Category: Live Reports (Page 1 of 37)

Obscure PET SHOP BOYS Live at Electric Ballroom

11 April 2026 /

With the vocodered count of ‘Time On My Hands’ from ‘Disco 3’ acting as walk on music, the third night of the ‘Obscure’ PET SHOP BOYS’ residency at London’s Electric Ballroom began in aid of War Child.

The choice of venue in the heart of Camden was inspired by a BRONSKI BEAT miners benefit show that Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe attended in 1984; it was ‘The Year Pop Went Queer’ and a time of political polarisation, the effects of which have only worsened today.

The aim of the ‘Obscure’ shows was to provide opportunities for some of the less widely known non-single album tracks and B-sides to be aired on stage; with 35 of them programmed and rehearsed, this was manna that brought loyal fans closer to heaven from all over world, as well as fellow musicians like Blank & Jones, Jori Hulkkonen and Sarah Blackwood over the course of five nights.

Although beginning steadily with ‘Through You’, the B-side of 2024’s ‘Loneliness’, the ‘Hotspot’ was immediately hit with the album’s best number ‘Will‐o‐the‐wisp’. The mighty ‘Please’ opener ‘Two Divided by Zero’ continued the momentum before the filmic Satie-influenced ‘Jack The Lad’ with its lyrics about the Cold War double agent Kim Philby.

As Tennant was passed an acoustic six string by his roadie, he warned the audience there would be a second guitar! Cue Johnny Marr (whose name incidentally in French means “I am fed up”) and a rousing rendition of ‘The Truck Driver & His Mate’! Having been part of PET SHOP BOYS setlists in 1997 and 2002, the inclusion of this OASIS-influence rock out was not that surprising but the airing of THE MONKEES pastiche ‘I Didn’t Get Where I Am Today’ perhaps was. To conclude Marr’s guest spot, ‘Up Against It’ from 1996’s ‘Bilingual’ got its live debut. Even after Marr departed the stage, his spirit continued as the nouveau noir of ‘Hit & Miss’ made it four in a row with the guitars!

Looking at times like he was about to give a sermon while staring at a lectern with lyrical prompts and occasionally seated for the more balladic performances, the Reverend Neil Tennant joked about it being like WESTLIFE although his demeanour recalled George Michael’s ‘MTV Unplugged’ from 1996; indeed, slower songs such as ‘Always’ and ‘King of Rome’ were not that far apart from some of those on the former WHAM! frontman’s ‘Older’ album.

But there were bangers and ‘One in a Million’, a ‘Very’ song originally written for TAKE THAT got segued into CULTURE BEAT’s ‘Mr. Vain’ to party like it was 1993! The chugging rave / indie hybrid ‘Sexy Northerner’ proved again that “it’s not all football and fags” as the chugging ‘Young Offender’ was unexpectedly rescued from obscurity.

A magnificently elegiac moment came with possibly the greatest song in the PET SHOP BOYS cannon ‘It Couldn’t Happen Here’; adapted from the Ennio Morricone composition ‘Forecast’, it was written about a friend who had been diagnosed with AIDS. Tennant had previously remarked that “people said it wasn’t going to develop in England like it had in America” and in 2026, the solemn lyrics could be applied to the virus of the far right. But the message is clear: #FuckTrump #FuckFarage #FuckReformUK #FuckReformUKKK #FuckTommyRobinson #FuckFlagshaggers

Despite ‘King’s Cross’ using the tragic London railway station as a metaphor to the carnage of Thatcherism, it actually prompted an audience singalong while on the other side of the coin, ‘Why Don’t We Live Together?’ was more New York in its euphoric clubby euphoria. Written for Shirley Bassey and accompanied by a Stylophone sample, PET SHOP BOYS really went into their deeper cuts with ‘The Performance Of My Life’; in what could be considered their very own ‘My Way’, it was a fitting main set closer.

