Slowdive, gig review: Expansive noise becomes symphonic and hypnotising

The band power through the set with little interaction between songs, says Adam O'Sullivan

Slowdive: three decades of craft and experience

18 October 2017

Bands reforming is not a new phenomenon, but whilst sentimental tours used to be the norm we are increasingly seeing bands adding to their hallowed back-catalogues.

Slowdive, Ride, My Bloody Valentine and Jesus and Mary Chain have all reformed in recent years, and whilst their original existences petered-out - mostly owing to a lack of commercial interest - shoegaze music has returned as the beating heart of British alternative music and is seemingly bigger than it was first time round. All but My Bloody Valentine have released a new record in the last couple of months and the stakes are higher than ever as reforming ceases to be a convenient mid-life cash cow. A lack of meaningful modern noise bands has given the genre back to its creators, and if the quality remains as high as it is, it's no bad thing.

Perhaps most surprisingly, after a 22-year break between albums, Slowdive haven’t changed a bit. Three decades of craft and experience adds to the muddy soundscapes that characterised 1993’s ‘Souvlaki’ and armed with the critically acclaim ‘Slowdive’, the Reading-band bring their expansive sound to one of London’s finest venues.

The Roundhouse offers strangely participatory atmosphere, placing the audience at the centre with the lights emitting from the stage rather than onto it. Instead of playing to the back of the room, the sound seems to gather in the middle like an incantation. The band switched effortlessly between era’s, opening with the newer ‘Slomo’ before retreating to fan-favourite ‘Catch the Breeze’. In such a mythologised back-catalogue it is easy to argue every song is a fan favourite, but special recognition goes to new track ‘Star Roving’ which is an obvious stand out from the set and one of the best songs in the band's catalogue.

Fronted by Neil Halstead and Rachel Goswell, the band power through the set with little interaction between songs and the glorious, expansive noise - barely punctuated - becomes symphonic and hypnotising. Wonderful melodies are obscured by a wall of noise, and yet even these great individual musical moments can be more than the sum of their parts. It’s easy to forget in the maelstrom of reverb that at the heart of the noise lies a perfectly crafted pop song. There is no better example of this than ‘Alison’, a genre defining piece of music based around a delicate three-chord song transformed into a dreamy, spacious anthem. They bring the night - and the tour - to a close with an emphatic reverb-soaked ‘40 Days’. In the unlikely event that Reading ever host the World Cup then this final track is a shoe-in for the official tournament anthem.

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Slowdive, gig review: Expansive noise becomes symphonic and hypnotising

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