Why Don’t You Piss Off

I didn't know whether to write a post on this, I've always tried to keep this page positive where I can. 

This weekend. August 24th/25th 2024. I headed up to Manchester to watch two concerts, New Order and Blossoms. Blossoms I've had booked for a while, whereas New Order. Was a more recent thing. 

Blossoms were great and I've done a more traditional gig review on that, which can be found here.  https://www.beyond-the-grooves.co.uk/gig-reviews/8ft-tall

New Order, well… 

I would like to think of myself as quite a big New Order fan. I like a lot of their records, I've been fascinated by the story of how they rose from tragedy to create a new band. About how they lost money on every copy of ‘Blue Monday’ about the madness of Factory Records and the Hacienda. Over the last year or so they've become a huge part of my listening habits. 

So I was excited to see them perform. Especially with the gig being in Manchester, with Johnny Marr supporting. 

I've seen Johnny three times now, and he was brilliant on Saturday. On top form, and the crowd were great too. 

After a quick toilet break and pitstop at the bar we headed down towards the front to watch New Order.

It started ok, however I thought the vocals were a little subdued. Being early in the set, I gave them the benefit of the doubt. However they didn't get any better. In fact it seemed to get quieter throughout. That's fine if you haven't got drums, synths, guitars and bass overpowering it. 

The band also seemed to be obsessed with playing long interludes between songs, or intros to the song themselves.

It all just seemed a little flat. Over the last couple of days, I've read other reviews and those people thought it was brilliant. I can't say that I share those thoughts. 

It's the only gig that I've ever left early from. Having been to countless gigs, I've had a good run of not leaving early. 

Those songs that were written and recorded by New Order are some of the best British songs ever. Saturday night didn't do them justice I don't think. Disappointed is probably the word that sums up my feelings. 

The next few comments I make are some observations that Ive found at a few gigs recently. This isn't just New Order! 

Those who know me personally, know I'm quite tall, (6ft 7) and that sometimes causes me jip at gigs. Whether that's sly remarks or comments, or even confrontations with people. There were a couple of those at the weekend. If you ask me nicely I'm more than happy to move! 

The second thing I've noticed and this seems to happen a lot more recently, is people who can't handle their beer. At the weekend went as a group of 7 for New Order and a group of 3 for Blossoms. 

At New Order, a couple of the lads and one the lad's partners had trouble because of where they were stood, by someone who had clearly had a lot to drink. It’s something that is becoming more prevalent, and more annoying, there's no need to be like that with people. We are all there for the same reason, to enjoy the show. Half of the time these people forget that their is someone on stage. And even if they are watching the gig. They'll be too drunk to remember half of it. 

I felt as if over two days, watching two gigs at the same venue. I had two very different experiences. 

Thank you for reading x