Another band this week, mainly because admittedly I lacked the time this week to rewatch a suitable movie. However, I think these guys deserve all the international exposure they can get. Indie/garage rockers British India formed as classmates at St. Bede's College in Melbourne in 2004, misfits who united through a shared devotion to rock music. Singer-guitarist Declan Melia (right), guitarist Nic Wilson (left), bassist Will Drumond (second right) and drummer Matt O'Gorman (second left) quickly starting composing their own songs and after sending an EP to Australia's youth radio station Triple J, in 2006 as British India they inked a Shock Records deal with soon-to-be manager Glenn Goldsmith and Aussie rock royalty, former Easybeat Harry Vanda.
In '07 they debuted with the LP Guillotine, a punchy introduction with solid tracks like Russian Roullette and Tie Up My Hands. 2008's Thieves was all that and more, with the boys really coming into their own as a quite distinctive addition to the garage rock revival with plenty more uptempo rock numbers but also some really lush and haunting balladry, namely Funeral for a Trend. The opener, God Is Dead (Meet the Kids), was even featured in the 2009 movie The Loved Ones, which I've reviewed here. 2010's Avalanche was a decent but uneven third effort but they well and truly rebounded in 2013 with their masterpiece so far, Controller. 40 minutes of consistent and wise arrangements, articulate and blunt lyrics, lucid production and insatiable energy, it could prove to be my top Aussie album of the 2010s. Next came 2015's Nothing Touches Me, again a buzzkill but by no means a bad disc, and 2017's Forgetting the Future which I've actually yet to hear still.
I've also seen them twice in one the local pubs and even for gigs of that nature, both times they worked the house through song after song. Overall, I would describe British India as INXS fused with any shoegazing band, but with a Millennial outlook applied to both. They are, collectively of course, one of a kind.
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