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Tonight is more than just a live set. The Polyphonic Spree take us
through a journey of highs and lows, of tension and release which involves
theatre, politics, 21 people and a pinch of Nirvana.
"Oh Yay, Ooooow Yay," shouts the town crier, while a kid rings a bell, as
he introduces the Spree with a speech about peace and The
Fragile Army, which, by the way, is the name of their new album. It has
been two years since we last saw the Spree in London, and so far nothing
about the structure of their set has changed. Will they be the same brightly
dressed, robe-wearing, sun-worshipping hippies that they were loved for back
in 2005?
Our anticipation builds as a red banner stretches across the stage,
hiding the band as they take to it. Scissors begin to slowly cut through the
material in the shape of a heart, then down comes the banner, and out comes...
My Chemical Romance. What is going on? Have The
Polyphonic Spree just hit their troublesome teens, or are they going through
an early mid-life crisis? Lead singer Tim Delaughter now has black hair,
along with the flute player, and all twenty one of them are wearing black
army outfits with a red cross on them.
We know this outfit was about anti-war, helping, loving and all that is
moral, yet the audience stood stunned, finding it hard not to feel slightly
disheartened. Now we look to the odd audience member wearing a white robe
with nostalgia. Ah well.
The band began with their new single, Running Away. They
sounded fantastic as ever, but something about it just didn't feel right.
Perhaps we would have enjoyed it more with our eyes shut? As they began to
play songs from their debut album, The Beginning Stages Of..., the crowd
seemed to be working through the shock of the band's new look, gradually
embracing the change.
As Tim Delaughter put it, "Let's do this one campfire style‚" as he sang
It's The Sun‚ alone, sitting on the edge on the stage. Nice idea, but this
track needs the chorus of singers most out of all their songs. The audience
did attempt to sing the backings. He later dedicated a new
song to President Bush. Everything was a lot more sinister this time, as the Spree have
considered the political evils of society in their new album. This
time they're trying to be realistic. Without sadness, happiness
does not exist, right?
So we had been introduced to a new kind of Spree. But if their
new style was not to your liking, the encore brought back the old cheerful
band that put a smile on everyone's faces. They walked through the crowds, wearing those same white robes they had
done in The Beginning Stages Of... days. Tim Delaughter crowd surfed his way
onto stage and told us to sing along.
And here came the
highlight of the show as the band stunned us with a cover of
Nirvana's Lithium. The entire audience went wild. The second
half contrasted with the first as the band went on to play old
songs. The encore was where it all really began,
and once this was over, the town crier announced that we are "The Fragile
Army" and the audience begged another encore. One last song and everyone
went home enlightened with a Polyphonic spring in their step.
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Mercury Prize 2009 nominees
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BUY The Polyphonic Spree - The Fragile Army
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