Live Review: Jinjer - Camden Underworld, London 20/11/2017
Heralding from Ukraine, Jinjer had a nine-day stint this side of mainland Europe. With two dates in Dublin and Limerick already complete – the band started the British leg of the tour in London’s Camden Underworld. Three supports, From Sorrow to Serenity, A Trust Unclean and Karybdis warmed up the crowd before Jinjer took to the stage.
For a long time, I considered Camden Underworld to be one of the smallest venues that I knew. Seeing it tonight, it’s a great deal bigger than I remember; allegedly 400 tickets have already sold so I’m confident that the room will fill up quickly.
Karybdis’ scrims adorn the stage and are very quickly accompanied by the band themselves. Local lads, they’re conversational with the crowd, flinging around banter like family. Quickly glancing around from my second row vantage point, the room already appears full. Blast beats and blinding guitar licks make for an impressive set that ends with a quick nod to their upcoming appearance at Techabilitation the following weekend.
A Trust Unclean are also friendly with the crowd, at least to begin with. A false-start with their backing track gets laughed off and the second attempt gets things rolling. Despite having a stand-in drummer for this show, they gel as a group really well and evidently begin to enjoy themselves. Guitarist Mikey’s hair spins and ever-ridiculous facial expressions, along with the guitar wizardry is truly impressive. Frontman Kyle’s vocals are equally mind-bogglingly quick. Fun.
From Sorrow To Serenity take all the energy already amassed by the crowd and turn it into pure, violent hate. FSTS are heavy in a different way than the other bands. Less heavy metal, more djent, groove and doom/sludge. The Glaswegian 4-piece are ruthless and the pits that open up reflect that. Easily the least photographer-friendly lighting of the whole bill so far, the band power through a hectic and ruthless set that sets the stage for the headliner.
Fronted by songstress Tatiana, Jinjer are a force to be reckoned with. Fusing hardcore, progressive metal and even elements of jazz and funk, the band causes the crowd to surge. A pit (large by the Underworld’s standards anyway) opens and ridiculousness ensues. Tatiana is in absolute control of her voice, moving from harsh screams to the most angelic of cleans with apparent ease. They open with their most popular tracks, “Who’s Gonna Be The One”, “Words Of Wisdom” and “I Speak Astronomy”, which are promptly followed by “Sit, Stay, Roll Over” and “Pisces”. A euphoric crowd (which FILLS the venue) sings and screams back the words. For the band’s first show on British soil – this is a resounding success – the final applause sees Tatiana get quite emotional. Engulfed by fans on the front row, the band are engulfed for a photo signalling the end of the night.
Review and Photography by Rhys Haberfield