Luke Haines’ sardonic pop troupe Black Box Recorder last night played only their second gig in five years at London’s Luminaire.
The Quietus was on hand to see Sarah Nixey (in a foxy red number), John Moore and Luke Haines (dressed as Fenland barn dance callers trying to blag their way into a gentleman’s club) play a terrific set of Black Box Recorder classics, along with two new songs, one of which is called ‘Do You Believe In God’.
Nixey announced ‘The Art Of Driving’, her duet with ex-boyfriend Moore as being from the group’s "Fleetwood Mac phase", prompting a grimace from her former paramour. Musically, Black Box Recorder used the addition of an additional bassist for a more crunching, guitar-driven delivery than you might have expected from their recorded output.
Black Box Recorder setlist
‘Girl Singing In The Wreckage’
‘The English Motorway System’
‘British Racing Green’
‘Wonderful Life’
‘Brutality’
‘The Facts Of Life’
‘Factory Radio’
‘Straight Life’
‘Child Psychology’
‘I.C. One Female’
‘Do You Believe In God?’
‘Keep It In The Family’
‘England Made Me’
encore
‘Ideal Home’
‘Swinging’
‘The New Diana’
‘The Art Of Driving’
‘Lord Lucan Is Missing’