• Reviews

• All
• Music
• DVDs
• Live
• Cinema
• TV
• Books
• Comic Books
• Video Games

Benefits

Apr 30, 2025 By Jimi Arundell Photography by Jimi Arundell Web Exclusive

There’s something truly thrilling about seeing a cult band at that point of breaking into the mainstream and upsetting the table. Under The Radar has been closely following Benefits ever since Kingsley Hall outgrew the moody indie rock trappings of his former outfit The Chapman Family to form the politically poetic noise collective during lockdown. Their abrasive debut LP Nails saw them awkwardly lumped in with the current popular trends of sprechgesang and post punk, despite the uncompromising barrages of drums and almost unhinged rants wilfully out of step with any of their so-called contemporaries.

Stripping the project down to a two-piece featuring fellow songwriter Robbie Major, the agitational smoggies have just unleashed their critically acclaimed second album Constant Noise. The new release sees the pair explore the dangers of disappearing down the rabbit hole of rose-tinted nostalgia when seeking a sense of identity. Constant Noise almost entirely forgoes their former harsh feel for a new 90s/00s dance direction, making it a serious contender to win this year’s Mercury Prize. The two-piece now hit the road to unveil their innovative masterpiece, including a show at The Bodega in Nottingham.

Tonight, and for the entirety of the tour, support comes from idiosyncratic dance punk artist Hang Linton. If you’re looking for anything obvious, you won’t find it here as the South East London artist (now based in Leeds) stays well clear of the conventional verse/chorus/verse structure and pursues a warped mutation of avant-funk, psyche rock and rave beats. The one-man army has more than enough energy and charisma to take on the world with a weird sound almost akin to the batteries running out of a creepy merry-go-round toy whilst he scats and tears out the guitar riffs. Imagine Klaxons if they were led by Lee Scratch Perry.

Hall and Major take to the stage to Wings’ epic Bond theme “Live and Let Die” and face each other across a wall of synths, samplers, delay pedals, MPC and drum machines. The strange setup, bereft of any guitars, would almost look adversarial if you didn’t know how close their partnership really is, as the set closely mirrors the track listing of the essential new album.

The ominous title track gives way to the killer lead single “Land Of The Tyrants” which includes the sampled signature scream of art punk qween Zera Tønin from the locally formed electro-punk duo Arch Femmesis. Moogs are maxed out to overdrive, the emotional intensity is turned up to 11, and a haunting violin hitting all the right sombre notes is the perfect juxtaposition to all the big beats.

The fusion of retro dance beats with spoken word and desolate orchestral vibes echoes Underworld, Orbital, Fuck Buttons and even Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s bleakest moments. It perfectly encapsulates the strange arrogance of the British music mentality, constantly convinced it’s at the forefront of the world’s culture but always looking backwards to prove it. Strangely, by shoving that fact down our throats, Benefits have delivered a vital record that electrifies audiences when performed live.

We’re treated to “old” single “Flag” before Hall lists all the ills in the world and then jokes “I didn’t go to that Benefits gig to get all political”. And then it’s a euphoric end, seeing the Teeside two mash up Suicide’s “Dream Baby Dream” with “Born Slippy”. So, remember this Mercury judges, choose anguished spoken word put to retrospective dance. Choose Benefits.