Front man Bobby Gillespie was formerly the drummer with shoegaze pioneers The Jesus and Mary Chain, leaving that band following an ultimatum to either ditch the Primal Scream side project or go all in. To the relief of the fans at a rammed Rock City in Nottingham, Gillespie chose the latter.
The evening kicked off with an intense set from Baxter Dury, son of punk icon Ian Dury, drawn from his eight studio albums reaching as far back as 2002. Whilst he has said that he’s tired of obvious comparisons to his father, there’s no doubt that the old man would have been proud; the clear, punchy, aggressive punk sentiments vying for attention alongside the stylish, mature presentation of Dury jr.
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The intro music for the main act of the evening set the tone for something a little different to the raucous opening - 'What the World Needs Now is Love' by Hal David and Burt Bacharach. To those soft, romantic strains, Primal Scream strutted onto the stage with Gillespie’s outfit being suitable for a starring role in Saturday Night Fever. At first, an unusual, jarring appearance but one which made absolute sense for the stylish, glamorous presentation of a set which left Gillespie and band grinning and the audience cheering in wild reverie.
Opening with a trio of ‘Don’t Fight It, Feel It’, ‘Love Insurrection’ and ‘Jailbird’, the band hit the audience with a song off the latest album, ‘Come Ahead’ and a reminder of the highlights of the 1990s that most typify the gritty, psychedelic, disco fringed sound that the band are best known for.
Founding member of the band Jim Beattie was back too - he left after the release of the first album ‘Sonic Flower Groove’ in 1987 and rejoined for a ‘one off’ show in Glasgow in 2019. He obviously enjoyed himself as his return to the live stage brought an energetic, composed flair which balanced Gillespie’s wilder stage persona.
The set did an excellent job of showcasing the breadth and variety of Primal Scream’s catalogue. From the 60s psychedelic gospel anthem ‘Movin’ On Up’, through the raw Scottish country ‘Country Girl’, the soul funk ‘Love Insurrection’, the Britpop ‘Jailbird’, the acid house chillout ‘Loaded’ to the pure, raw indie rock of ‘Rocks’. All of this was given a little sprinkle of disco glitter for the lively performance which jumped and bounced from the start to the end.
An enthusiastically expected encore delivered the three songs that the crowd had been waiting for; ‘Melancholy Man’, ‘Come Together’ and ‘Rocks’, with the audience drowning out the band for the wild, instantly recognisable chorus; “Get your rocks off, get your rocks off, honey”. An apt ending for Rock City in the city built on a rock.
Images: Peter Freeth
