Standing amongst all the other Bastille fans in the crowd at the Eden Sessions, I was the one who was going absolutely mental. I was the one who was screaming from the top of my lungs when Bastille walked on stage. My legs started to shake when I saw Dan; I honestly couldn't believe it was him. I couldn't believe Bastille were standing on stage in front of me. For the first 10 minutes my mind was going insane, then I started to focus on the sweet, bliss, beautiful sound of music. I was stood right under the speaker, right at the front throughout the whole concert, oh my god it was amazing! The bass was incredible, it would literally go right through you, my heart was exploding! The ground beneath me was jumping, exactly like the crowd, going absolutely mental!
The music for the rest of the set was mind blowingly brilliant! Hearing this group live is nothing like having it going to your ears through a pair or earphones, the music goes through your ears yes, but after that it goes right through your body, pumping you up, getting you ready to jump and sing along with Dan, The tangy sound of of the guitar, the beat from the drums, the dings from the piano all came together on that stage to create the bliss songs Bastille created in the recording studio back in London to resurrect them on the Eden Sessions stage.
The visual impact of the stage and setting was also out of this world, Bastille looked so majestic on that stage, the lights behind them flying around everywhere, changing colours every 10 seconds like a kaleidoscope. The visuals on the screen behind Bastille were incredible, they linked in with the songs, they linked in with the albums making you feel a part of everything they had ever made.
Their hit single Of The Night made my night.
The bass hit the crowd like a juggernaut, making everybody and the Earth shake as if there was an earthquake; nothing like what you hear through ear phones this was an out of body experience. Dan then has the whole crowd crouch when he did so just before the chorus started he shouted "LET ME SEE YOU JUMP EDEN PROJECT!" and every single one of us jumped as much as possible when he did. It was absolutely incredible! At times it all went into slow-motion and it made the experience even better and memorable, jumping with the crows, jumping with my idol Dan Smith, I remember it now as if it had just happened. When we all got up to jump, the screen behind Bastille showed the whole crowd crouching, then going absolutely mental. Honestly it was amazing, majestic and almost tribal- everyone jumping at the same time at one with each other and the music bass. I will never forget it. Dan even looked at me! For one fraction of a second I was in his eye line.
Even after the concert had ended with Bastille performing their breakthrough single Pompeii, I was still buzzing from the bass being beaten down on me like overhead thunder, making the ground shake in time to my heart. I was exhauseted from jumping like a lunatic all night with Dan and the rest of the crowd but it was the best night ever.
- Matthew Bolitho
Comments