For the encore, there was a tear jerking moment as Tennant accompanied himself on keyboards for an emotional ‘Your Funny Uncle’ while livening things up, ‘The Way It Used to Be’ saw Lowe now fully relaxed and even bouncing up and down behind his workstation. Meanwhile, the wonderful ‘Later Tonight’ recalled the nervous live TV performance on ‘Old Grey Whistle Test’ in 1986; “we were not very good in 1986” joked Tennant. To finish, Tennant and Lowe performed a so far unreleased song from their new musical ‘Naked’; ‘I Dream Of A Better Tomorrow’ recalled the hopeful widescreen melancholy of ‘Please’ and ‘Actually’.

Over the five nights of ‘Obscure’ PET SHOP BOYS, the loyal Petheads were treated with surprises that included ‘To Face The Truth’, ‘The Theatre’, ‘Do I Have To?’, ‘Bet She’s Not Your Girlfriend’, ‘Requiem in Denim & Leopardskin’,  ‘A Certain Je Ne Sais Quoi’, ‘Positive Role Model’, ‘Happiness Is An Option’ and ‘Miserablism’. Unlike OMD who managed to ruin their 2016 ‘Dazzle Ships’ + ‘Architecture & Morality’ live presentation in Frankfurt by going off-piste with the inane pairing of ‘Sailing On The Seven Seas’ and ‘Locomotion’ in encore, PET SHOP BOYS stuck to their ‘Obscure’ guns. The end result was a brilliant evening that proved that live concepts geared for the cognoscenti can work. It’s not always about music for the masses…

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its special thanks to Andy De Decker

The book ‘Volume’ is published by Thames & Hudson in hardback, available from the usual book sellers and online retail outlets

https://www.petshopboys.co.uk/

https://www.facebook.com/petshopboys

https://www.instagram.com/petshopboys/

https://www.threads.com/@petshopboys

https://bsky.app/profile/petshopboys.co.uk

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK has compiled an Obscure PET SHOP BOYS playlist on Spotify at https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3QfJbKvMDsTwgInxqbpskm

Text and Photos by Chi Ming Lai
11th April 2026

AUSTRA + TESS ROBY Live at London Village Underground

30 March 2026 /

Named after the goddess of light in Latvian mythology, AUSTRA were back in London for the first time since 2017.

The vehicle of Katie Stelmanis, the Canadian is now a veteran of six AUSTRA albums including the 2023 ballet commission ‘Swan Song’. Blessed with an outstanding operatic voice that conveys heartbreak yet is able soothe broken hearts, despite an enigmatic persona often perceived as “icy”, she has now revealed a playfulness not seen before with her most recent album ‘Chin Up Buttercup’, a cathartic recording capturing the aftermath of a relationship break-up.

With Kieran Adams co-producing, Stelmanis’ new studio partner introduced her to the often misunderstood melodramatics and escapism of Eurodance. Meanwhile Stelmanis also found solace in Madonna’s 1998 album ‘Ray of Light’ which was produced by William Orbit. The end result became a set of hypnotic dancefloor-friendly arias that offered glimmers of hope and optimism.

Opening for AUSTRA on this tour of the British Isles was fellow Canadian Tess Roby; releasing her debut album ‘Beacon’ in 2018 on Italians Do It Better, her second ‘Ideas Of Space’ came out on her own SSURROUNDSS imprint. Her danceable dreampop side project DAWN TO DAWN in collaboration with IDM duo THE BEAT ESCAPE drew much acclaim, as did her photography. Roby had teased photos on her socials of her working with the huge TONTO customised modular system now located at Canada’s National Music Centre in Calgary and is due to release her third album later this year.

Performing mostly new material, while her songs still retain a forlorn contralto introspection, what has been added to template are busy hypnotic electronic rhythms, as exemplified by the excellent opening number ‘Dream Q’. ‘Up 2 Me’ and the title song from ‘Ideas of Space’ provided points of familiarity to those who may have already been aware of her previous work, but another new track ‘High’ affirmed that what she previewed from her new record is sounding really good.

