They say there’s joy in simplicity, and there was no better testament to that than Beans on Toast’s live show in the perfectly intimate City Screen Basement.
Jay McAllister took to the stage with nothing but an under-sized guitar, accompanied by Bobby Banjo (on banjo, naturally), to sing songs that self-proclaimedly “sound like Billy Bragg”.
I’m happy to say that Beans on Toast’s performance lived up to that bold claim, as his relatable songs about day-to-day life, covering everything from love and politics to drugs, really shone in The Basement’s close and personal environment. His gravelly voice and simple three-chord-based guitar playing worked really well with Bobby’s skilled yet under-stated accompaniment, and the overall sound offered a lot more than the ‘one man and a guitar’ set up.
It was, however, the singer/songwriter’s ability to connect with the crowd that really made the show special. His witty, satirical songs and the humorous banter between them had the audience on his side, and singing along even from the beginning; by the time it came to the anthemic ‘The Price of Rice’ the whole venue was in full voice. The Essex boy’s ability to work the crowd was epitomised by the highlight of the show where he had girls from the crowd dance on stage to recreate the video for his latest single, ‘Blowjob for the Blues’.
The show ended with the crowd favourite ‘MDMAmazing’ and Jay’s approachable, down-to-earth stage persona was proved genuine as he stayed to talk and share drinks with those who wanted to, ending the night as he’d started it; at one with the crowd.