(((O))) : Spirit of the Beehive • Cryogeyser – Boston Music Room, London

Over the course of more than a decade, Spirit of the Beehive have often been many an underground indie fan’s favourite band’s favourite band. They have been remarkably prolific, too, with five albums, three EPs, and a few digital only singles and remixes appearing out of the frothy churn of their collective mind. So, when I got off at Tufnell Park tube station and checked my ticket, I took it wholly in my stride that I was to make my way to the left-hand side of the building, to the larger venue of The Dome.

But, oh. . .  doors closed, lights off. . .  My heart sank. Had I travelled across London, but missed an update, or completely got the date wrong?  No. . .? 

I wandered to the other side, unintentionally side-stepping past the security, asking what the gig was at Downstairs at the Dome (I’m still not over the name change from Boston Music Room). Sure enough, this much smaller venue was where the Philadelphia band were playing. I had a ticket, but while being thoroughly padded down by a slightly irked security man, witnessed the gig becoming sold out, by a final two tickets being purchased on the door. Once in, and unruffled from my thorough search, I still felt discombobulated. Not this time from security, but from my own perceptions of the band I was here to see.

I quickly did some research on my phone, as, despite having loved them for a few years, I admittedly – to my shame – hadn’t been clued into the Pennsylvania indie weirdos since day one. It turned out they had never played the UK before! This fact could have gone one of two ways, of course. If you’re popular, never having played a country will likely mean large shows selling out quickly, necessitating extras dates. Small- to medium-sized and, strange enough, it might mean you still haven’t broken through in that country. Or I’m just uniquely terrible at judging how big a band might be? (Which isn’t exactly great for someone who runs a label and reviews music.)

Before Spirit of the Beehive hit the stage, they had a touring partner in the way of Cryogeyser. Supporting a brand-new album – not a debut, but self-titled nonetheless – it was a little disappointing  to see that the performance was to be solo. Despite the project long having been such, the lovely new record was recorded as a trio, and its melange of dreamy pop, shoegaze, and grunge seemed to suggest a more robust line-up was necessary. While I would still hold that to be largely true, and something I would love to witness at some point, the effortless performance and endearing stage presence of principal songwriter, Shawn Marom, was to die for.

The blissed-out songs, full of the grief of heartbreak and the joys of the simple things in equal measure, perhaps both oddly relating to and echoing off one another, were enrapturing. In between, Marom takes breaks, casually chatting to the crowd about trip-hop, Amy Winehouse and being singularly unable to tune while also talking, which makes the swelling audience rapidly warm to her set, despite many surely impatient for the headliners. Loops, thick riffs and glorious reverb-heavy vocals, a giggle at a missed high note on a cover song, and radiating a sense of simply loving being in London, travelling on tour, and playing her music to an audience largely unaware of the material was infectious. Come back soon, Shawn!  With a guest feature on the new LP from Wednesday’s Karly Hartzman (‘Mountain’) and an irresistible knack for hooks, I don’t think it will be long before Cryogeyser mark their return to British shores…

With The Windmill Brixton scene having become such a talking point in guitar-focused music circles in recent years, and having been extant in a measurable, palpable way for little over a decade, it feels as if Spirit of the Beehive – were they based in London – would fit right in there. Despite the breadth of sound on display and musicianship obvious to all, the sound of all its constituent parts could be thrown kindly into a grand industrial mixer, and what came out might sound a little like the Philadelphian’s unusual orchestration. Perhaps they’re a little more danceable in places, perhaps a little more willing to bite into a harsh metallic sound some slavish to an indie measure and sensibility may find a little harsh, and possibly too serious for the ironic bleed of South London… But on their periphery, they might have been. In this reality, they are of course American, and they have jarringly arrived in North London to enthral and showcase their purposeful cacophony.

Whatever the eschatological divination of Spirit of the Beehive, the band are keenly aware it’s their debut London gig. They play for over an hour, and while they are clearly here to support the release of their excellent 2024 record, You’ll Have to Lose Something, their set also takes in songs from three of their other four full-lengths, and two tracks from an EP besides. We are treated to a career spanning performance, effortlessly switching between instruments, moods, tones, and musical genres.

Zack Schwartz, Rivka Ravede and Corey Wichlin perform individual vocals, harmonise, and bounce off one another with aplomb, unsurprising for such a long-running band, but the professionalism and confidence they exude feels foreign in a venue like Downstairs at the Dome. It feels like a privilege to see this band rattle through an unbelievably cool and diverse set with a medium-sized. sold-out crowd in their absolute pocket. There are bursts of applause, but only enough for a hushed “thank you” every few tracks, before the audience falls silent and the band focus on their juxtaposed, schizophrenic song stylisations – moving from earnest, whispered croon, to melodramatic keys, to screamed forbearance and jamming, jazzed-out rock the next.

I have no doubt that it won’t be long before they return to London again. I’m pretty sure I won’t be redirecting myself to a smaller room. This band deserves to be playing in much larger rooms in the UK. And following this tour, they surely will.