Event Review: Underworld Live London 2017
I hadn’t actually expected to be at this concert. I never even knew when the tickets were on sale, but as of last Monday, I was going to an Underworld show at Alexandra Palace, for their triumphant return to home soil. It was my first time at Ally Pally and it lived up to all the hype, it’s a truly amazing place. Built in the late 1800s, it was designed to give North London somewhere for entertainment, education and leisurely pursuits (the South had Crystal Palace). The BBC famously used it in the 1930s to broadcast television, but later it became more known for concerts and exhibitions covering everything from Miss World and the Brit Awards to Slipknot and Andy C.
Back in 2000, I was raving at the local club when a couple of mates rocked up with complimentary tickets for the Sunday of V2000 and offered me one. We go. No sleep, just straight through… after losing said mates at some point during the day, I spent the last few hours solo. I remember heading into the nearest tent as the rain had started sometime around 9pm (Travis were on the main stage and had just broken into the opening chords of ‘Why Does It Always Rain On Me?’, Ironic huh?!).
Anyway, in that tent were Underworld fresh from Darren Emerson leaving. They looked a bit sheepish but the gig was a resounding success - and immortalised as ‘Everything Everything’ a few months later. Fast Forward to last weekend and Underworld are back to being a two piece (no Darren Price), and again they rocked. Hard to believe that both Rick Smith and Karl Hyde are in their 60s, the moves are still there and the pair jumped around the stage like a couple of teenagers hyped up on sugary drinks!
Billed as ‘Underworld All Night’ the ’Surreal Carnival Experience’ kicked things off around 7pm with an music/art instillation in the gargantuan main hall of Alexandra Palace. Over 90 minutes, a visibly excited Rick Smith (for me, the backbone of Underworld) deconstructed, re-edited and re-imagined some of Underworld quieter moments as well as improvised some fresh new ideas. Conceptual and interesting in design, I was amazed at the dexterity of the band.
It’s easy to forget that they make a whole cross section of music, as it’s always the upbeat we consider ‘classic Underworld’. Lush orchestral pads, dub beats and crisp trip hop percussions filled the air. I’m pretty sure I heard most of the chilled parts of the RiverRun project and a few from Beaucoup Fish, but most were bored and didn’t get it. To be fair, it stayed ambient for a long time and because everyone was amped up for an Underworld gig, the juxtaposition of their mood vs. ambient music meant that the concept wasn’t fully realised in the minds of the crowd.
No matter, after a 30 minute break the duo took to the stage like returning heroes from some medieval battle to the sounds of Mmm Skyscraper, I Love You. Speaking to Melody Maker some years ago, Hyde attributes his writing style to Cubism stating “What I'm trying to do is paint around subjects instead of focusing straight in on them." which makes a lot of sense when you see his lyrics written down. Juanita kicks in as the dying embers of Skyscraper become inaudible, filling the room with an excitement and joy only the really good acts can achieve. All the malarky of earlier is forgotten and the 40 bucks for the ticket simultaneously regarded in a positive light… it’s still only 9:15pm. This is going to be a legendary gig.
Now fully warmed up with two of the greatest moments of dance music history, Underworld get into the new material; I Exhale and If Rah; taken from their 2016 album, Barbara Barbara, We Face a Shining Future. I Exhale sees the duo reignite their flame with a healthy nod to David Bowie and Blur: it’s endearing quality is that it feels oddly familiar and brand new at the same time. If Rah wouldn’t have sounded out of place at a Leftfield show, which delighted me. So much of what I considered Underworld’s sound to be is uptempo; in your face, and this was more considered and respectful. You can definitely hear the High Contrast influences.
Dark Train was next to up the energy followed by some of UWs biggest tracks, 2 Months Off and Scribble. Everyone was hyped: dancing their socks off and punching the air. There was a love in that room and the smiles said it all. Then, a curve ball with the opener from Beaucoup Fish, Cups sashaying in with its classy rhodes lines and vocoder vocals. Suitably chilled, Ring Road took us deeper down that path, the lyrics resonating with the British hometown crowd “Enough is never enough. Let's have a little moan, put the world to rights, sit back and watch it all slide by.” Man, if I had had a lighter, I would have lit it…
King of Snake never fails to impress and segued with the drummy and wondrous Kittens, it took the roof off. The raw power of Underworld it’s their ability to distil their passions into such robust and enduring grooves like Snake while at the same time transporting us across the World with a melody or lyric. We were entering the final throws of the show and the combination of Jumbo (a personal fav) and Low Burn set us up for a triumphant trilogy of the iconic Rez/Cowgirl, the intensity of Moaner and of course, the showstopper to beat all showstoppers, Born Slippy. We were in raptures, phones filled the air as the crowd scrambled to capture a few minutes of video or a picture for posterity. Karl and Rick hugged with big smiles, they thanked the crowd and exited the stage area as we began to make our home. In awe.
By far the best I’ve seen Underworld in some time which brought back some great memories for me. The new material sounds strong, but I do wonder how long they will keep going. 60 is no age these days, but touring takes a toll on the body. I hope I get one final chance to see them live, 17 years was way too long.
Music journalist, Acid Ted, DJ and producer, Simon Huxtable lives and breathes his passion every day. Like many of his age, dance music’s arrival was the wake-up call he needed; 80’s Britain was a desperate place and rave music provided a release. Now he is able to put into words what that means to him and how much dance music saved his life. S.H. Twitter