Utilising a streamlined band compared with past tours, drummer Germaine Png and bassist Charise Aragoza complimented the dynamic backing tracks showcasing the new dancier AUSTRA sound while allowing Stelmanis to take centre stage. Opening with the emotive ‘Siren Song’, the superb ‘Math Equation’ with its syncopated ‘Can’t Get You Out Of My Head’ drive set the scene that this was to be a joyous evening with minimal wallowing. ‘Amnesia’ continued the Europop bounce while the avant operatic ‘Think Twice’ was lightened with hearty bursts of “oh whoops!”

Stelmanis is certainly more comfortable fronting a band than she had been in 2014 when she would often turn away from the audience to play keyboards but tonight, there were only occasional forays to enable her to face the crowd. While the set focussed on ‘Chin Up Buttercup’ with the ‘Hirudin’ album notable for its absence, ‘Utopia’ and ‘I Love You More Than You Love Yourself’ passionately revisited 2017’s ‘Future Politics’ album,

‘Blindsided’ began a section that offered respite from the dance along with the ivory-dominant Baroque of ‘Home’ from 2014’s ‘Olympia’, but it was 2010’s debut single ‘Beat & The Pulse’ that drew the first big cheers with the trio providing a suitably powerful rendition. With its melodic and uplifting atmospherics, ‘Fallen Cloud’ returned things to clubbier vibes while ‘The Hopefulness of Dawn’ pushed proceedings into happy hardcore rave. So it was fitting that a COMMUNARDS-inspired restyling of ‘Lose It’ was the perfect tonic to conclude the main set.

With that in mind, the three song encore was comparatively disappointing with one of AUSTRA’s best songs ‘Spellwork’ still not quite coming off live, a situation that afflicted the shows in 2014. But this did not detract from what was an excellent concert this was, with its moods of euphoria demonstrating that AUSTRA are now in the main, a compelling live act.

With thanks to Aoife Kitt at Domino Recordings

AUSTRA ‘Chin Up Buttercup’ is released by Domino Recordings, available on vinyl, CD and digitally

https://austra.fyi/

https://www.facebook.com/austrafyi

https://www.instagram.com/austra/

Tess Roby’s albums ‘Ideas Of Space’ and ‘Beacon’ are available on vinyl, CD and digitally from https://tessroby.bandcamp.com/music

https://tessroby.com/

https://www.facebook.com/tessroby

https://www.instagram.com/tessroby/

Text and Photos by Chi Ming Lai
30th March 2026

LOSCIL + PATRICIA WOLF Live at Rich Mix

20 September 2025 /

Independent London promoter Baba Yaga’s Hut put on a special treat at Shoreditch’s Rich Mix with a line-up featuring two of the best exponents of modern ambient from North America.

Using a pseudonym taken from the “looping oscillator” function in the Csound music computing system, Scott Morgan launched the project in 1998 and released ‘Triple Point’ , his first record as Loscil in 2011. A graduate of Vancouver University’s School for the Contemporary Arts, his exquisite 2019 long player ‘Lifelike’ was a subtle melodic triumph with its soothing tender tones. A prolific artist with music issued on an annual basis, his new album ‘Lake Fire’ is a darker and gloomier affair with a denser resonance.

Embracing the ambient form comparatively more recently, Patricia Wolf was the front woman of synthpop duo SOFT METALS and released her debut solo instrumental work ‘I’ll Look For You In Others’ in 2022 which captured her feelings of bereavement and heartbreak. Immersing herself in nature and field recordings, the wonderful follow-up ‘See-Through’ brought in some joyous radiance. Although 2024’s ‘The Secret Lives of Birds’ had its darker moments of angst and sadness driven by concern, her most recent avian themed work ‘Hrafnamynd’ (Icelandic for “raven film”) provided the splendid windswept soundtrack to a feature-length documentary by experimental filmmaker Edward Pack Davee.

For her opening set, Patricia Wolf opted to roadtest new material; while many of the pieces were at one both aurally and visually with nature and wildlife, enhanced by avian field recordings and exquisite sound design, one was grander than previously with an unexpected soundbite in her own reversed and glitched spoken word. Closing with uplifting ‘Springtime in Croatia’, the fresh breezy escapism of her live presentation was appreciated by those present.

