Pulp playing live at the Neighbourhood Weekender Festival in Warrington on May 28, 2023, was not the first time I saw the band. Despite being a fan since 1995, with the release of the epoch-defining Different Class album (which, to my eternal shame, I thought was their debut release – yeah, only four studio albums out…) I have only seen them twice. This was mainly due to being a callow youth of tender years in their heyday, and so like many, I have been resigned to seeing them on “the nostalgia circuit” (a hateful term, but one that is true enough).
My joy at seeing Pulp on the ‘This Is What We Do for An Encore’ tour was only added to by also being able to see another of Sheffield’s finest (albeit of a different generation) in the sublime Self Esteem – the alter-ego of Rebecca Lucy Taylor (once of the indie duo Slow Club) whose quirky, individual and life-affirming anthems to believing in yourself and challenging the status quo were very well received by the festival crowd in Warrington, and is a definite must-see for when she takes on another headline tour of her own.
So, to Pulp. I mentioned this wasn’t my first rodeo with my lifelong heroes (well, since the age of fifteen – I’m now forty-two, so not far off!), however it was my first time seeing them sober. The less said about the occasion of attending a festival in Hyde Park in 2011 with my then-fiancee Laura (now wife) and brother Steve, owner/moderator/deity of this fine site you now peruse, the better. Let it be said that it involved a minor scrape with the London Transport Police, the smuggling in of “special water” (cider) and my very drunken request for Jarvis Cocker to “get the fuck on with it” during a spoken interlude between songs.
If Jarvis happens to be reading this, I must apologise for my disgraceful behaviour. Let’s just say I was “very excited”, to the point I was mixing rose wine with orange WKD in a Wetherspoon’s pub about an hour before heading to the concert venue – which, kids, IS NEVER A GOOD IDEA. Let this be a life lesson to you, which you may take away for free. I only remember about fifteen minutes of the gig. I know - Christ.
Pulp’s 2023 set opens with Different Class album favourite ‘I Spy’. Not their traditional opener (this honour fell to 1994 single ‘Do You Remember the First Time’ for countless years – well, since 1994 at least…) and I have to say, it made for an intriguing curveball to proceedings; if only to see Jarvis rising onto the stage with a large circular drum in a quite stunning visual, his unmistakable silhouette adding to the slow-burner tune about revenge and a quite messy affair.
The festival received an early pogoing opportunity with ‘Disco 2000’, which was probably the most enthusiastic singalong I’ve heard at a festival, literally everyone moshing and singing along in a true moment of togetherness. An extremely touching tribute to late bassist Steve Mackey, who died tragically young this year at 56, followed with ‘Something Changed’ – a song about fate that Jarvis commented was Pulp’s leading “wedding song” (mine included!) and how fate can affect your life, even if you’re not a massive believer in the concept. Rest in peace, Steve. Sniff. NO, I’M FINE. THAT WAS JUST DUST IN MY EYE.
The extremely under-rated This is Hardcore track ‘Dishes’ came next – and while that album was never going to live up to Different Class as a Pulp album, it still has it’s moments of lyrical genius (“I am not Jesus, though I have the same initials/I am the man who stays home and does the dishes”; “a man told me to beware of thirty-three/He said: ‘It was not an easy time for me’”).
I was delighted to hear one of my all-time favourite Pulp tracks next, in ‘Pink Glove’ – perhaps my vote for The Song Pulp Should’ve Released as a Single. A mesmerising, euphoric ode to a past girlfriend giving in to a dominant boyfriend and wearing whatever lurid, sexy outfit he demands, it has a true singalong chorus, and deserves to be more widely heard than it is.
Britpop anthem ‘Sorted for E’s and Wizz’ is perfect outdoor fodder for this time of year, it was definitely made to be listened to live, in a field (hopefully in Hampshire). As it was, I didn’t witness too many acid/cocaine/ecstasy casualties at the Neighbourhood Weekender, and have to say it was a pretty decent crowd in attendance.
The pornography and noir-inspired ‘This is Hardcore’, which this particular reunion tour takes its title from, was played fantastically, including an orchestral intro that was originally released as a remix on the single of the same name. A musical segue followed, consisting of both parts of the track ‘Weeds’ (from 2001’s We Love Life album) and a great slide into ‘FEELINGCALLEDLOVE’, another mid-90s favourite.
From there, we were on the home straight of the first section of the show, with fan favourites ‘Do You Remember the First Time’, ‘Babies’ (both of which were rewarded with another ground-pounding mass moshing!) and the yearning, build-to-a-climax frenzy of ‘Sunrise’, featuring Jarvis silhouetted by the illuminated circular gong and a massive coloured backdrop.
