From the opening moments of Indoor Pets’ headline show at Scala, you know things are going to be special. Bringing their social media in-joke of frontman Jamie Glass’ big hands to the stage, the house lights go down and mainstream hits are played, but with crude and hilarious dubbing of “Jamie’s Hand” played over the tracks. ‘I Like Big Butts’ by Sir Mix A Lot is transformed into ‘I Like Big Hands’, and ‘Stacy’s Mom’ by Fountains of Wayne reworks as ‘Jamie’s Hands’. It’s the kind of laugh at yourself humour that have got the band to pack out this over a thousand capacity venue; they’ve been unapologetically themselves their entire career, and their debut album is called ‘Be Content’, after all.
Jamie, James, Rob and Ollie are pure vivacity throughout the entire show, and this energy reflects in the boisterous crowd who are singing along to every word, moshing and cheering at any given moment. Gargantuan new tracks fit seamlessly alongside the more rugged old favourites, and Jamie struts around the stage, commanding, but with an edge of utterly cool nerdiness, like a band geek gone wild, during Friday night party anthem ‘Thick’ and the frenzied ‘Teriyaki’. Even guitarist James takes the opportunity to interact with the crowd too, leaning into a sea of clamouring hands – Indoor Pets are unlikely heartthrob boyband for today’s indie kids.
A poignant moment comes during the encore, where one of the band’s oldest songs, ‘Coping With Death In A Nutshell’, is dedicated to Jamie’s late grandma, before the utterly bittersweet, raw closer of ‘I Am The Hot Air’. It’s truly a beautiful way to finish such a significant triumph.
Indoor Pets aren’t overindulgent with their biggest headline show to date, and they don’t need to be. Their humble “thank yous” say enough, and their performance in the heart London was everything it needed to be: intimate, entertaining, and defiant.
Words: Jasleen Dhindsa
