Manchester Orchestra + Kevin Devine and the God Damn Band + Bad Books @ The Rescue Rooms, Nottingham – 28th September 2014
From suburban Atlanta Georgia to Inner-city Nottingham, Manchester Orchestra took over The Rescue Rooms, headlining and contributing to their support acts Kevin Devine and Bad Books.
Bad Books kicked off proceedings at a rather empty Rescue Rooms and set the tone perfectly for what was to come. Featuring Kevin Devine and members of Manchester Orchestra, the band ploughed through their indie-based tracks with banter between Devine and Andy Hull after each song – much to the crowd’s enjoyment.
Following swiftly after, Kevin Devine reappeared on stage but this time backed by The Goddamn Band. Kicking off with four songs from one of his two records released last year, Bubblegum, the band slipped into an intensity which was entirely unexpected. The music comes across and works so well in a live setting. Tracks like the stunning “Cotton Crush” or the bizarre “Redbird” received massive rounds of applause as it seemed the crowd was blown away by Devine’s performance.
At this point Rescue Rooms was heaving with people – and anticipation. Starting out with “Pride” from the seminal Mean Everything to Nothing, Manchester Orchestra’s intensity matched that of Kevin Devine’s.
Playing hit after hit, “Shake it Out” and “I’ve Got Friends” getting some of the biggest reactions of the night, the band played extended outros and often went into wall-of-sound territory while keeping the crowd hooked.
Newer tracks from Cope also went down well, but there was a clear divide between those who were into the older stuff and those into the newer. Everything sounded stunning, though, and Andy Hull wore his heart on his sleeve – without being too serious like peers in Brand New.
When the band finished up after a spectacular rendition of “Deer”, Hull returned to the stage with Devine to play a Bad Books song and then round out the evening with “The Fresh Prince of Bel Air”. Seriously. An amazing night courtesy of a bunch of amazing musicians. Especially the bassist who played all three sets.
Setlists:
Bad Books :
The After Party
No Reward
Holding Down the Laughter
Forest Whitaker
Friendly Advice
You Wouldn’t Have to Ask
It Never Stops
Kevin Devine and the Goddamn Band :
Bubblegum
Nobel Prize
Private First Class
Fiscal Cliff
Little Bulldozer
I Could Be With Anyone
Cotton Crush
Redbird
Brother’s Blood
Manchester Orchestra:
Pride
Shake it Out
Pensacola
Pale Black Eye
Every Stone
The Ocean
I Can Barely Breathe
Married
I’ve Got Friends
Simple Math
Everything to Nothing
Cope
The Mansion
Top Notch
Deer
–
42 (Bad Books cover; Andy Hull with Kevin Devine)
The Fresh Prince of Bel Air (Andy Hull with Kevin Devine)
Photographer: Dave Musson
Review: Max Qayyum