Athlete

Athlete are an in form act, with mesmerising tunes and a breathtaking light show combining to make this an impressive opening night. I wonder come the forthcoming plaudits and the end of this 16-date tour whether the venues will still, like Exeter’s Great Hall tonight, have space at the back.

Arriving, I assumed the throng of people before me was a large queue of people waiting to get in, but no, there's a knot of smokers outside, which reminds me, the last time I saw Athlete, they were a four piece, with one album and the crowd was moody wrapped in smoke from their ciggies. I was, I have to add, unimpressed that night, and I wasn’t expecting to be more impressed this time…

The concert hall is about three quarters full for this opening night, as the band take to the stage, shame as so many more people could have witnessed this dazzling light show (being tested since 9am that morning). The line-up tonight is a five piece, Athlete have added Jonny Pilcher of Weevil for guitar and tambourine (seriously) duties.

The opening seconds of the show stick in my mind, the house lights dim, to applause the band take to the stage, and then on come the stage lights. A rainbow of slatted, pastel, warm, glowing light dwarfs the band as 'Second Hand Stores' builds up the music and it's atmospheric and exuberant and suddenly Athlete show the credibility of Radiohead or Coldplay and I'm thinking I have to get the third album 'Beyond The Neighbourhood'.



The emotional charge dissipates slightly as a technical hitch, has the band stall at 'Half Light' but it gives lead singer Joel Pott a chance to say hello, he sounds relaxed, discovers the audience is full of mainly new fans, and says they have a bunch of tunes to play us. The band return to the red lit 'Half Light' but I do wonder if it would have been more emotional without the enforced pause.

'Westside' and 'Hurricane' both engage the crowd in a sing along and really connects to the whole audience. Once upon a time these were encore tracks, for Athlete to have them loosed, so soon from their arsenal, shows how far they’ve come.

A natural break in the music, this was clearly where Joel would first speak, he chats to the crowd, who heckle him with bizarre cake references. Perhaps it is some bizarre net thing. Joel says he hopes the band isn't too rusty it's their first gig in a month. Judging by the extremely tight sound and the accompanying synched light show, they’ve been practising this for a long time.



The anthemic '24 Hours' is a record they should have had at Glastonbury, when they played a few year's ago, it has that huge open air crowd feel about it. It reminds me of Doves or Coldplay and the lightshow gives this an arena concert feel, it's during this song I realise that this is more than a gig, it's a proper show.

I’ve never been keen on 'Beautiful' from the debut album 'Vehicles & Animals' although the frenetic spoon solo, by tank top wearing keyboardist, Tim Wanstall, makes it watchable and it's clearly a crowd pleaser.

The band have re-worked the possible forthcoming single 'Best Not To Think About' and Pott dons an acoustic guitar, its slow and emotional, and about 9/11, and surely not really a single release? They follow it with 'Yesterday Threw Everything At Me' and this becomes a singalong, a lot of people here have clearly heard, and like the new album.

Despite the slowing of pace, our attention is held and 'Tourist' brings the whole thing back to stadium rock, the bluesy keyboard, the basswork of Carey Willetts combine to give this an almost psychedelic sonic edge, and it's here the band have the crowd enthralled.



The first notes of 'You’ve Got The Style' receive a cheer and the crowd swells, dragged in from the downstairs bar perhaps, and suddenly it is "getting hot in here." Although, not so hot as to make us part with £10 for some charity water.

'The Outsiders' and 'It's Not Your Fault' are the zenith of the night, complex music, pounding back beat, mesmerising light show. My god, Athlete have come of age, these two songs alone, put them right up there with the best of the emotionally dislocated musical wave and live, they are simply jaw dropping. I'm amazed, frankly, having laughed at Athlete fans over the last few years, I suddenly have to eat my words. This is mature complex, sensitively loaded music. 'The Outsiders' ends with a dislocated single, blue, spotlit, Eno/Floyd inspired musical breakdown, that seems to last forever and never do the crowd break their gaze, and you could hear a pin drop, incredible.

The emotional charge is pushed to overload, with the journey we're on climaxing in 'Wires', and rips holes out of the hearts of the audience. The end is shockingly subdued and the applause is like we've covered a right of passage. Athlete should be hugely applauded for achieving such an emotional interaction, this is what music like this should do, fantastic.

The obligatory encore, has the band clearly delighted that they’ve pulled off such a masterstroke. 'Tokyo', 'Shake Those Windows' and 'Flying Over Bus Stops' show more traits of musical maturity, accompanied by light trickery: from Stephen Roberts pounding drum beat; to spinning spots and feedback splattered reverb; to single voiced acoustic vocal – it's all there. Pilcher’s extra guitar giving the sonic walls an extra dimension.



We leave to Bowie’s 'Life on Mars' playing through the PA and it seems what Athlete have created here tonight could become a "best selling show." If you like your music sonic, with feeling, and you like a glorious light show, then go and see it. Take the kids, take popcorn, it's better than a film at the cinema!

FUTURE GIGS

sorry, we currently have no gigs listed for this act.