There’s a lot of gear on stage. Mostly amps and pedals. One expects noise. The audience is a mix of young and old.
Mogwai lulls us into a false sense of security with the first three gentle, serene shoegazey numbers ‘God Gets You Back’, ‘I’m Jim Morrison…’ and ‘Cody’.
Just when you think it’s time for a snooze they’ve started into ‘If You Find This World Bad…’, with it’s gentle, slow, minimal start… and then half way through its sheer-volume-wall-of-noise kicks in and wakes you up.
During the quiet start of ‘Christmas Steps’ numerous members of the enthusiastic crowd show their appreciation loudly, encouraging the jet engine to power up. And it does. And during the almost inaudible single-guitar ending you could hear a pin drop. It’s quite moving.
The beautiful distortion of ‘Fanzine Made Of Flesh’ is nicely balanced with the Air-like vocoder. It makes me think of My Bloody Valentine.
Mogwai are ultimately quite basic, almost a one-trick pony of quiet intensity and explosive noise, but there’s definitely a beauty in the sonics and minimal melodies that break through the walls of distortion and reverb. The experience is like being wrapped in a reassuring trip made of sound. My only criticism from tonight is that the snare drum sounds like the bottom of a plastic bucket and I see the rest of kit being played, but there’s nothing discernible breaking through. Having said that, it’s still mesmeric.
Mogwai photos & set-list:
Set-list:
God Gets You Back
I’m Jim Morrison, I’m Dead
Cody
If You Find This World Bad, You Should See Some of the Others
Christmas Steps
Ritchie Sacramento
Fanzine Made of Flesh
Hi Chaos
Auto Rock
Mogwai Fear Satan
Lion Rumpus
Encore:
Hunted by a Freak
My Father, My King
Photos & words Cormac Figgis @themasterswitch