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2nd October 2008 - The Forum (Kentish Town)
Razorlight formed in London in 2002 around vocalist/guitarist Johnny Borrell and guitarist/vocalist and Swedish ex-pat Björn Ågnen. Joined by bassist Carl Dalemo and drummer Christian Smith-Pancorvo, the combo recorded some early demos at London's Toe Rag studios, and those songs led to radio exposure and the initial stirrings of hype. Mercury Records signed Razorlight in 2003, and the group began recording their debut in between a series of hectic - and increasingly buzzed about - club gigs, working with no less an authority than Steve Lillywhite. Lillywhite soon left the project, but Razorlight continued to write and record their album while still wowing audiences with a spate of live dates, including a strong showing at the 2004 South by Southwest industry fest. At this point drummer Smith-Pancorvo left the group, but he was soon replaced by Andy Burrows. Thus reconfigured, Razorlight made its official album debut in August '04 with Up All Night. The release was hailed for its stylish, fizzy mix of Strokes sensibilities and post-Brit pop coolUp All Night was re-issued in April 2005, including previously unreleased single "Somewhere Else", which peaked at Number 2. It was their biggest hit single to date.
In July 2005, the band performed at Hyde Park, London, as part of the Live 8 series of concerts. However, the band came under fire for not donating their extra revenue to charity. Razorlight claim that due to their "fledgling status", they're unable to make such a commitment.
Razorlight supported Queen + Paul Rodgers on Friday 15th July 2005, in front of 60,000 of a crowd. This gig had been rescheduled following the July 2005 London bombings.
They also appear as themselves in series 2 of The Mighty Boosh, in the episode 'The Priest and The Beast'.
Razorlight supported Oasis (band) in December 2005, at Cardiff's Millennium Stadium. The band also supported Richard Ashcroft in his homecomeing gig at the Lancashire County Cricket Club on June 17, 2006.
On April 3rd 2006, they streamed a new song from their new album on their website, from around 1800 BST to 1900 BST. According to NME.COM, it was called "Pop Song 2006". According to an interview with Planet Sound, this was only a working title and was a tribute to R.E.M's Pop Song '89. The band planned on calling it "Small Town Heroes", but never told the production people.
The band appeared in front of Brighton's West Pier on the 12th July 2006 in a free concert as part of a Vodafone TBA event to be broadbast on channel 4. Razorlight's released their eponymous second album on July 17th 2006. It was preceded by single 'In The Morning' on July 3rd. The Album was welcomed with critical acclaim, getting strong reviews. Q magazine lavished praise on the album stating "There are many things to cherish about this record... its length, sound, simplicity, sheer brass balls and its songs... And if making the best guitar album since 'Definitely Maybe' is what's required, then job done. 5/5", whilst NME gave it 8/10 and The Times, The Independant & Guardian all gave the album 4/5, sparking a strong return for the band. However, there were disagreeing voices, most notably in The Sunday Times review on the 16th of July, which gave it 1/5 and called it a 'painful' listen.Not that it gave the album any harm, it went straight to Number 1.
