Music > Live Reviews

Undercover Hippy

The Adrian Flux Waterfront

26/03/23

The Undercover Hippy is one of those rare artists that leave you with a totally different perspective of the world. The realness of lead vocalist Billy Rowan’s lyrical artistry told a pretty harrowing tale of today’s political landscape, yet his infectious reggae basslines undeniably had the crowd dancing- this is what I loved about his live performance, a perfect equilibrium between sobriety and exuberance.
The upstairs of the Waterfront was crammed with fans awaiting The Undercover Hippy’s sold out gig. The support for the night was 7-piece reggae band, State of Satta- what an incredibly fun band they were to see live. This was the perfect way to get the audience in the mood to dance.

Initially listening to Undercover Hippy, I wasn’t sure it was really my thing- their music has a very 2013 indie feel to it, yet hearing them perform live was a totally different experience. Perhaps it was the reaction of the crowd, or even lead singer Billy’s hugely casual vibe, but the whole night felt like an intimate gathering of friends singing and dancing along together. Billy sauntered onto stage seemingly oblivious to the packed venue and set up the stage himself- whilst this seemed unusual, it simply added to the group’s whole image- chilled to the max.

The lyrics were unapologetically political, a clear opposition to government policy and procedure. Reggae has always been a vehicle to express political frustrations and generate social change and The Undercover Hippy’s newest single ‘Greed’ certainly fits into this, with its attack on the political agenda of the day- it expertly articulates and narrates the views of many in today’s political climate.  It is clear that this is a huge part of The Undercover Hippy experience- the total sense of unity and uprising against what they perceive as an unjust system, their battle weapons of choice- dancing and high vibes. The crowd responded really well to this energy and every line Billy sang felt like a personal discussion with the vocalist.

The crowd’s involvement with the song ‘Boyfriend’ was contagious, with everyone singing and dancing along. An encore was begged by the crowd and Billy returned to play ‘Last chance to dance’ and the crowd took this literally, the energy raising even higher for the artist’s last song.

What a great night- a refreshing rendition of reggae music, self-described as ‘music with a message’, The Undercover Hippy’s infectious basslines are well worth dancing to.