“The swagger is back,” quips The Music vocalist Rob Harvey in the band’s new press spiel. Watching the man on-stage, it’s hard to believe the swagger ever left him. There have, however, been obstacles – drug abuse, depression, a second album that divided fans. Despite all that, The Music still bristles with the same raw power we first witnessed at Splendour In The Grass 2003. Older, wiser, and significantly balder, they’re back on our shores to stoke the fire again.
And what more triumphant way to start tonight’s sold-out show than with Take The Long Road And Walk It? The four-piece, streamlined in black, arrive to a thunderous reception, launching into their old favourite like it’s fresh out of the studio. Harvey is as electric as ever, even without the wild mess of hair. His erratic, ‘Peter Garrett eat your heart out’ dance moves swagger harder than James Dean, and it’s magnetic to witness. With a no-frills stage set-up, the focus is squarely on the players. They’re in serious form too – particularly stick-man Phil Jordan, who bludgeons the kit with athletic intensity.
Harvey straps on a guitar for Spike, which trades on its quiet-loud structure for big crowd pay-offs. The set-list is predictably weighted towards cuts from Strength In Numbers, but there’s no sense of “play The People!” impatience from the floor. On the contrary, the new songs are lapped up. It’s a propulsive show – light on down-time and charged with tightly-coiled aggression. Fire is a short, sharp shot in the arm, while Drugs incites a venue-wide shout-along. There’s a heaviness to the sound, but always a nagging groove that makes you want to throw shapes like Harvey (sadly, such loose-limbed abandon in a venue this packed would probably end in tears).
Moments of calm come from Human and the gently whispered Idle – both fine displays of the frontman’s vocals – but the skank is back on with second album anthem Welcome To The North. It’s during this number that the lighting really comes into its own – choppy and severe, with just the right amount of darkness. A glimpse at the lighting desk will later reveal that the brief for the show is “more rave than rock concert”. Mission accomplished. The unmistakable opening riff of The People is immediately greeted by a heaving dancefloor, and it’s just as rousing as back in ’03. Altogether now: “LAA-DOO—-YEEAHHH!” (or something). It’s satisfying to see new one Get Through It match the force of The People blow-for-blow – but that’s the alchemy of tonight’s show; the whole set-list flares.
In true showman style, The Music has saved the best for last. Getaway is one of the night’s peaks, all flailing arms and boozy chanting. With the crowd already reeling, the quartet launches into a sprawling rendition of Bleed From Within. It climaxes with a pummelling tribal drumming display, in which each band member bashes their own set of skins. This reviewer has rarely heard anything as good come out of the Metro speakers. It’s the moment where the gig crosses over from tremendously entertaining to truly great.
After such a thrilling finish, an encore would be superfluous – an opinion The Music seem to share. But even after the house lights have come up and amps switched off, much clapping and stomping of feet beckons the lads back on-stage. “We don’t usually do encores,” Harvey mutters appreciatively, before they send us away with the relatively pensive Too High. Tonight proved in no uncertain terms that the swagger is in safe hands.