For his headline set, Loscil explored the brooding territory as showcased on ‘Lake Fire’ with the sinister atmospheres complimented by his visual views on the natural world which were particularly impressionistic to suit the mood. Occasionally there would be deep rumbles acting as backbeats to vibed the mind while drones would provide moments of transcendental and occasionally tense listening.

Ambient material can be a challenge for some to consume live as the talkative disruption at the Vince Clarke’s ‘Songs of Silence’ show at the end of 2023 proved. But either standing, sat on the floor or remaining seated, the almost full house at Rich Mix understood, so were respectful and attentive as they enjoyed a fine evening of an often underrated music form.

‘Lake Fire’ by Loscil is released by Kranky as a double vinyl LP, CD and digitally, available from
https://loscil.bandcamp.com/album/lake-fire

https://www.loscil.ca/

https://www.facebook.com/loscill/

https://www.instagram.com/loscil/

https://www.threads.com/@loscil

https://bsky.app/profile/loscil.ca

‘Hrafnamynd’ by Patricia Wolf is released by Balmat as an orange or black vinyl LP and digitally, available from https://patriciawolf.bandcamp.com/album/hrafnamynd

https://www.facebook.com/patriciawolfmusic

https://www.instagram.com/patriciawolf_music/

https://bsky.app/profile/patriciawolf.bsky.social

https://linktr.ee/patriciawolfmusic

Text and Photos by Chi Ming Lai
20th September 2025

ICE MACHINES II Live in Dublin featuring EMPIRE STATE HUMAN, 100 POEMS, PolyDROID, CIRCUIT 3 + AMALGAMATED WONDERS OF THE WORLD

11 August 2025 /

The Racket Space in the hip Bernard Shaw pub on the canal near Glasnevin does what its name suggests and provides a location for creative expression and artistic exploration.

With electronic music still being a comparatively niche pastime compared with say Berlin, Paris or London, Ice Machines is a Dublin-based collective founded by Brian Christopher (AMALGAMATED WONDERS OF THE WORLD), Peter Fitzpatrick (CIRCUIT3), Brian O’Malley (PolyDROID), Mike Wilson (100 POEMS) and Aidan Casserly (EMPIRE STATE HUMAN) to further the cause with free events aimed at the committed and the curious.

For the joy of synth and friendship, the fivesome have even released an ‘Ice Machines’ compilation album with each artist contributing one original and one cover version in aid of the Musical Youth Foundation, a charity supporting access to music education and instrument learning for children across Ireland. This second Ice Machines event was to launch that collection with live performances from all participants in a gathering of like-minds.

Photo by John Keenan

The day began with electronic instrument demos, the most interesting of which was the SOMA Terra, a wooden cased synth without a conventional keyboard but instead touch sensitive fingertip sensors to control it. There were also live improv performances from various local artists using devices as varied as portastudios, Akai keyboard controllers, digi-analog sequencers and Prophet 800 boutique-modules. This provided an artful audio backdrop for a small record stall that included an oddball collection of second hand releases including ‘Sing Lofty’ by Don Estelle & Windsor Davies, David Essex’s debut LP and Jean Michel Jarre’s ‘Oxygène’ alongside local independently released drum ‘n’ bass 12 inchers!

For the main musical section of the evening, having 5 electronic acts on a small stage was always going to be an interesting challenge logistically so as anticipated, the opening DJ set was occasionally interrupted by line checks although amusingly, one of the acts appeared to forget it was line check as extended bursts of gliding synth wobbled off and on, very loud and very clear!

Photo by John Keenan

AMALGAMATED WONDERS OF THE WORLD opened proceedings with a continuous mix of abstract constructions that was at times ambient and at times techno with many generative possibilities in between. Brian Christopher is also part of Bloop Groop, an inclusive Dublin digital hub established to encourage local modular enthusiasts to “Jam, Hang, Play” and many of their number were present at Ice Machines II to show their support by cheering and / or dancing.

