Photo Credit:
Words: Evie Johnson

An electric Friday night in the Baltic was the only way to summarise Basht.’s incredible set in Liverpool on their Spring UK tour.

Opening the night was Belfast band Esmeralda Road, who engrossed everyone with rhythmic guitars and entrancing vocalism. New fans would have definitely been made by their short, but captivating, set which engaged the crowd for what was to come next.

The moment the lights dimmed after a short interlude, the night’s energy was truly evident, as the crowd cheered and jumped around to the band’s entrance, and continued this as they opened to an unreleased, yet thrilling, song that set the tone for the rest of the set.

Favourites such as ‘Burn’ and ‘Vain’ followed which had hands in their air, mosh pits forming, and screaming fans wanting more. The band recognised the energy in the venue and mirrored it perfectly with exhilarating rendition of unreleased tracks such as ‘Terror TV’ and ‘Kids vs Guns’. These live exclusives amplified the atmosphere, and everyone in the room would agree that they are itching to stream these future hits as soon as possible. 

The crowd’s energy culminated with definite favourites ‘Dirty White’ and ‘Gone Girl’ getting everyone off their feet, there wasn’t a single person there who wasn’t bouncing along to every word.

Completing this with ‘Kiera Knightly’ and ‘Wild Horses’ could not have made a more perfect ending, as lead singer Jack Leavey entered the crowd to enhance the experience even further as arms flared and people surged to the band’s signature sound of echoing guitars and thrilling instrumentals.

An insight into a band’s live success has to be crowd reception and enjoyment, and Basht. perfectly achieved the balance between providing entertainment to the crowd, alongside captivating and meaningful music that had everyone there engaged with every lyric.

The band’s spring tour continues with shows across the UK and Ireland, before a festival run in locations such as Warrington’s Neighbourhood Weekender and a Leeds Festival exclusive set. They are definitely not ones to miss this summer.