Not is this sold out show the last date of the European leg of Savages' current world tour but also a St Patrick's Day party for those of us who really have no interest in being at a Paddy's day party. Consequently,I showed up late enough to entirely miss the support act Bo Ningen doing their overblown prog noise thing. What a shame.
Still I was here to see Savages as were almost all of the crowd. And on they came with stark lighting and opened with I Am Here with Jehn stalking the stage and generally getting us all worked up at this stripped back goth-rock. Sad Person had a fair bit of bile in it and Gemma Thompson's guitar really seemed to lead on this one as we were left in no doubts as to how sad the person really was.
Cities Full came on like the raging monster it ought to be and was mainly bass led by Ayse Hassan. It seemed for much of the gig that the bass was the lead and the guitar the rhythm. Slow Down The World was starkly precise in its Dystopian vision and plea for a change of direction and it also had much more moshing action as Jehn kept encouraging everyone to go for it.
Shut Up went down a storm and was greeted like an old hit and after a suggestive intro in the quiet breakdown Jehn got rather lascivious on She Will with plenty of thrusting movements to ram home the message.
Husbands was as angry as it sounds on record with Fay Milton's drums really helping to emphasise Jehn's increasingly angst ridden yelps of "Husbands, husbands, husbands!" Surrender was all about surrendering to your passions over the rumbling Goth rock and I'm sure a large part of the audience were more than ready to give themselves up to Jehn and the Savages.
Evil was biting and pointed; its spiked bass rumblings aimed at those that need to know we hate them. When In Love took us back to Jehn's current obsession with sex and lust and just how much sex she wants to be having. I Need Something New seems to be a plea for a new lover (or new positions) which is odd as musically Savages really don't vary much apart from the odd slow intro.
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The Answer doesn't really give the answer except to say we need more sex and less hatred which can only be a good thing right? Hit Me is taking the lust wars into a bit of a S & M area but I don't think Jehn wants a real walloping - just enough to get the senses going.
Dead Nature has one of the weirder slow openings before pummelling away at us with the band's trademark insistent bass riffs. No Face seems to be about wanting someone but not really wanting to look at them or remember what they look like. Just that lust thing again, then. T.I.W.Y.G. or This is what you get has Jehn thrusting her hips at an alarming rate so we know just what we might get if we are lucky enough but strangely, it left me wanting the shy young woman who used to wear demure cardigans on stage.
Mechanics kept up the sexually charged atmosphere and provided a good way to prepare for the grand finale of Adore Life that saw Jehn insist we all move forward so she could go full on Iggy and walk out on the shoulders of the audience to sing it and she stayed in the crowd held up for the whole song. It was a magnificent end to the set.
For the encore she first thanked all the crew and then got all of Bo Ningen to join them for a raucous take on Fuckers that was a full on party of an ending.
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