Following a No.1 UK album and sold out tour, breakthrough British band Bombay Bicycle Club release the Bollywood inspired single ‘Feel’.
Riding on the wave of a No.1 UK album and a critically acclaimed live show, Bombay Bicycle Club have released what will surely be the soundtrack of summer, the Bollywood inspired ‘Feel’ as their next single.
The album ‘So Long, See You Tomorrow’ – their fourth in five years – saw the band that are not even halfway through their twenties, break through the traditional confines of indie music. In making ‘one of 2014’s most exhilarating returns’, (NME) Bombay Bicycle Club have become one of UK’s most innovative and important bands.
The third single from the album, ‘Feel’, currently playlisted on BBC Radio 1’s A-list, is an uplifting sing-along favourite and a sure-fire festival hit this summer. A surge of optimism built on a Bollywood movie sample from the legendary Lata Mangeshkar’s classic ‘Man Dole Mere Tan Dole’. ‘Feel’ samples the snake-charming melody from the 1954 movie ‘Nagin’, with warm electronic basslines, exotic percussion, and soaring string-driven melodies.
The band, who are signed to Universal’s Island Records, were guests on the BBC Asian Network this week and spoke to Nihal about the new single and their experience of India. Lead singer Jack Steadman says:
“When I’m in Mumbai, which is one of my favourite places, there’s just this energy there which motivates us to create and be productive so it was the perfect place to go and write music. We stayed there for a month in the end and wanted to make the most of our trip.”
On the current single ‘Feel’ and the use of the classic Bollywood sample, Steadman adds:
“This is the most infectious piece of music I’ve heard in a long time. I’ve got hundreds of old Hindi film songs, from the 40’s through to the 60’s. Sometimes I go to Southall and do a bit of record shopping.”
And finally on the band’s Indian inspired name ‘Bombay Bicycle Club’, they went on to explain:
“It was the name of a restaurant we actually drove past on our way to our first gig. We were panicking because we actually didn’t have a name!”
Having completely sold out European and UK tours at the beginning of this year, Bombay Bicycle Club followed with a critically acclaimed Brixton Academy show, garnering 4* reviews across the board from the Evening Standard, Independent, The Telegraph and The Times. The band are developing an impeccable reputation for their visually and audibly arresting live show.
They have just completed a visit to the US for a huge 31 date tour including Coachella, followed by a string of UK festival dates including Latitude, Reading & Leeds and T in the Park.
It seems like 2014 is Bombay Bicycle Club’s for the taking. Their new single ‘Feel’ is out now.
