A Little Splash of Magic: August 2014

Nowadays, there seems to be nothing more admired and sought after than the past. Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr... you don't have to look too far or too hard for a #vintage or #retro. We all want the romance of the past but we just can't get it. Why? Because we're not in the past. We're right here right now. Fashion has changed. Technology has changed. Music has changed.

Or has it?

For those of you who haven't heard of a band called Postmodern Jukebox, you're missing out. Big time. The concept is simple; take modern songs and redo them with a retro twist. They do everything from Nickleback in Motown style to Iggy Azaleas Fancy in a 20s swing style. It shouldn't work but it really, really does. Founder Scott Bradlee, who also plays the keyboard and guitar in the band, is a genius. Well done, Sir.

I love listening to PMJ, especially on a Saturday morning whilst making breakfast with my sister. And you won't believe how much it improves the bedroom cleaning process. But when one of my good friends, Tim, asked me if I wanted to go and see them live, I'm not going to lie. I was dubious. I loved the band and listened to them incessantly, but the show was in Camden, I was beyond poor and I wasn't really sure that - dare I say it? - they would be a good band to see live. Quite a few of their numbers are kinda slow and although they have a huge niche fan base, I wasn't sure if the crowd would really be my kind of thing. But Tim, being the trooper that he is, had promised to come and see a Drag show with and so I figured that I owed him one. And what could be the worse thing to happen? I wouldn't have a good time. Whatever. So we brought our tickets, booked a hostel for the night and soon we were getting the coach up to London.

After a couple of quick drinks at a (really bloody expensive) Wetherspoons, we made our way to Dingwalls, the venue. It turns out that PMJ had actually had such a high demand that they had played another show immediately before the one we were going to see and had allowed themselves a 20 minute or so break. Amazing. One of the band members was outside getting some air and chatting happily to a couple of the fans, calling one over by name which she seemed thrilled about. A lot of people were dressed up in 20s or 50s grab and there was a really cheery atmosphere. Okay, so maybe this wasn't going to be so bad.

Tim and I managed to get to the very front of the stage (yay) and as soon as the band came on, I knew that it was going to be absolutely amazing. The entire band were so in synch and the singers voices were to die for. The three girls singing, Robyn Adele Anderson, Ashley Stroud and Cristina Gatti each have an individual sound, belting out the songs and really getting the audience involved. When they came together to sing a couple of songs such as Ellie Gouldings Burn, their vocals were out of this world. They sounded freaking beautiful together.

I fell in love that night. PMJ have a 'tambourine guy', also known as Tim Kubart, who danced wildly around the stage through a number of the songs, waving a tambourine around. Now, I never really thought that there was much skill to playing a tambourine, but I was proved very wrong. When he knelt down and handed me a tambourine to play with him, I'm not going to lie, I considered running away with him. I really did. Anyone who can have so much enthusiasm and energy for the tambourine, jumping around the stage and having the time of his life, has my vote.

There was also a tap dancer dancing directly in front of us on a small square. Alexander MacDonald is genuinely amazing.Dressed in the old school stuff, complete with braces, he gave everything, adding to the music with his tap dancing. I've always loved tap and to see someone so skilled right in front of me was brilliant. I wouldn't hesitate to run away with him either, to be honest.

Tim (my friend, not tambourine guy) and I were absolutely living the dream. I know his love for Ashley is real and it's deep. The girl cast a spell over him that night that will never be broken. The audience were really loving the music, but none of them seemed to be really dancing. They were throwing their hands in the air and cheering, really getting into it, but just not dancing. Now, I'm a dancer. I don't mean that in the way that I can dance, more that I love dancing. Badly. And so the fact that it didn't seem the 'done' thing to start dancing wildly didn't stop me from... well... dancing wildly. I may have elbowed a couple of people, but it got us a wider space and was so much fun. I loved it.

After the show was over, the band, despite having to get a coach to Amsterdam or somewhere within the hour, stayed around and chatted to the fans. Tim and I were really lucky to actually be able to meet nearly all of them. Nearly every single one were like, 'hey! You were the guys dancing in the front!" which I'm not sure is a good or a bad thing but they seemed to be pretty happy that Tim and I had so much enthusiasm. Tambourine guy was especially nice, as was Robyn. She told us that we deserved extra time talking to her because of our dancing and that we should have elbowed more people out of the way (this was quickly followed by 'I didn't mean that! I love the fans! I don't wish harm on anyone!!!...*whispered* but elbow them out the way).

All in all, it was an amazing night and I would really recommend that if you can get tickets, get tickets. You won't be disappointed. It makes for an unusualy night (where else could you hear (and enjoy) someone rapping in Yiddish?!), different from the usual gig that you would go to and I promise you will love every moment. Their music is individual and ridiculously catchy and the members are so humble and welcoming.

They're touring again around September time and I promised that they would see me and my awful dance moves again. It's a promise I fully intend to fulfil.

Definitely check out their youtube channel here and their website here. Go go go!

M x