8
Oct
Report: EE at Scala – Giddy as a baby in a centrifuge
Words by ~GARETH~
Photo by Frankie
With feathers in our caps and springs in our steps we arrived just in time for the last song and a half from support act Visions of Trees, who earlier this year provided a remix of Schoolin’ (which can be found on the Japanese EP and also on the download single). If we’re being at all honest here, I didn’t get to hear much, but I did like what I heard. Sara Atalar has certainly got quite the voice.
The interlude saw us meet up with our trusty foil Mark Higgins, purchase liquid refreshments and wonder why Say My Name by Destiny’s Child was played twice in a row (no bad thing, of course).
Soon enough the now-familiar notes of the intro song started playing, signalling that the EE crew were now entering the room and that we had best get ready for some boppin’. Getting straight down to business, they opened with the raucous QWERTY Finger, much to the delight of those who were there specifically to bop.
The infectious summery beats of Schoolin’ came next, followed by the sombre Leave the Engine Room to calm us all the hell down. This plan was subsequently derailed by the band playing album track Come Alive Diana, a new entry in their live roster on this tour, which was very well received by the audience. Fears about the transition of the trumpet to keyboard were allayed as the track sounded genuinely amazing.
Next up came Final Form, which looks to be fast becoming a crowd favourite, and had everyone cutting a rug. Jonathan’s vocals sounded particularly fantastic throughout this track.
Another new addition to the setlist followed in the form of album track Two for Nero, which in Friends terminology is “the one with the harpsichord”. I was unsure how this track would be received, given its slower tempo and complete lack of beat for the first half of the song. I needn’t have worried, as it got a big cheer from the crowd after it came to its harmonious close. Proof that harpsichords, like fezzes, are cool again in 2010.
An even bigger cheer was elicited for the next track, although it was understandable given that it was current single MY KZ, UR BF, which everyone and their mum has surely heard by this point. At this stage in proceedings, the audience’s bop mode was set to whatever the maximum is on the scale (“Grand Mal Seizure”, I’d wager).
Thunderous set closer Weights came next, rounding off the show in typically chaotic fashion. But wait! HERE COMES A NEW CHALLENGER! The guys totally psyched everyone out and launched straight into ambiguously-chorused Suffragette Suffragette, bringing things to a temporary close in a harmonious fashion.
A brief interlude followed while the band did whatever it is they do back there, before coming back to perform a two-song encore in the form of lovely Tin (The Manhole), then rounding the night off in style with Photoshop Handsome.
This was our fifth time seeing the band, and with there usually being a gap of a few months between each show we have seen, it has been really interesting to see how the band has evolved since the beginning. If Wednesday’s performance at the Scala is any indication, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, together with Iceland, New York and the Seychelles(!) better get their best boppin’ shoes on.
Setlist
QWERTY Finger
Schoolin’
Leave the Engine Room
Come Alive Diana
Final Form
Two for Nero
MY KZ, UR BF
Weights
Suffragette Suffragette
Encore
Tin (The Manhole)
Photoshop Handsome
SPECIAL BONUS BIT
The Lexington, just up the road from the Scala, played host to a bit of a party after the gig. Personal highlights include the sexy EE boys, meeting the lovely Visions of Trees duo, lovely Duncan, and Jonathan dancing on an ornate chair to R. Kelly. The less said about the ghastly toilet incident, the better.