hard life

“It’s a hard life, I can’t lie, it’s been a rush” - this was the first line of the night you heard sung by ‘hard life’ frontman Murray Matravers. And in the case of this Leicester-based indie-pop group, it couldn’t be more true. Formerly known as ‘easy life’, the band were caught up in a highly publicised legal debacle when they were sued by the easyGroup (easyJet, easyHotel etc.) for the “easy” name, and despite their best endeavours, they were financially unable to dispute the contest in court. After all they had built up and worked for over the course of those 6 years, they were now forced to start again from square one. For many bands, this may be too daunting to even tackle, but ‘hard life’ have continued to show their swagger to bounce back stronger than ever. Tonight was an indication of not only how far they’ve come since their last performance as ‘easy life’ in October 2023, but how far the band can still go.

The band have long been known for two things: their clever fusion of rap alongside indie and pop, as well as their electrifying energy within their live shows. This is seen through their electric opening to the set, with fan favourites “sunday” and “sangria” highlighting Murray’s clever lyricism and clinical live delivery. As he moves energetically around the stage, he continues to carry that swagger that he’s long been known for, now fitted with a flesh blonde look. One concern I initially had upon the band’s return was whether the new material would stack up to what they’ve previously done, especially in a live setting. However, if anything, songs like “y3llow bike” and “OCTOpus” work even better when there’s 5,000 people singing it back to you. 

Credit also needs to be given to how great the rest of the band sound live, even following the departure of bassist Sam Hewitt. Now a four-piece rather than a five-piece, it’s evident on some of the band’s earlier work that it’s missing that backbone that Sam provided, but guitarist Lewis Alexander Barry and keyboardist Jordan Birtles do a more than good enough job to fill that void. Even when Murray is placed with a keyboard in front of him and no one else, like on “crickets!!!”, he uses the audience as his most integral instrument, the shouts of “crickets” in the crowd providing me with a good laugh and a smile. As the set goes on, the energy continues to ramp up in the room. Whether it’s call-and-response moments between Murray and the crowd on “othello” or the bouncing of hands on “BEESWAX”, the band continuously keep the audience engaged. This ultimately builds up to a back-to-back of two of the band’s most popular songs, “pockets” and “skeletons”, with the latter’s climax provoking one of the band members to go into a mosh pit in the crowd. With everyone jumping up and down, the room vibrated galvanically even with the sloped floor. 

Following a beautiful acoustic moment on “ogre”, the band close their set out with another oldie but goldie in “nightmares”. As I look at my clock and realise that only 70 minutes had passed - sure, it’s a hell of a time when they’re on stage, but you can’t help but feel like there should be more, especially with how established the band’s discography now is. Alas, they come out for one last encore with the fittingly titled song “end credits.” - this was perhaps a reminder to me that while this wasn’t a perfect set by any means, this is a band that have had everything thrown against them and have still come out on the other side. In an almost cyclical manner, the last lyrics of the night read: “If this is my end credits, I think it’s alright” - thankfully for Murray, this is far from the end for ‘hard life’. If anything, this is a new beginning.