Hypnotica's Gig Reviews 2008
OMD Live @ Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham Saturday 4th October 2008
Messages - 30th Anniversary Tour
Support: 'China Crisis'
Summary:
Two quality 80's acts under one roof makes for a great night out!
The Venue:
| I have been to The Royal Concert Hall in
Nottingham loads of times so there's no surprises in store
for me there but it's a decent venue, with the exception of the
seats which I find
uncomfortable. Trying to find somewhere to eat nearby
the venue before the show starts is seriously hard work though - that area
of Nottingham gets packed The acoustics are ok but like most venues it does make a big difference where you sit. Row 'M', stalls in our case was too far away from the action for my liking but we were quite central and the sound was probably better for it |
Support: China Crisis
With 80's comeback tours becoming more and more popular it couldn't be more fitting that OMD's support was also from that era. I guess the Liverpool connection must have played a part in selecting them too but either way it was brilliant to get such a class act for support.
I think It really makes a difference having a good 'and relevant' support act, but it's still a rarity in my experience. If people are turning out in their droves to see an 80's Synthpop act why would they want some unknown Indie guitar band to support them?
No doubt it all boils down to money but quite often I find the support act are an afterthought and you seem to be just hanging around waiting for the big moment at 9 o'clock, bored to death.
Surely support acts should be seen as the equivalent of a 'warm up' act for a comedian - to get you in the mood and musically connect you with the main act you've come to listen to.
It's often the same with 'interval' and pre support background music - a case of 'just stick anything on' so it's not completely quiet. I think this is an opportunity missed for many groups to really get the audience ready for the main act. Play some remixes, promos, spin-off projects - a mix of tracks in the same genre, 'anything' relevant! just don't put generic background music on - it's such a waste
Off the top of my head a few gigs I have been to 'have' got it right - Jean Michel Jarre didn't have a support act but the pre-gig music was his ambient 'Waiting for Cousteau' album which was great, totally relevant but not too in your face to distract from the gig itself
Depeche Mode are another; one of their recent tours had a DJ mix by Andy Fletcher before the support act - spot on!
I digress. Quite a lot. Sorry. For this gig we were very lucky anyway, although China Crisis are quite different to OMD, they are still a band I always liked and were a quality part of the soundtrack to the 80's
I'm not sure if they would classify themselves as Synthpop but it was the Synth sounds and melodies that attracted me to their music back in the day. I also think Gary and Eddie have really great voices too
Although they have a distinct style I have always thought of them as having 'some' similarities to groups like Fiction factory, Blancmange, Talking heads and even Naked eyes. Synths are fairly up front in their sound but guitars also feature as with many chart hitting groups in the 80's.
In the run up to a gig I always get myself in the mood by playing a fair bit of music by the group or groups in question and China Crisis were no exception. My China Crisis collection isn't huge, I have their better known albums and a few compilation CD's plus a pick and mix of original vinyl but I enjoyed giving them a blast before the big day
The only trouble with this approach is it does blur your recollection of what exactly 'was' played on the night - especially when writing the review retrospectively. As ever, if I find an official set list I'll add it here but I think they played at least; 'African And White', 'Christian', 'Wishful Thinking', 'Hanna Hanna', 'Black Man Ray', and 'King In A Catholic Style'
Performance wise, it was a great set, the voices were perfect which was impressive considering it must have been a long time since they sang these songs together live
I 'really' enjoyed their set, it was nostalgic yes but also melodic and melancholic which is a perfect combo in my book. 'King In A Catholic Style' however, was one of the upbeat tracks which really rocked so it was also a varied set.
At the end of the set Gary announced that they would be coming out to sign things and talk to people if anyone wanted to ask them questions like "What the hell have we been doing for the last 20yrs!?!?!"
I jumped at the chance and stood dutifully at the merch. stall until Gary appeared. Being close to the front for a change I got to have a photo taken with Gary & get a CD signed so that was great
Just a shame that the hordes of pushing and shoving fans behind always makes my mind go blank and not really ask anything much before making way for the next punter. That's 'so' British! I must try to stand my ground and have a fair share of the limelight in future
One quick comment on merchandise. There was a couple of items on offer, a nicely packaged CD of solo material by Gary I think and A CD called "Fine And Also Rare China" which was what I bought and got signed. It has some great tracks on it and is well worth getting
In summary, I would certainly like to see China Crisis again, not as a support act but as the 'main act' - they were great live and could certainly keep you entertained for a full concert
Hello OMD!
As always Andy bounded onto stage full of enthusiasm and we knew we were in for a good night.
It wasn't clear what material we were likely to get with this tour so I had an open mind from the start. As it turned out it was in essence a 'greatest hits' tour again (presumably the last one must have been enough of a success for OMD to come back again so soon)
The only real difference to the last tour was the addition of some tracks from Dazzle Ships. I have read articles saying Dazzle ships nearly ended their career but personally I always liked it. It was definitely 'colder' and more experimental than some of the more chart bound OMD material but I think it's got some great tracks on it and is certainly innovative
With recent concerts still fresh in my mind it would have been nice to have less of the hits and a more esoteric set list but I guess with a group like OMD, the fans kind of demand the usual hits
The set itself was good - not stunning like the A&M tour but definitely good. I think that in many cases the visuals were actually the same but were showing through different shaped shapes in the set to give a different impression
Considering the fact Paul and Mal were apparently feeling the after effects of a late night drinking session they put on a great show! According to Andy, Martin and himself were being at home with their families the night before so they were fine!
Of all the tracks we heard, 'Stanlow' stood out as the most atmospheric for me, really powerful. From Dazzle Ships, 'Radio Waves' was the killer - absolutely full of energy
After waiting so long to see OMD live I have now been quite spoilt having seen them three times in the last few years!
Probably because of that I was left with a slight feeling that I wanted to hear a few more tracks that were 'not' big hits, perhaps a few b-sides and more unusual or experimental stuff but either way it is always a feel good gig when you see OMD and I could listen to 'Souvenir' all day long - long live the 80's!
Review copyright by Mat McKenzie www.hypnoticbeats.co.uk
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