waiting for the support band. This guy was able to Asobi Seksu last year.

Grabbed a pint (they had Becks on tap!) and when I got back, the lights finally dimmed and the support band, Sennen, came up on stage.

Sennen is an English indie band with shoegaze roots. They sounded pretty good and are one of the best support bands I’ve seen. The played an interesting set which kept the crowd on our feet.

Once they were done, band techs started clearing things up on stage and finished around 9:00. At around 9:10, Asobi Seksu finally came on stage.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

First of, Yuki is quite short but had high platform boots which gave her an extra boost on stage. I was quite close to the stage but close to the right side with the right subs blasting straight into my ear.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

Since it has been a week since the event, I can hardly remember what the first song was. It was most likely a new one which would explain why. As such, I am grabbing the setlist from their Last.fm event page as posted by schmeep.

• Sing Tomorrow’s Praise
• Strawberries
• Me & Mary
• Meh no Mae
• In the Sky
• Thursday
• Gliss
• Transparence
• Familiar Light
• Blind Little Rain
• Pink Cloud Tracing Paper
• Red Sea (encore)
• New Years (encore)

At first glance, I would have hated this setlist as it contains 8 songs from the new album which came out a few days before this gig. However, the band played with such intensity that the new songs really made an impression and of course, they started sounding real familiar.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

Of course, what really rocked my socks off were the old songs. Strawberries set the mood for the evening which they played after a new song for their opening. Thursday, which is one of my favourites, brought a smile and tear to my eye. Then there’s the encore, which had Red Sea and New Years which was quite epic especially with the part were Yuki went manic with the drums on stage.

I was hoping there would have been more old songs as I am more familiar with them. Also, a bit more singing from James Hanna would have been nice.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

Still, it was a very enjoyable and fun gig at a venue which is not so crowded as other dedicated music halls.

As for band merch, I run out of the shirt I fancied because I waited until the end of the show to buy one so I settled for an acoustic recording of the band.

Normally, this is where my blog post on a gig night would end, but the walk back to the Piccadilly Station needs to be mentioned.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

It has been ages since I’ve been in Central London and longer still since it was at night. The walk from ICA to Lower Regent Street to Piccadilly Station was quite a delight with all the lights making the old buildings glow. Walking past them made me feel great about being in London and how I haven’t appreciated living here much. I will now try to explore London as much as I can and not only go into Central London when there is a gig.

From Asobi Seksu at ICA

~ by stingeyes on February 27, 2009.