Thumpers Headline Kink Nights

Like we keep on saying, Kink are booking bigger and better acts each fortnight. On Wednesday night it was quite surreal to see the members of Thumpers, who I’d seen supporting Chvrches on their UK tour last year, just sort of bumming around the bar half of Cavern waiting for their slot. It’s that cross between “Hey, you’re on my iTunes” and “Fancy seeing you here” that makes seeing bigger acts in the Cavern so enjoyable. Seeing Thumpers complete with backing vocalists, brass section and all the trimmings, crammed onto the piddly Cavern stage was entertaining in and of itself. John Hamson Jr. on the drum kit was sat nearly on top of the front row of the crowd.

All of the above only served to build up the feeling in the venue of something I can only really describe as happy-clappy stomp. Thumpers’ songs really thrive on their insatiable rhythm sections, as their name would imply, and their presence was felt all the more strongly in a venue like this, where you hear the actual skin of John’s bass drum as much as through the PA. The thumpiest songs of the guys’ repertoire certainly became the highlights; Dancing’s Done and Sound Of Screams were really augmented by a more prominent brass section too.

Thumpers are a charming group simply because the emotions present in their music, performed live or recorded, are so congruent with their personalities. Maybe it’s down to pure musicianship (John’s played drums for Pull Tiger Tail, Friendly Fires, and Noah and the Whale after all) but their songs just seem to play out completely organically. There’s little transition from stage banter to launching into a song and it makes the whole experience more intimate, and ultimately, fun.

So yet another big hit from Kink, and we’re sure that there’s more to come in the same vein. Thumpers thumped well, in a room that was full enough to feel wonderfully intimate, but not quite full enough to really reflect the awesomeness within. Let’s hope people start to set their heads straight and come along every week.