Following a short break to ensure we thought there was genuine danger Pulp might not reappear, Jarvis steps through the curtain to ask if it’s OK if he plays a number of solo tracks – just him and a guitar. Despite a few jeers, most fans took this in good spirits as he sparked up with lesser-played track ‘Like a Friend’ (originally from the soundtrack of the movie ‘Great Expectations’) before the curtain pulled back again as the main chunk of the song kicked in and the full-band joined back in. Jarvis cheekily dedicated ‘Underwear’ to his partner Kim (which the crowd gave a collective ‘aww’ to, only for him to quip: “hang on, you haven’t heard the lyrics yet!”).
And then we were at the end. Or were we? Despite 98% of us still waiting for the song we knew they were going to play, Jarvis tried to troll us, claiming they’d done everything we’d come to hear, surely? Wasn’t it time to go home? Fear not, as a rampant ‘Common People’ threatened to tear Warrington a new arse, and we all got to head back to the comforts of the train station happy.
Will we ever see Pulp again after this current tour? I fear not, with age, a changing band line-up (this incarnation of Pulp featuring members of JARV IS... - Jarvis' main preoccupation these days, when not involving in rampant Pulping), as well as them being a band known through the years for as much of a ‘revolving door’ policy as other high-turnover bands such as The Fall) and no indication of new material on the horizon – Pulp are not pulling a Blur here, with a new album on the cards. But for now, this wasn’t a concern. Jarvis still has the moves, the stage presence, the allure of being the showman he always was. Pulp as a band have the tunes to back up their reputation. And for fans such as us, this was more than enough. Just being in their company for 90mins was all we could have hoped for, and they certainly didn’t let us down.
Saying that, there is more to this revered group than “just the hits”. What follows are five occasions where Pulp really went off-piste and challenged not only the listener, but themselves, in terms of what sound they presented. Please check this lot out, and experience the deepest of deep Pulp cuts:-
1) THIS HOUSE IS CONDEMNED (Separations, 1992)
Finishing off an album made up of half acoustic, rather slow, dark ballads and half electronic-infused, forward thinking tracks (one already delayed for three years due to record company shenanigans), this near eight-minute epic utilises MIDI instruments and the vocal talents of former guitarist/violinist Russell Senior to create a song that, if you played it to a Pulp newbie tomorrow, would inspire confused head-scratching all round. That the track is actually pretty fucking decent is another surprise, even if it is an acquired taste.
2) TUNNEL (They Suffocate at Night B-side, 1986)
Our first foray into eighties Pulp, with another eight-minute track. This time, it’s all wonky bass, distortion (seriously, I think the band are playing drills at one point) and Jarvis practically screaming lyrics about what could possibly be a nightmare, or a musical summary of his interaction with the music industry to that point in his life. Either way, this contains some pretty disgusting imagery (“a thousand bodies stink and sweat/and somebody’s trying to roll a cigarette”; “I know I shall never be clean again”) and isn’t one to be played at weddings.
3) THAT BOY’S EVIL (A Little Soul B-side, 1998)
Purely instrumental (save for a brief vocal sample), this track is not technically by Pulp. Rather, it is an effort by a side project made up of Jarvis Cocker and Steve Mackey, who recorded it under the alias The Chocolate Layers. It’s more of the ilk of something that might appear on a film soundtrack, and again, wouldn’t instantly make you think “Pulp!” (Trivia: despite not commercially releasing anything, The Chocolate Layers did remix the single ‘The Facts of Life’ by the superb Luke Haines band Black Box Recorder. Go check that out too, your ears will thank you.
4) REFUSE TO BE BLIND (The Peel Sessions, 2006)
Culled from the band’s debut John Peel radio session all the way back in 1981, this song didn’t actually feature on ANY Pulp single or album, and was a reworking of a song included in the Pulp live repertoire originally titled ‘Message to the Martians’, which may account for the distorted ‘Dalek’ style voice effect used towards the end of the track. Although this song does feature Jarvis on vocals, he’s using the very deep vocal style he favoured in the 1980s songs, before he introduced a bit of range to his voice. An impressive track for a very young band (at the time) to have produced, this one is a minor classic.
5) DEEP FRIED IN KELVIN (Lipgloss B-side, 1993)
Depending who you ask, this is either the “most Pulp song ever”, or the “least Pulp song ever”. Nearly ten minutes of apocalyptic sounding, menacing, spoken word vocals over a minimalist musical backing, telling the story of the Kelvin flats in Sheffield and how notorious they were amongst local residents back in the day. The lyrics here are true poetry, recounting stories you can’t help but wonder: “was that true?” as Jarvis reels off anecdotes about kids being conceived in shopping centre toilets, of 14th floor residents stealing flowers because “all he wanted was a garden”. This is, in my opinion, also up there as one of the very best Pulp songs – if you’ve ever heard ‘Sheffield: Sex City’ and liked that, you simply have to hear this one. Never performed live, which is…well, understandable, really. But fucking good.
By P.T. Muscutt