The second leg of a UK tour completed, Birmingham’s mighty 12-piece juggernaut and architectural brass-rock collective Big Band Of Boom now settle in to trumpet the release of a self-titled debut album and a new single in ‘Propane Nightmares’, described as “a visceral reimagining” of Pendulum‘s drum and bass anthem, available from Ragtime Records.
This choice of cover song carries personal weight for the Birmingham band. Pendulum formed the soundtrack to BBOM guitarist Tom Duffy‘s university years, culminating in seeing them live at Glastonbury back in 2009, a performance he described as unforgettable, with ‘Propane Nightmares’ defining many late nights out. He later began performing a stripped-back acoustic version at cover gigs, and when BBOM took shape, the song felt like the natural high-energy centrepiece for their set. Tom Hyland (guitars) echoed that connection, recalling the track as a long-time running companion and an obvious fit for the band’s expanded lineup. With heavy guitars and a full horn section, the aim was to stay close to the spirit of the original while reworking it for twelve musicians playing live. No synths, no backing tracks, just a fully organic reinterpretation.
Where the Pendulum original is forged in electronic propulsion and high-tensile friction, BBOM subject the track to a cinematic overhaul. The breakneck pulse remains, but here it breathes, shifts and detonates in real time, trading the programmed club drop for a full-stage surge. Transmuting the chaotic magnetism of an enormous live collective into a studio master is a notoriously difficult hurdle, yet one the band cleared by seeking out acoustic character over digital precision.
BBOM is Alex Astbury, Antony Stevens and Max Astbury (Trumpets), Charlie Lancaster (Trombone), Edi May (Tenor Saxophone), Felicity Evans-Waite (Baritone Saxophone), Gareth Williams (Bass), Jon Tutcher (Keyboards), Matthew Holmes (Drums), Josh Wunderlich (Vocals), Tom Duffy and Tom Hyland (Guitar and Vocals).
Forged on major festival stages, BBOM has built a reputation for turning open fields and packed tents into brass-fuelled pressure cookers. With over 100,000 streams across recent singles and strong backing from BBC Radio 6 Music following a standout live session that left DJ Craig Charles “really, really impressed,” the band’s debut album was tracked in atmospheric sanctuaries including a desolate church and a verdant Victorian greenhouse. Mixed and mastered by James Bragg (Propagation Studios, Cornwall), the record adheres to a singular, uncompromising mandate: preserve the impact and energy of Big Band Of Boom‘s live show. The result is a study in how the frenetic spirit of a bouncing festival crowd can be distilled into high-fidelity sound belting out of your speaker system.
Tracks featured on the album are: ‘Stupid Filthy Rich’, ‘Earthquake’, ‘Doomscrolling’, ‘Big Bad Voodoo’, ‘Propane Nightmares’, ‘Energy Vampire’, ‘Knock At The Door’, ‘Not Today’, ‘One Night Only’, ‘Anxiety Universe’, ‘Toxicity’, ‘Thanks Humans’, ‘The Longest Of Goodbyes’ and ‘Yūgen’.
The ‘Propane Nightmares’ video needs to be seen and heard; check it out below. And in the words of another Midlands band who made it big: Play it Loud!
