The venue was full of onlookers mesmerised
by this impressive array of music that two men and their
synthesisers were producing. The electro genre is not exactly
famous for poignant poetic lyrics, but the old track 'My
Sex' contained a line that John Donne would have swapped
his best quill for:
"My sex waits for me, downwind
like a mongerel dog on a tightrope leash"
Naturally, the best reception was given to the final song;
'Endlessly' that could be described as one of the best songs
Human League forgot to write.
"From the town to the country
from the country to the town, join us come and join us,
From the valley to the hillside
from the hillside to the valley, join us, come and join us."
Phil Oakey along with stunningly
dressed Joanne Catherall and Susanne Sulley, greeted the
amicable crowd, as they meant
to go on, and genuinely did want them to join in, from the
punchy "Old Town" onwards, making the aforementioned
lyrics ring truer than the fact that Shed Seven have finally
split up. The crowd readily obliged as familiar sounds of "Love
Action" rang through the cosy theatre venue.
The nostalgia fest continued with
a hit soundtrack to the eighties, "Mirror Man" and political offering "The
Lebanon" before the mood was quietened down a little
for Susanne Sulley's solo, "One Man in My Heart" to
which the dancing ended, and arm swaying started, whilst
the crowd looked on admirably.
Back to the eighties with hit single and inevitable sing
along tune, "Human," and infectious offering, "The
Things That Dreams Are Made Of." More nostalgic sing-a-long
material in the form of "Fascination" and upbeat "Tell
Me When," before the one everyone was waiting for, admittedly
or not, "Don't You Want Me"which undoubtedly started
the Christmas festivities, it won't be the last time you
will hear it before the new year either.
With many of the hits covered, the crowd
was left wondering whether an encore would happen, and what
it would be, suddenly
realising "Electric Dreams" was a sure bet for
one song, and were left wondering about the other if there
was to be one. A costume change later and the band was
back on stage, as the crowd was proven right, with the
opening chords to "Electric Dreams" rang out,
instantly bringing them to life once more. This was the
chance for new guitarist Nick Burke to shine, as he performed
his own guitar solo, to a great reception. Wondering what
the last song might be, the crowd was put out of their
misery soon after, as the ending tune was the catchy sing-a-long "The
Sound Of The Crowd" which described the reception
perfectly. The Human League gave an energy and nostalgia
packed show, full of favourites and new tunes to the lesser
trained ear, the Christmas party feel really brought the
place to life, and they are a band who has not lost their
touch.
David Adair & Katherine Tomlinson
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