Bombay Bicycle Club – ‘My Big Day’ review: indie heroes enlist Damon Albarn and Chaka Khan

19 October, 2023

“There’s no point trying to play it safe,” asserts Jamie MacColl of Bombay Bicycle Club, speaking assuredly to NME last month alongside vocalist Jack Steadman. Indeed, when the north Londoners returned from a five-year hiatus with 2020’s ‘Everything Else Has Gone Wrong’, a renaissance of their tried and tested indie wizardry came alongside it. Celebrating their seminal debut album ‘I Had The Blues But I Shook Them Loose’ with an anniversary tour in the build up, those luscious riffs and familiar tones crept into ‘Everything Else Has Gone Wrong’, a clear return to their roots that saw them safely coast back into their scene.

A comfort zone, perhaps, that catalysed the unwavering sense of adventure that underpins their sixth album, ‘My Big Day’ their most daring and collaborative record to date. Featuring the likes of Damon Albarn, Holly Humberstone, Jay Som and, er, Chaka Khan, the results are as eclectic as this list would suggest, spanning across indie, pop, hip-hop and even garage. The uneasiness and intrigue of title track and lead single ‘My Big Day’ sets the tone for what’s to come, as the jagged chorus comes crashing down over a smooth verse flow.

As for the features, ‘Heaven’ is as ethereal as the title suggests, its woozy synths dropping out for Albarn’s entrance in the second verse. Chaka Khan stars on the funky ‘Tekken 2’, whilst Nilüfer Yanya adds a personable touch to ‘Meditate’, perhaps the most traditional Bombay Bicycle Club track on the album. Otherwise, it’s telling that the guitars are restricted to certain moments, coming into shape in full force at the climax of epic closer ‘Onward.’ A rare moment of grandeur that comes straight after the soothing ‘Diving’ and ‘Onward’ is perhaps a modern-day successor to their 2014 cult favourite ‘Luna’, a multi-layered anthem that’s sure to dominate a live show.

Instrumental number ‘Rural Radio Predicts The Rapture’ is the album’s most eye-catching inclusion, spanning an assortment of genres you’d expect from an Enter Shikari interlude. Perhaps a byproduct of Steadman’s solo outing, Mr Jukes, a groaning bassline is broken up by some retro MPC synth sounds, a beat that’s begging for a hip-hop vocalist to take under their wing. A creative milestone in itself, it’s a far cry from the four-to-the-floor, teenage guitar band that a whole generation grew up with.