Page 52 - Black Velvet Issue 84

BV84 pg52:BV84 pg52 20/03/2015 00:40 Page 1

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THE VERONICAS / BADFLOWER –
BIRMINGHAM INSTITUTE LIBRARY, 04.03.15

It’s the first date of The Veronicas UK tour – and it’s their first tour of the UK in over five years. The girls had record company issues, which caused
the delay of their new album. They parted ways with Warner Bros before finding a new home in Sony Music, where they eventually released their self-
titled third studio album in November in Australia. The album’s UK release wasn’t until March 2015, to coincide with their UK tour although as we find
out during the show a lot of fans have it already.
The Veronicas bring with them one support band in the form of Badflower. Badflower just so happen to be fronted by Jessica Veronica’s boyfriend
Josh Cole Katz. Yet it’s on their own merit that they win this support as they are an impressive band in their own right. With songs such as ‘Let The
Band Play’ and ‘Soap’ having soulful smoothness and powerful grooves, they rock in a refined, silky manner. There’s a seductive quality to their style
of rock that sinks its teeth into you, wounding with its strength. Josh in particular has great stage presence and a voice that hits all the right spots. Alex
Espiritu on bass also looks like he’s enjoying himself rocking out despite not receiving much of the spotlight. The band impress from the off – until
they leave the stage. Badflower are great, flowers!
It’s crazy to think that The Veronicas had to fight to get their new album released. Like Badflower, these girls are also super-talented. Their voices
are stunning and their songs catch you like a fishing net. But we’re not into fishing nets as we’re vegan like The Veronicas and we love that they
support Sea Shepherd who fight for the animals in the oceans. Despite all The Veronicas’ awesome
songs, there’s nothing better than seeing Jessica holding up the Sea Shepherd flag during the
final song. These are girls that have hearts and stand up for what they (and we) believe in and do
more than JUST sing songs. It’s surprising that this show at the Library is not sold out – they de-
serve to be playing much bigger venues to way more people. One gets the impression that they
haven’t been promoted enough. There are many people missing out. During the set we’re told that
they questioned themselves for a few years, but they made it through – and we’re glad they did.
Set-wise they sing quite a few songs from the new album. They open with ‘Sanctified’ and
then ‘Did You Miss Me (I’m A Veronica)’. ‘Cruel’ is poppy with a thick bassline. The twins, Jessica
and Lisa, have a band that includes a female bassist and a drummer behind a transparent shield
(we haven’t seen one of those in a small venue before!). The twins, dressed in latex that show off
their slim bodies, laugh about how Lisa has been dying for a Guinness and how Jess got her latex
stuck to the wall in the tourbus. ‘You Ruin Me’ has emotion and pain pouring from every line while
the pace picks up for hit single ‘Untouched’ (which sticks in our head for days afterwards, that
song is just too addictive!). Ending with ‘If You Love Someone’ and the girls each holding a flag, if
you go and see The Veronicas you will definitely come away loving them even more than before
you went. We definitely did – and hope we don’t have to wait so long to see them again.
YYYYY
Shari Black Velvet
Lisa and Jessica Origliasso (The Veronicas) Inset: Josh Cole Katz (Badflower) - Photos By Shari Black Velvet

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