|
|
One last lap of honour for ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’.
I mean really...who could have seen this? Seemingly always destined to be perennial bridesmaids, from out of nowhere, Elbow whip up a whirlwind of Mercurys, Brits, Ivor Novellos and become everyone's favourite band. The singles from the 'Seldom Seen Kid' have moved into a league of über-ubiquity usually reserved for rock's premier league A-list elite (even as I write, there's a TV advert for a film starring Jamie Foxx and Robert Downey Jnr with 'One Day Like This' warbling away in the background). The tour for the album (as Guy Garvey will later announce, 144 dates long) has taken in shows with Manchester's Hallé Orchestra, their first proper festival headline slot at Bestival and now this, a sold out slot at the MEN Arena. And that's not one of those pretend sold-out shows at the arena where they curtain off the top tier. This is a sold-out show where people have paid the same as everyone else present to sit behind the stage. Although this, as we'll see, has its own perks.
The trickling intro to 'Starlings' gurgles through the speakers and suddenly, in a blaze of trumpets and golden fireworks, they're here. Garvey surveys his congregation and, as he will for next couple of hours, stretches out his arms and embraces and addresses it as though reaching out to each member individually. Not that Elbow have particularly dressed up for the occasion - always more M&S than D&G, Garvey has clearly seen no reason to change now. "Hello Manchester," he says "It's good to be home" and, you know what? You believe him. 'Bones' instigates the first mass clap-along of the night, Garvey conducting the crowd in the tricky rhythm, the filthy fuzzy bass breakdown belying Elbow's undeserved reputation for gossamer thin music. 'Mirrorball' makes the MEN a mirrorball, Manchester's females melt and Manchester's males pretend there's something in their collective eye. You sensing a setlist theme yet? Yep, rightly so, Elbow are sticking to their perceived strengths and as such, tonight's set is pretty much 'The Seldom Seen Kid' lightly peppered with a few former favourites. One such, 'Leaders of the Free World' provides the MEN with some of your actual arena-sized rock - if much of tonight is very lovely music played very loudly in an arena, then the title track from their 2006 album provides evidence of the real deal. Garvey, to his huge amusement, removes his jacket to mass whooping. That never happened at the Hop & Grape now, did it?
However, amongst all this, the real question on everyone's mind is "Why have all those people in the rubbish seats been given white t-shirts?". Until all becomes clear. They, unknowingly, unwittingly and despite having paid, as we saw earlier, as much as anyone else to come to the show, are now 'The Elbow Choir'. Garvey issues them with their orders, promising them that, 2700-strong, they will be breaking a Guiness World Record as the largest choir ever amassed. If nothing else, he promises, they can keep the t-shirt (they're already on eBay. Some people.). Periodically, throughout the evening, they'll be called into action, starting with 'The Stops'. Garvey introduces onstage "The man who changed the way we dress", and whether Richard Hawley's (regular) Special Guest Slot for 'The Fix' can still be called that, it's still all good knockabout-matey fun.
"Grounds for Divorce" incites a cacaphonic sing along (and a pretty vicious catfight in Block 102. Ladies, please. Although, lady in stripey top - you won on points), 'Loneliness of the Tower Crane Driver' soothes things and 'Scattered Black and Whites' is dedicated to mums, both Elbows' and otherwise. Anywhere else and that'd be gratingly mawkish. On this night, it feels...well, fitting. Garvey indulges in a little arena pantomime, introducing the last song and asking if, since we know there'll be more, rather than shouting for more we should sing The Beatles' 'All You Need Is Love'. Somehow appropriately, Elbow go right back to the start and close with 'Newborn' from their 2001 debut album 'Asleep In The Back'. For the newly initiated - see? They've been doing this thing for 10 years now. Where were you? Clearly just glad to have you along at last, Elbow depart, and after a few false starts, the requested chorus of 'All You Need Is Love' gets off the ground.
'Station Approach', one of Garvey's long line of love letters to Manchester, opens the encore, and 'Some Riot', given a bit of extra muscle, sees Garvey hit the barrier to get some skin from his faithful. As they've frequently done over the last 18 months, Elbow gather on Craig Potter's keyboard riser for a few toasts, most notably to the seldom seen kid himself, Brian Glancy, and to themselves. Again, we're in potentially gratingly mawkish territory, but in reality it's a genuinely lovely moment. As Garvey divides up the choir parts for 'Weather To Fly', Manchester responds with some unexpectedly musical singing, much to the astonishment of the singer who is clearly more than a little overwhelmed. So overwhelmed that he jumps into the steep arena sides to be with his choir, just for a little while. They finish up with 'One Day Like This', of course they bloody do. And it's...oh, you know what it is. It would take a hard hearted man not to be a little bit moved by the site of these 17,000 people, die-hards, newcomers, the vaguely interested, the minutely obsessed, on their feet and swaying to these closing swells. We're not in Kansas any more, Toto... but there's no place like home.
Tags: elbow matt rynn men arena seldom seen kid music live review
comments 0
|
|
