The big story from the Newcastle leg of The 1975’s UK tour was the appearance of Lewis Capaldi, but that was just the beginning of the fun in their most ambitious stage show yet.
The 1975 are the ultimate marmite band, to some a pretentious pop band, to others a groundbreaking pop machine.
The truth is probably somewhere in the middle, but one thing that no one can doubt is the ambition of frontman Matty Healy and co. Gone is the big visual lights show, which formed the basis of their ‘A Brief Inquiry /Notes on a Conditional Form’ Tour instead replaced by a house set, forming the core of the first half of the performance.
This section of the show draws from songs from their recently released fifth album, ‘Being Funny In A Foreign Language’ with the band committing themselves to an ambitious theatrical show.
The band inhabit a fully furnished house for the entire show, unveiled to the audience by each member of the group switching lights on, revealing sections of the stage.
The whole thing is all very reminiscent of a sitcom or drama with title cards and loose storyline, which is brought to life by Healy who starts proceedings with ‘The 1975 (BFIAFL)’. Flying through the first seven songs of the album, the group delivered an enthralling welcome to the world, with singles ‘Happiness’ and ‘I’m In Love With You’ gaining the best reaction from the Geordie crowd.
A first surprise was delivered early on during a performance of ‘All I Need To Hear’. Introduced by Matty Healy, the stage was plunged into darkness, revealing when the lights came up, that Tim Healy had replaced his son. The former ‘Benidorm’ star then proceeded to belt out the track to the delight of the fans.
Matty then returned on the roof of the house to perform a stripped back version of 2018’s ‘I Like America and America Likes Me’ which remains a highlight of the set.
The first half was concluded with fan favourites ‘About You’ and album finisher ‘When We Are Together’.
When the track had finished, the performance art began with Healy assuming the role of a single man going through a breakdown.
Healy strips down to his bare chest to eat a piece of meat, as well as pretending to masturbate on a leather chair. This all occurs whilst images of world leaders and media personalities appear on the set’s TV. Healy then completes this section by crawling through the TV, ending quite a baffling bit of theatre, which is either pretentious or interesting depending on your perspective.
This led to an interval where the show’s biggest moment occurred. A ring of the doorbell signalled the arrival of the special guest, leading to mania in the crowd when the monitors flashed the name of Harry Styles. However, instead of the One Direction star, out stumbled Lewis Capaldi, which prompted more screams from the crowd.
Capaldi, to his credit, did what he does best for the next ten minutes. He delivered laughs, in addition to a rendition of The 1975’s ‘Antichrist’, and a rousing version of Taylor Swift’s ‘Love Story’, whilst he mocked Healy’s previous acting attempts on the big screen, completing an enjoyable interlude.
The band then began their ‘At Their Best’ section of the show, smashing through hit after hit after remerging to a sax rendition of ‘Local Hero’ complete with Newcastle shirts for the saxophonist and a Newcy Brown for Healy.
It’s at these moments, you realise that The 1975 are still amongst the finest in the pop world, delivering both excellent tunes and phenomenal show, which can rival any of their contemporaries.
Finishing on 2018’s ‘Give Yourself A Try,’ the group excelled themselves on this tour, producing one of the most ambitious shows I’ve ever seen. This makes the show well worth a watch if you get the chance.
Humbug North East 