Despite feedback issues, CIRCUIT3 soldiered on through his disco excursion ‘Louder Than Words’, an unexpected rock tinged adventure ‘Major Tom’s Helter Zeppelin’ that included a number of familiar vocal passages and a reimagination of the DEPECHE MODE B-side ‘Ice Machine’ using Dave Gahan’s original vocals that prompted an audience singalong.

Photo by Chi Ming Lai

Having spent over 10 years in hiatus, PolyDROID presented a largely melodic instrumental set which included the excellent ‘Six Of One’ inspired by cult TV drama ‘The Prisoner’, but those present were stopped in their tracks by a vocoder interpretation of Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘The Sound Of Silence’ which was transformed into a stark tone poem.

In contrast, 100 POEMS offered something much nosier and esoteric with (Shock! Horror!) a guitar and a surprising burst of THE WHITE STRIPES’ ‘7 Nation Army’ although a cover of THE NORMAL’s ‘Warm Leatherette’ using a well-spoken computer–generated female announcer kept things on track with the ethos of the evening.

Photo by John Keenan

14 stories high at least, EMPIRE STATE HUMAN finished with a high energetic pop performance that would delight ERASURE fans by opening with ‘Leap Of Faith’ from 2009’s ‘Audio Gothic’ album; however the tempo was later slighted to allow room for a synth cover of ‘Superstar’, the rather dark tale of a groupie which was incongruously made famous by THE CARPENTERS but later given a much more sinister treatment by SONIC YOUTH in 1992.

While there were occasional technical glitches, the time flew by and then like in ‘Mr Benn’, as if by magic, the shopkeeper appeared and it was time to for the Ice Machines posse to vacate The Racket Space for the Saturday club nite DJs to bring their sound system in.

Photo by John Keenan

Dublin has steadily morphed into a wonderful multicultural melting pot and Ice Machine II was a warm friendly gathering of generations. It was particularly lovely see the Philpott triplets from EMBRACE THE CRISIS who are among the longest standing synthpop enthusiasts in The Emerald Isle and are still keeping the faith and passion alive.

While most of those of a maturer disposition went home after an enjoyable evening, the comparative youngsters from Bloop Groop stayed on at the Bernard Shaw, probably plotting how electronic music will mutate in the future… because it will!

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK DJ set at Ice Machines II:

KITE Up For Life
CAMOUFLAGE The Great Commandment
PAUL HAIG The Only Truth (12” Version)
RHEINGOLD Computerbeat
PLASTIC BERTRAND Tout Petit La Planète
AU REVOIR SIMONE Tell Me (Un Autre Monde mix by MIRRORS)
MIRRORS Hide & Seek
PHIL LYNOTT Yellow Pearl
SPARKS When Do I Get To Sing ‘My Way’? (THE GRID Radio Edit)
GIORGIO MORODER Chase
KLEIN & MBO Dirty Talk (USA Connection)
CERRONE Supernature (12” Version)
JOHN FOXX & THE MATHS Summerland
ALPHAVILLE x SCHILLER Summer in Berlin
AMANDA LEAR Follow Me
KRAFTWERK Computerwelt (12” remix)
BERLIN Now It’s My Turn
FOX Electro People
DONNA SUMMER I Feel Love (Patrick Cowley 7” remix)

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to all at Ice Machines

‘Ice Machines: The Album – For the Joy of Synths & Friendship’ is available digitally on Bandcamp at https://icemachines.bandcamp.com/album/ice-machines-the-album

https://www.facebook.com/AMALGAMATEDWONDERS

http://www.circuit3.com/

https://www.facebook.com/polydroid

https://100poems.bandcamp.com/

https://www.facebook.com/empirestatehumanofficial

Text by Chi Ming Lai
11th August 2025

SPARKS Live In London

20 June 2025 /

SPARKS know how to put on a good show but most importantly know their audience and how to challenge them, to their delight.

While OMD’s live set becomes increasingly cabaret with the tediously insipid ‘So In Love’, ‘Dreaming’ and ‘Locomotion’ now the mainstays leading up to the set climax, SPARKS are happy to revisit their past but not in obvious ways.

