Erasure, a synthpop duo consisting of synthesiser player Vince Clarke (a founder member of Depeche Mode) and the flamboyant and openly-gay singer Andy Bell, have been active since 1985, although their first three singles were initially commercial failures. It was only after the success of Sometimes in 1986 that they began to gain recognition.
They have been touring and releasing material ever since. In their second visit to the Corn Exchange in four years, they showcased a mixture of classic hits and some songs from their latest release Tomorrow’s World. This is perhaps slightly more introspective and definitely darker than some of their earlier work, but no less memorable for it.
Frankmusik
Tomorrow’s World is produced by Frankmusik, a British electropop artist. He was also the support act on the tour, introducing many to his rather unique style of live club music. Thumping bass drum, several layers of samples, a synth melody and live vocals started the evening off in fine, if overly-loud style. He has been accused of using other musicians' work without seeking permission and it is not difficult to see why when you hear the multi-layered creations he produces. The ‘wall of sound’ style is his trademark, and he made clever use of excerpts from work by Kings of Leon, Eric Prydz/Steve Winwood, Paul Simon, The Eurythmics, plus Phil Collins & Philip Bailey in his set.
Erasure
Vince Clarke and Andy Bell, with two backing singers, proceeded to take the stage and deliver a non-stop aural feast. Dressed in a sparkly red jacket and black trousers, plus initially a centurion’s black-plumed helmet, Andy was showing his usual sartorial flair. He was also in fine voice as they mixed new songs with classic for the duration of the show, sharing occasional anecdotes and swigging copious amounts of what he claimed was hot toddy. Whether he was actually using this as a cold cure or just as a pick-me-up was never made clear.
This was the first chance to hear live such new songs as Fill Us With Fire, When I Start To (Break It All Down) and Be With You as well as well known offerings Always, Blue Savannah, Drama!, Ship of Fools, Breathe and many more.
As usual the stunning visuals matched the vocals, with Chorus featuring three microphone stands (for Andy and the two backing singers) wound round with white flashing LED lights pulsing in time to the music. On other songs the colour of the stage lighting reflected the name of the song: orange and red for Fill Us With Fire or blue for Blue Savannah.
No Covers, Just Showcasing Their Own Work
This time the duo chose only to sing songs they had written, despite having covered such artists as Abba, Ike & Tina Turner, Peter Gabriel and Steve Harley in the past. The main show lasted around two hours, with the musicians and singers called back for an encore which included the hit Stop!.
The set list incorporated: Always, Take Me I’m Yours, Blue Savannah, Drama! Ship of Fools, Breathe, Victim of Love, Love To Hate You, Breathe, Chains of Love, Sometimes, Respect, Oh L’Amour (sung partly acapella) and the new works When I Start To (Break It All Down), Fill Us With Fire and Whole Lotta Love.
There were several other new songs, but not seeing a copy of the CD until after the show, the titles did not register sufficiently, if I could guess them from the lyrics.
I can only recommend that you read the tour reviews and look at the photographs on the official website for further information about the concert. My photographs are not good, but many of the ones on the site will give a better flavour without infringing another concertgoer’s copyright.
Paula Thomas - Paula is, among other things, an editor & proofreader. She also enjoys technology - retro or modern - travel, music, motorsport and ...
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