|
ELBOW So, Elbow. Corpses in bathtubs. Fallen angels. Miserable bastards, right? Wrong. Wrong. Wrong. Everything Elbow do tonight somehow ends up as life-affirming. From the cyclical, repeated gospel refrain of opener Ribcage - "And when the Sunshine / Throwing me a lifeline / Finds it's way in to my room / All I need is you" - to the ecstatic last minute of crowd favourite "Newborn", there is a definite feelgood vibe permeating the Academy tonight. Glancing around as the balloons fall during the encore all I can see is hugging couples (of all sexes!) and wide, wide smiles. This isn't something I can remember seeing here before, and tonight was the last place I expected it. Elbow's recorded output is cystallline in it's perfection. First album, the Mercury nominated "Asleep at the back", introduced us to frontman Guy Garvey's unique vision - a sonic landscape as much influenced by swirling psychedelic 70's prog and Radiohead as it is by the musical heritage of the band's native Manchester. And most recently "Cast of Thousands" widened their sonic vistas to encompass gospel choirs and steel guitar, bathing Garvey's intimate vocals in much warmer arrangements. Tonight's set comprises of highlights from both records. The voice is as note perfect and unique as ever and as they progress through the opening few tracks the band's musical prowess becomes obvious. After a gorgeous "Powder Blue", a new, as yet untitled, instrumental track surprises the audience with it's guitar-led ferocity. It's a perfect intro to the tribal drums and massive riffs of "Bitten By The Tailfly", one of my favourite Elbow tracks. Slowing things down, they move through several more subdued numbers, including a superb version of "Fugitive Motel", accompanied with video projections of victorian imagery and the lyrics being written in a lush script. "I'll be the corpse..." As opening lines go, it's not the most upbeat, but as soon as he utters the first word, "Newborn" is greeted with a huge cheer. The stage is bathed in warm reds and yellows and, although seated, Garvey still manages to rock-out during the crescendo, wailing and thrashing away at his acoustic. The three-song encore closes with another Elbow moment. The gospel choir are back, so's the brass section and support band Alfie join in. The house lights come up and hundreds of white balloons glide from the ceiling. As the closing bars echo around the auditorium people begin to pop them and it's as if there's an audio-only fireworks display kicking off. The band leave the stage knowing they've done it - Brixton is conquered. The cheers eventually die out and we all leave. Outside, a cruel South London wind blows around us, but inside we are still glowing. SET LIST:Ribcage, Fallen Angel, Red, Snooks, Powder Blue, Unknown Instrumental, Bitten By The Tailfly, Coming Second, I've Got Your Number, Fugitive Motel, Scattered Black And Whites, Newborn. Encore : Switching Off, Any Day Now, Grace Under Pressure. Richy [ February 21st, 2004 ] |