James Arden checks out the garage rockers latest album.
The Christian rock band from Brighton bring religion to the masses.
Recipe for modern R'n'B album: liberal helpings of guest rappers and an overdose of sexual euphemisms.
So I bought the ticket for this gig months ago, before I knew Marina was coming to York for the Big Bang. Still, it wasn't like there was a significant financial difference - the combined cost of gig and transport and a nice bottle of pear cider was just about the cost of a Big Bang ticket and I had the benefit of not having to queue to get into Central Hall.
Opening act Cocknbullkid are enjoyable in a naff 80s kind of way, keyboard flourishes and all. Their singer is particularly impressive, although (sadly) what I'll probably take away most from their set is the sight of a drunk girl being carted out of the dancefloor at 8 pm. I do like how you can have a drink and watch a band at the same time in this country, since we can't do that back where I come from (not in the good places anyway), but it's still pretty daft to get wasted before the act you've paid good money to see even comes onstage.
Marina and her band appear towards nine o'clock. The last gig I saw at Leeds was sweaty New Jersey rock outfit Titus Andronicus last May, and this couldn't be more different. Unlike beardy Titus front man Patrick Stickles, Marina is impossibly glamorous in her black dress, glow-in-the-dark red lipstick (yes) and a wind machine blowing her perfectly-coiffeured hair in this direction or that.
I've gone to the gig alone and am feeling pretty self-conscious, but it's hard not to loosen up and warm to Marina's charm. One could easily be cynical and see things like her mini-speech about "not being a fake" as shameless pandering to fans, but she seems genuine and self-deprecating. A new song, ‘Jealousy’, is described as "being also available on YouTube"; she also gives a very nice shout-out to a girl called Alice who is turning 18.
The music is uniformly excellent, if a little same-y. I've got a lot of music-loving friends who don't like Marina, seeing her as a poor man's Florence Welch, but in the end she makes the kind of big, shiny, naff pop you can dance to. And she does it pretty damn well. Hit singles "Obsessions", "I Am Not a Robot" and "Mowgli's Road" (complete with background "cuckoos") provoke loud sing-a-longs and appalling dancing. The show ends with a rousing rendition of the infectiously catchy "Hollywood", with Marina dressed as a cheerleader brandishing a plush toy burger and with waves of confetti falling from the ceiling. It's one of the most ridiculous things I've ever seen in my life, but really, I'm too busy enjoying myself to care. Cuckoo!
You must log in to submit a comment.
