Some gigs are preceded by apprehension, but I felt pure excitement and anticipation before this one. An Awesome Wave is one of my favourite and most frequently played albums of the year, and the venue was unusual, complete with pipe organ and hexagonal stage area. It was evident from the start of the support act that the sound was of exceptional clarity, and the lighting set-up top-notch. This gig sold out immediately, prompting the promoter to put on a matinee earlier in the day, and I sensed this might be the last chance to see Alt-J in a venue of this size. Joe Newman explained that Manchester had supported the band from the beginning, and I sensed this was their way of returning the favour. As another audience member Tweeted to me afterwards, this was one of those 'Were you there?' occasions.
Remarkably, it was the start of Alt-J's only second headline tour, the first being in May this year: their rise in the UK really has been meteoric. The first album reached 19 in the album charts, amazing for art rock, and is favourite to win the 2012 Mercury Prize next week. In the last month, they've appeared on Jools Holland and toured America where they sold out venues. Tessellate has even been covered by chart toppers Mumford and Sons. They formed at Leeds University but are now resident in Cambridge, deliberately locating themselves away from the mainstream UK music scene. They are unashamedly intellectual; some would say pretentious. The album is subtle and complex, but does little to prepare you for the impact of their live performance.
I saw Alt-J at Parklife and Reading Festivals this summer, but it's striking how much their act has developed in intensity since then. Even their now bearded appearance has changed. Their new found fame has led to them being compared to Radiohead. I agree with Joe Newman that this is ridiculously premature; keyboard player Gus Unger-Hamilton attributes it to: "I suppose it's that we're vaguely clever and posh." Yet, despite their denials, I wonder if they've been studying the great Oxford band. The intensity of Thom Green's drumming was remarkably tight, and the energy and concentration in the room was palpable. This is also an act where the music is absolutely central: there was little between song chatter, and a feeling of perfectionism and unwillingness to compromise for the sake of audience appeal. They lead instead of following taste.
As the choir started singing in the first Interlude, I felt a real sense of euphoria: this was thrilling music making. The set list was all too short, notable for a Still D.R.E. and Kylie Minogue mash-up (Slow Dre) and a new jazz influenced song called Dissolve Me. Yet my highlights were Breezeblocks, enhanced by strobe lighting, Bloodflood and the masterly Taro. The energy level in the room remained high throughout, and my only regrets were the set time of scarcely an hour (understandable when they only have one album) and the all seated configuration. There's no doubt the audience were completely engaged, but this manifested itself emotionally rather than physically. By contrast, their Reading Festival set was a party, with crowds of teenagers dancing wildly in a packed tent.
The question is whether Alt-J is a buzz band who will quickly fade into obscurity, or have longevity. Pitchfork has little difficulty answering this question: they gave An Awesome Wave a 4.8/10 rating, describing Joe's voice as: "halfway between Macy Gray and a goose gibbering over beats discarded from Eskimo Snow-era". They went on to say: "Sometimes they sound like Bombay Bicycle Club playing in a submarine. Comprehensible intonation is out of the window." There's no denying that Joe's nasal vocals are an acquired taste, as are Gus Unger-Hamilton's falsetto harmonies, but Pitchfork should have experienced a recent live show before rushing to judgement. I bought my ticket for their next show in Manchester next May some weeks ago: this will be at a far larger, standing venue, and give more evidence to answer that question. Yet, this remarkable evening will stay in my memory for a long time, and I can't remember feeling so absorbed by a performance since I saw Arcade Fire last year.
Set List
- Into
- Interlude I (Choir)
- Tessellate
- Something Good
- Dissolve Me
- Fitzpleasure
- Slow Dre
- Matilda
- Breezeblocks
- MS
- Bloodflood (Choir)
- Hand-Made
- Taro
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