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indie-snob>+!#
Blur @ congress theatre (7-14-03)
With moving units |
I guess it's occured to you by now that I like britpop. A lot. In fact, I can't get enough of it. It's like britpop is a big juicy steak, and I'm a rottweiler, sniffing out the sweet scent. (Enjoy my tasty similes?) Blur, arguably one of the originators of modern britpop (pfft, like Oasis did that much), has done this to me each time I've heard one of their classics ("Bettlebum," "Song 2" and "Girls & Boys" come to mind). Plus, it's been years and years since they last rolled around here, so why not go see them live? Moving Units opened. I'm not sure what it was I was expecting from a band opening for Blur, but I don't think that MU fit that whatever description I had conjured. The music seemed to be fast-paced britrock with a singer and his inflated cockney accent (set to rival Ikara Colt any day now). Moving Units had their moments of fast paced, pop-influenced rock music (the Liars kept coming to mind during their show, but I'm not sure if I really agree), but largely, their set was kind of uniteresting. Most of it sounded the same, not to mention the band never said one word to the audience. Seriously. Not even "Hello," or "We're the Moving Units, go buy our fucking CD at the fucking merch booth in the front, fuckers." Nothing. So, their set ended without warning, and it's safe to say, I wasn't really sad they had left. They just bored me, but their music was perfectly acceptable while their live performance just left something to be desired. To me, this seemed like a small show for Blur-- the theatre holds probably around 2500 people and wasn't even sold out, while I imagine they sell out arenas in the UK-- but the added intimacy only enhanced Blur's performance. The band sounded refreshed (as they should after their 3-year hiatus, coming out minus one guitarist, a new album and a platinum solo-gig under their belts) and played a surprising number of hits during their set. In fact, The Best of Blur is one of the finest collections of hits available on this planet. So, it was interesting to hear how lack-luster the tracks from the new album appeared side by side to the classic. "Crazy Beat" held nothing to "Girls & Boys," a song where the entire floor seemed to jump and dance in unison. All their super-great hits were played, and almost all of them remain in my mind as really great highlights. But how could they not? "Song 2" was really fun to hear live, as was "Tender," which was, like all other songs of the evening, enhanced by a group of three gospel singers on the side. The band ended with "To the End," (an obvious closer) at which point I decided the evening was purely magical. Blur is here to stay, whether we're ready to admit it or not. And let's face it, everyone knows "Song 2." A GREAT show. May I highly suggest you see them live if you get the chance. I very much enjoyed myself during Blur's set. |