Continuing to ‘Do Things My Own Way’ at London’s Hammersmith Apollo, Russell and Ron Mael unleash surprises early on with the return of ‘Reinforcements’ from ‘Propaganda’ and the totally unexpected inclusion of ‘Academy Award Performance’ off the seminal ‘No1 In Heaven’ album. This section gets capped off with the glorious Cossack rock out of ‘Goofing Off’ from 1977’s often forgotten ‘Introducing’ album.

But proceedings fittingly open with ‘So May We Start’ from the musical ‘Annette’ and the SPARKS backing band comprising of new drummer Darren Weiss, his brother Evan on guitar, Eli Pearl (guitar) and Max Whipple (bass) are totally unfazed by the range that is expected of them, playing to sequencers, adapting to changes of tempo and memorising oddball arrangements.

Meanwhile that trio of fan surprises is followed by another Moroder-era stomper from heaven in ‘Beat The Clock’ before the profound plea of ‘Please Don’t F*ck Up My World’ from 2020’s ‘A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip’ reflected the current head scratching state of the world. Ron got his turn centre stage for the first time in the evening with his dry spoken rendition of ‘Suburban Homeboy’ before Russell joined him for the closing theatrical refrains.

‘All You Ever Think About Is Sex’ provided another fan favourite surprise but getting back up-to-date with the new ‘MAD!’ album, that a break-up song like ‘JanSport Backpack’ can be inspired by a bag popular with Japanese girls is idiosyncratic genius to prove that SPARKS have not let up in their eccentric artistic willing.

The HI-NRG romp of ‘Music That You Can Dance To’ prepared everyone for three with a bullet with the first chorus singalong of the evening for ‘When Do I Get to Sing My Way?’, a thrilling ‘The Number One Song in Heaven’ where the 79 years young Ron did his customary tap dance in the instrumental drum fuelled middle eight and ‘This Town Ain’t Big Enough for Both of Us’ had Russell punching the air with the vigour like he did on that iconic ‘Top Of The Pops’ performance back in 1974 when he was 25 and hitting them high notes too!

Going right back to 1972 and the second SPARKS album ‘A Woofer in Tweeter’s Clothing’, ‘Whippings and Apologies’ pointed to the almost-metallic climes of when SPARKS first came into being while with the air of a 1975 lost Eurovision entry, ‘Lord Have Mercy’ from ‘MAD!’ provided a wonderfully anthemic end to the main set. The encore included ‘The Girl Is Crying in Her Latte’ but was ‘All That’ from ‘A Steady Drip, Drip, Drip’ that concluded a glorious evening.

Taking the rapturous applause from a very appreciative audience 54 years after they debuted as recording artists, SPARKS still manage to surprise and satisfy. With a career that long, something was bound to be left out and while songs like ‘Amateur Hour’ and ‘When I’m With You’ were notably absent, they were almost not missed in the obvious enjoyment of all present. It was indeed an ‘Academy Award Performance’ and you really don’t want miss to it…

ELECTRICITYCLUB.CO.UK gives its warmest thanks to Holly Turton at Republic Media

‘MAD!’ is released by Transgressive Records as a CD, cassette, black vinyl LP and lenticular gatefold sleeve with blue vinyl LP

SPARKS 2025 live dates include: Manchester O2 Apollo (21st + 22nd June), Glasgow Royal Concert Hall (24th June), Haarlem PHIL (26th June), Brussels Cirque Royal (28th June), Paris La Salle Pleyel (30th June), Cologne Gloria-Theater (1st July), Copenhagen Koncerthuset (3rd July), Stockholm Grona Lund Tivoli (4th July), Berlin Uber Eats (6th July), Milan Teatro Degli Arcimboldi (8th July), Bilbao BBK Live (12th July), Dublin National Stadium (15th + 16th July), Edinburgh Playhouse Theatre (18th July), Wolverhampton Halls (19th July)

http://allsparks.com/

https://www.facebook.com/sparksofficial/

https://www.instagram.com/sparks_official/

https://www.threads.com/@sparks_official

Text and Photos by Chi Ming Lai
19th June 2025

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