The Last Shadow Puppets
Castlefield Bowl, Manchester, 10th July 2016
Support: Yak, Gaz Coombes
The brazen supergroup triumphantly take on Manchester for the first time in eight years.
Opinions may vary on Arctic Monkeys’ Alex Turner and solo artist Mile Kane’s side-project exploit, but few would dare say that it is unexciting. After the success of their 2008 debut The Age of the Understatement and a small string of shows, the duo took a breather on the whole thing, and over the years remained pretty vague about any potential return. Such a return raised its head at the beginning of this year with follow-up album Everything You’ve Come To Expect, and proved that it was not what we expected. More outlandish, more crude, and, perhaps inevitably given the time between the records, more mature – and that’s just the songs themselves. Taken to the stage and we see a side to best mates Turner and Kane that we don’t always see in their day jobs.
Tonight’s gig is deep into the Puppets’ extensive touring schedule so they are met with a crowd who know to look out for the gyrate dance moves and an overdose of bromance. What they probably were not looking out for, however, was the actual Johnny Marr joining on stage to do an actual Smiths song; Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me lulls the 8000 onlookers into the show slowly, rather than kicking off with the Puppets’ usual brass, strings-backed bang.
The following is a healthy balance of tracks from both albums. The distinct retro feel of The Age of’s songs, penned when the duo were just twenty-one, seems lost now as they resurrect them as thirty-year-olds and when intercut with more recent tracks. Aviation, arguably the new song most fitting with the original Puppety sound, lights up the stage and spectators, and this energy continues through 2008 single The Age of the Understatement and Separate and Ever Deadly. The set showcases the breadth of styles Turner and Kane have brought with their return, from the rather promiscuous Dracula Teeth and Used to Be My Girl, to the softer croons of Miracle Aligner and The Dream Synopsis, the latter being faintly reminiscent of Turner’s 2010 Submarine EP. All tracks are further brought brilliantly to life with the accompaniment of an on-stage string quartet, one of the signature elements of the TLSP brand.
And, of course, the opportunity to groove is not lost on Turner, whose dance moves of excessive arm-waving and swinging hips ain’t for the faint hearted. Kane is no less ebulliant, rallying from one side of the stage to the other as he performs skilful guitar solos. Whilst Turner’s vocals expertly bring the wow-factor, shown especially in monumental love anthem Sweet Dreams, TN, Kane brings a zestful frontmanship that really gets the crowd going, leading comeback single Bad Habits and a cover of The Fall’s Totally Wired.
The band close the show with Meeting Place, a tender tale about longing. After tonight’s slick show, soon enough we’ll be the ones longing – longing for The Last Shadow Puppets to return again when they once more disappear for (hopefully not quite) eight years.
Castlefield Bowl, Manchester, 10th July 2016
Support: Yak, Gaz Coombes
The brazen supergroup triumphantly take on Manchester for the first time in eight years.
Opinions may vary on Arctic Monkeys’ Alex Turner and solo artist Mile Kane’s side-project exploit, but few would dare say that it is unexciting. After the success of their 2008 debut The Age of the Understatement and a small string of shows, the duo took a breather on the whole thing, and over the years remained pretty vague about any potential return. Such a return raised its head at the beginning of this year with follow-up album Everything You’ve Come To Expect, and proved that it was not what we expected. More outlandish, more crude, and, perhaps inevitably given the time between the records, more mature – and that’s just the songs themselves. Taken to the stage and we see a side to best mates Turner and Kane that we don’t always see in their day jobs.
Tonight’s gig is deep into the Puppets’ extensive touring schedule so they are met with a crowd who know to look out for the gyrate dance moves and an overdose of bromance. What they probably were not looking out for, however, was the actual Johnny Marr joining on stage to do an actual Smiths song; Last Night I Dreamt That Somebody Loved Me lulls the 8000 onlookers into the show slowly, rather than kicking off with the Puppets’ usual brass, strings-backed bang.
The following is a healthy balance of tracks from both albums. The distinct retro feel of The Age of’s songs, penned when the duo were just twenty-one, seems lost now as they resurrect them as thirty-year-olds and when intercut with more recent tracks. Aviation, arguably the new song most fitting with the original Puppety sound, lights up the stage and spectators, and this energy continues through 2008 single The Age of the Understatement and Separate and Ever Deadly. The set showcases the breadth of styles Turner and Kane have brought with their return, from the rather promiscuous Dracula Teeth and Used to Be My Girl, to the softer croons of Miracle Aligner and The Dream Synopsis, the latter being faintly reminiscent of Turner’s 2010 Submarine EP. All tracks are further brought brilliantly to life with the accompaniment of an on-stage string quartet, one of the signature elements of the TLSP brand.
And, of course, the opportunity to groove is not lost on Turner, whose dance moves of excessive arm-waving and swinging hips ain’t for the faint hearted. Kane is no less ebulliant, rallying from one side of the stage to the other as he performs skilful guitar solos. Whilst Turner’s vocals expertly bring the wow-factor, shown especially in monumental love anthem Sweet Dreams, TN, Kane brings a zestful frontmanship that really gets the crowd going, leading comeback single Bad Habits and a cover of The Fall’s Totally Wired.
The band close the show with Meeting Place, a tender tale about longing. After tonight’s slick show, soon enough we’ll be the ones longing – longing for The Last Shadow Puppets to return again when they once more disappear for (hopefully not quite) eight years.
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