Simple Minds @ o2 Academy, 11th April 2015
Of all the bands that emerged from the punk/new wave scene of the late 1970’s, Simple Minds’ career trajectory has to be the most interesting. Most bands from that time imploded or retained a cult following, whereas Simple Minds outgrew their small Glasgow venues and became an internationally well respected rock band, and then came back to earth and a quiet, more humble obscurity. This current tour is promoting the band’s 16th album (yes, 16th!!) “Big Music”, and despite being ignored or shunned in the main by the current music press, are continuing to attempt to produce music as interesting and inventive as they ever did. There have been a few times in my life where I have felt at total odds with all those around me. Tonight’s Simple Minds gig is one of them. From note one of a two hour plus, two part set, Jim Kerr and the band have the audience eating out of their hands, but from the beginning of a stuttering part two I am left totally cold.
The first set is full of classic pre-stadium Simple Minds tracks: ‘New Gold Dream’, ‘I Travel’, ‘Love Song’, ‘Glittering Prize’ and a stunning acoustic version of ‘The American’. I suppose as this period is my favourite incarnation of Simple Minds, I am as enthralled as all of those around me, however, when the set moves into the band’s globally successful period, I witness too much stadium posturing from the artists and it looks a little out of place in the intimate atmosphere of the Birmingham Academy. Therefore ‘Waterfront’, and the song that launched the band internationally, ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’ sees Jim Kerr reliving those times when he couldn’t see the back row of the venue, and they could not see him. I have never seen an artist wave at the crowd at the back of the Academy before because they are really, very close (this is not Wembley Stadium), but Mr Kerr must have waved a dozen times throughout the two sets, and I couldn’t spot anyone waving back.
He did manage successfully however, to get the audience to clap their hands and sing throughout with just a flick of his microphone. And here is my biggest grievance: this is a Simple Minds’ gig and yet almost every line of every chorus is being sung by the audience. In ‘Waterfront’ for instance, Jim only sings about four lines of the whole song as his constant directions to the crowd means they take over the lead vocal part, and again for much of ‘Don’t You (Forget About Me)’. He even says during one of those choruses, “I should be paying you” – and he is right, the audience are working harder than he is. However, even the harshest critic could not fail to be impressed by the way Kerr takes the crowd through the song’s outtro – guiding them through volume and dynamic changes, and crowd and band are loving every minute. “You’re mad,” he declares as the audience do not stop singing “La – la la la laa, la la la la la”, over and over. “It’s all right for you,” he continues talking. “We’ve got work tomorrow.” He checks his watch and smiles as if he has got to go, but is just enjoying the scene too much.
Finally, the extended ‘Don’t You Forget About Me’ ends and Jim gives everyone a ten minute break. The lights go up, the audience rush for the toilets and the bar, and I wonder why the band opt for two sets when the venue is pumped up after an hour. My fears are fully realised when Set 2 starts with the great instrumental ‘Bass Line’ and then two songs sung by Sarah Brown. Is Jim Kerr taking a longer than expected toilet break? Where is the ****** singer? He finally arrives for song four and no one else in the room seems to care he was missing. ‘All the Things She Said’ brings some life back into this muted beginning, but by then the love I was beginning to feel in the first set quickly dissipates. It really feels like there is a distinct lull after a staggering first set, followed by a few stuttering starts into the second set. Two sets seems unnecessarily over complicated as it takes two times to warm a crowd when they were melting already at the end of set one. A very odd decision in my opinion.
Apart from “Someone Somewhere in Summertime”, the last part of the second set is from a period of Simple Minds’ history I don’t personally enjoy, and I begin wishing I had left after the first set ended – that review would have been a solid 5 stars. As it is, the two sets together, barely push 2 and a half stars – shoehorning in The Doors’ song ‘Riders on the Storm’ as an encore also drops half a star. “Alive and Kicking” obviously ends the night in stadium rock style with Jim holding his microphone out to the audience again. I stand there wishing for ‘Promised You A Miracle’ or ‘Sweat In Bullet’ or ‘In Trance In Mission’.
With these misgivings, I thoroughly enjoy the guitar work of Charlie Burchill, who manages to sound like none of his immediate peers, with maybe a nod to Fripp and Belew. His use of delay and chorus is without question the highlight of the whole night – and at least he never passes his guitar into the front row and gets them to play the guitar solos.
The rest of the band are faultless and predictably brilliant, but lack a certain amount of earthiness: Gaynor, Gillespie and Grimes seem unconnected to the audience on a personal level but maybe this is due to Kerr monopolising the stage. The supporting vocalists Sarah Brown and Catherine AD, also have a strange dynamic within the performance as at times, their position on stage (towering over and behind Jim Kerr) puts them as the focal point – added to this the times where they take over lead vocal duties (and Kerr physically leaves the stage) makes it feel like an ensemble show, when it really is and should be a simple Simple Minds show. I must state now (as it may sound like a didn’t like this gig at all), that Jim Kerr came over as a humble and gracious rockstar. Even though he allowed the audience to sing for him, I saw him on countless occasions mouthing “Thank you very much” to his adoring fans – he certainly is aware that the consistent support of crowds like the one at Birmingham Academy keep Simple Minds in work and they love him to the ends of the earth.
In a nutshell: promised a miracle, but just didn’t deliver.
The line-up: Jim Kerr, Charlie Burchill, Mel Gaynor, Andy Gillespie, Ged Grimes and supporting vocalists Sarah Brown and Catherine AD.
Set One:
Let the Day Begin
Blindfolded
Glittering Prize
I Travel
New Gold Dream (81-82-83-84)
The American (acoustic)
Home (acoustic)
Real Life
Honest Town
Love Song
Rivers of Ice
Dolphins
Waterfront
Don’t You (Forget About Me)
Set Two:
Bass Line
Book of Brilliant Things
East at Easter
Once Upon a Time
All the Things She Said
Let There Be Love
Let It All Come Down
Someone Somewhere in Summertime
Midnight Walking
Big Music
Sanctify Yourself
Spirited Away
Riders on the Storm
Alive and Kicking
Review: Alan Neilson
Photographs: Ian Dunn