The latest leg of 90s indie icons Suede and Manic Street Preachers’ joint tour rolled into Manchester on July 12 for the Sounds of the City show. Having attended this in 2022 to see Pixies deliver a rollocking, machine-gun fire set of hits and deep cuts, I found the venue to be well-suited – open air, yet retaining an element of intimacy for the fans, not too long to queue at the (OK, expensive!) bar. Expectations were high then for this event, what with both acts now being veterans of the live and recorded music arenas.
With both bands alternating between the “support” (i.e. on first) and “main act” (i.e. on second), Suede drew the opening act straw tonight, which was to be a blessing and a curse (for me, personally – more of that later). With the majority of the band venturing on stage and firing up with the opening strains of Lieutenant Pigeon’s Mouldy Old Dough (oh OK then, no they didn’t – it was perhaps the best track from their latest album, Autofiction) ‘Turn Off Your Brain and Yell’, frontman Brett Anderson joined his cohorts as the track kicked in with the rhythm section, prowling the stage and taking in the crowd’s adoration. Still exhibiting the verve and energy of an excitable puppy, Anderson inwardly flips a middle-finger to his advanced middle-age every time he plays live, and weirdly, seems to get younger each time I see him. A musical Benjamin Button, if you will.
I’ve said it before and will do again – Brett is hot. Physically and in terms of being the complete showman. His hair may be shorter than Suede’s 90s heyday, but his shirt is still as gloriously sweat-soaked by the fourth song, his (and the rest of the band, to be fair) energy and endurance admirable and actually quite jealousy-inducing. You can’t take your eyes off Brett’s arse wiggles, handclaps and launching into the crowd to get up close and personal with those in attendance. On stage, Neil, Simon, Mat and Richard seem content to let Brett have his moment – they’re the silent workhorses that keep things moving, essential cogs in the Suede machine that work so well together.
Richard Oakes seems a shy, quietly assured craftsman; whatever the perceived differences between him and his predecessor Bernard Butler may be, Oakes is still one of the most underrated guitarists out there, having proven his worth since joining Suede as a teenager back in the “imperial phase” of the band. Neil Codling is a trooper, weighing in with backing guitar, vocals and keyboards. Mat and Simon – taking care of drums and bass – see their strengths emerge best on the big-hitters, Animal Nitrate, Turn Off Your Brain and Yell and Beautiful Ones.
There’s space on the set for the magnificent Flytipping from the extremely strong The Blue Hour LP, which saw Suede head into new sonic territory, encompassing spoken word passages and more cinematic soundscapes. Richard and Brett deliver a lovely acoustic rendition of The Wild Ones, with the crowd being commended for their excellent singing (not sure about that, Brett). “Are you professional musicians?” he asks at one point. With nothing pending (yet) in terms of a new album, this tour feels a little like a stop-gap, a nice chance to tour with mates and have a good time, away from the churn of “new album, tour, record, new album, tour, record…” We do get the excellent Antidepressants, a new song Suede have unveiled for this tour, and gives great confidence in whatever project is yet to emerge.
Despite the relative brevity of the set – a lean 75mins – Suede pack each minute with favourites, so that by the time they leave the stage, you’re not feeling short-changed or disappointed by a particular track that was left out. An extended Beautiful Ones, complete with crowd singalong intro, ends proceedings for Suede, with many appearing quite spent by the interval/changeover period. I’m sad to say this affected me, with the beginnings of a hoarse voice, and I’m sure I damaged something moshing in the preceding hour and a quarter.
After a commendably short turnaround, and a swap of equipment, the trademark quotations appear on the large screen behind the stage, signalling it was nearly time for the Manics. Wales’ finest (well, unless you’re a diehard fan of, say, Shakin’ Stevens, Catatonia or Tom Jones) made their entrance, blasting straight into vintage favourite You Love Us. James Dean Bradfield has always been more of a workmanlike frontman, happy to let the songs do the talking – nothing wrong with that of course (we can’t all shake our arses like Brett!) and leaves the glam to towering bassist Nicky Wire, still bringing the big guns with his mane of red hair, shades and a white tuxedo jacket for tonight’s appearance.
While both bands enjoy a large mutual following, there was an aspect of tribalism in the crowd (not in a sinister sense) with some definitely there to see one band or the other. Suede appeared to have the louder fanbase in terms of singalongs, but there seemed to be more in the crowd for Manic Street Preachers, and a surprisingly large contingent of Welsh speakers, who amused themselves by shouting random Welsh words at the band between songs.
Highlights included a raucous A Design for Life (which I admittedly heard from the Castlefield Bowl portaloos after imbibing a few too many orange squashes during Suede, and having to urgently relieve myself. If it’s any consolation to the band, it still sounded epic from a distance, and inside a small box that smelt of piss). The Anchoress appeared to provide vocals on two tracks – the golden oldie Little Baby Nothing and more recent hit Your Love Alone is Not Enough (which originally featured vocals by The Cardigans singer Nina Persson, who presumably was washing her hair tonight).
The Manics certainly put in a shift, and have a solid dynamic – something vitally important after the loss so many years ago of their enigmatic frontman Richey Edwards. His presence was felt in the lyrics of many of the tracks on the setlist, although one of the highlights – All Surface No Feeling – was written by Nicky Wire, admittedly featuring guitar parts written by Edwards. Ending on 1998 No.1 hit If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next sent those in attendance went home happy, again with a setlist that satisfied most, if not all, of the crowd.
With so many bands doing the reformation schtick these days, it’s hard to remember (especially with Suede) that they have had four albums since coming back together around 2010, and feels like they’ve never gone away. While the Manics have forged on regardless, and admittedly had a slight dip in critical acclaim, it’s commendable that we still have both groups, older, wiser and still letting us rock out on a weekday evening. And that’s truly a great thing.
SUEDE PLAYED:
1. Turn Off Your Brain and Yell
2. Trash
3. Animal Nitrate
4. The Drowners
5. We Are the Pigs
6. The Only Way I Can Love You
7. Flytipping
8. This Hollywood Life
9. Filmstar
10. Antidepressants
11. Saturday Night
12. She Still Leads Me On
13. Shadow Self
14. The Wild Ones (Brett + Richard Acoustic)
15. So Young
16. Metal Mickey
17. Beautiful Ones
MANIC STREET PREACHERS PLAYED:
1. You Love Us
2. Everything Must Go
3. Motorcycle Emptiness
4. Suicide is Painless (Theme from M*A*S*H*)
5. You Stole the Sun from My Heart
6. To Repel Ghosts
7. Little Baby Nothing (duet with The Anchoress)
8. Your Love Alone is Not Enough (duet with The Anchoress)
9. Elvis Impersonator: Blackpool Pier
10. A Design for Life
11. La Tristesse Durera (Scream to a Sigh)
12. Walk Me to the Bridge
13. Kevin Carter
14. Orwellian
15. From Despair to Where
16. No Surface All Feeling
17. If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next
Review by Pete Muscutt
