Black Country, New Road Was Gripping, Emotional, Exciting to Watch This Autumn
Black Country, New Road made their grand return to Variety Playhouse playing for a jubilant and tuned-in crowd last week. The art-rock, prog-pop band formed in Cambridge, England in 2018, and have since grown to prominence through Brixton’s Windmill scene. Founding member and visionary of the band Elijah Wood departed the group in 2022 due to mental health issues and since then, BCNR have operated as a sextet, who exclusively play music they have made since the departure of Wood. The multi-instrumentalists last graced an Atlanta stage at Variety in Spring 2024, so it was evident fans were thrilled to have them back this autumn in the same space to play a set filled with tracks off their 2025 release, Forever Howlong.
Tyler Hyde, bassist and one of three vocalists, commanded the audience when opening up with unreleased “Longer”, displaying her clean, powerhouse, and almost theatrical singing style. Towards the song’s end, drummer Charlie Wayne drops in to fill out what grew to be a crushingly inescapable track. There is something quite profound about opening up a show with a track no one has ever heard before: stunning a crowd of people who very well may know every word to their other songs, but not this one. They then dip into “The Big Spin”, with May Kershaw at its head, who plays keys, accordion, and is another lead vocalist. Her voice lives in a higher, breathier register than Hyde’s, and is what the rest of the band uses as its guide in tempo. It is clear in every song how trained these musicians are; they haven’t just memorized the music, but they make it a point to play it as it feels in full expression.
Each song the band performs is exciting, emotional, and surprising. They tend to begin soft and reserved, and through all the different instrumental additions, become mammoth, in-your-face recreations of their recorded work. BCNR like to jam and do so in a tasteful fashion that only adds to the appeal of watching them perform. Georgia Ellery is one of the lead vocalists and also takes on playing the violin, mandolin, and some guitar. “Besties”, a leading track from Forever Howlong, is the perfect reflection of this baroque-pop record in its bounciness and has her crystal clean vocals on complete display. It is gripping to watch and listen to the three leading ladies sing their distinct songs, creating an ever-fresh set that never leaves a dull moment for the crowd.
BCNR moved right into “Strangers”, the band’s hearty contribution to War Child Records’ HELP(2). There is no finer display of harmony than on this track, as Hyde, Kershaw, and Ellery lay their souls bare through shared sound. When they play “For the Cold Country”, guitarist Luke Mark has a hefty guitar part at its imposing end and takes it on seamlessly. Next is the title track of the album, “Forever Howlong”, which finds everyone but Kershaw picking up recorders and playing to her, their conductor, as she sings the tune’s chilly, melancholy lines.
Finally, the six-piece closed out their enthralling set with “Happy Birthday”, featuring saxophonist and flautist Lewis Evans ripping and giving the fans a final flourish from his woodwinds. BCNR are sweet and in it; they give knowing looks and grins to one another but also with the crowd, clueing them in on the camaraderie and love they share. Their set was the work of an uber-talented band of instrumentalists who love music and love sharing it with their fans even more. If Atlanta’s lucky, we might see Black Country, New Road back at Variety in two years to make the third time the charm.
