LIVE REVIEW: Public Service Broadcasting @ New Theatre Oxford: Sky-high electro-rock
LIVING in such strange and uncertain times it often seems there is little cause for cheer.
Constantly confronted with the weird, confusing and downright horrible, we could be forgiven for sinking into a despondent slump.
We desperately need a shot of positivity – a reminder that there is much to celebrate in the field of human endeavour; reassurance that people are capable of great things – ambition, invention, industry, courage, creativity, resilience and strength of spirit.
READ MORE: Public Service Broadcasting's J Willgoose says why he has written new album about an unsung aviation legend
Who would have thought that fortifying jolt of optimism could come in the shape of a band?
Public Service Broadcasting do precisely that, celebrating uplifting achievements, forgotten stories and inspiring exploits. And they do it to an absorbing soundtrack of exhilarating electronica, driving guitar rock and tender instrumental introspection – studded with samples borrowed from old news reels and recorded archives.
By Tim Hughes
Since appearing on the radar with the juddering electronica and soaring guitar of breakthrough tune Spitfire, the South London outfit have taken listeners on audio journeys from the dark days of the London Blitz to the avant garde clubs of Berlin.
They have introduced us to the heroes of the US-Soviet space race, the hardy miners of our now vanished coal industry, and, now, pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart.
The ringmaster for this enlightening circus of invention is musical genius J Willgoose.
Smartly turned out in trademark tweed, corduroy and bow tie, J shuns the role of the traditional rock frontman. He stands to the side of the stage and communicates with the audience through a computerised voice simulator.
Over the years he has expanded his live outfit from two-piece to a full band – and on their visit to the New Theatre Oxford on March 20, they lay on a powerhouse show.
Their new album The Last Flight focuses on the final journey of America's pioneering adventurer Amelia Earhart who, aged just 25, flew higher than any woman before her. The first female to fly solo across the Atlantic and Pacific, she set multiple speed and distance records. And her feats feature front and centre in the show.
The stage is lit by a striking set resembling a flight deck – dials showing altitude and airspeed turning into screens displaying archive footage, punchy visuals and, in the case of Earhart's last 1937 flight, maps showing her journey around the world.
And to a soaring symphonic soundscape, we are taken to the skies with her.
We open with a piece about her plane – Electra – and follow her journey through Towards the Dawn, The South Atlantic, Arabian Flight and Monsoons. It is by turns intimate, epic, exciting and moving.
The new tunes flow effortlessly into tunes from their other aerial extravaganza, The Race For Space. Sputnik is slow-building and epic, E.V.A. bubbly and dreamy, and The Other Side sparse and tense.
Stylised gems from Berlin-inspired Bright Magic set a change of tone and style.
Spitfire, their tribute to the victor of the Battle of Britain, energises the crowd and fits the airborne theme.
We also get a taste of coal dust with Progress from the excellent From Every Valley album.
But this is really a show with its head in the clouds and the wind in its hair – expansive narrative pieces lit up by shimmering interludes of live vocals and bursts of brass.
They finish with a trip back to Mission Control for the punchy anthemic Go!
But the best is yet to come with an encore featuring Bright Magic's bouncy People, Let's Dance and the funk-fuelled Gagarin – complete with dancing cosmonauts resplendent in full space suits and helmets.
PSB. By Tim HughesThe set was a soaring celebration of aerial and cosmic endeavour, but to the delight of longstanding fans they returned to earth – albeit at its highest point – for final tune, Everest.
This musical tribute to Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's conquest of the world's highest peak is epic, rendered euphoric by triumphant trumpet and trombone.
It was simply beautiful, a towering orchestral masterpiece inspired by an heroic feat. And, like the rest of the show, for just a while it succeeded in raising our spirits, cheering our souls and making the world a better place.
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