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They say “the suit don’t maketh the man” – well, at least I think they do – something along those lines anyway. And while we are on the topic, who are ‘they’? Ponder that one while you read on. Anyway, I digress. I’m trying to allude to the fact that a man of little (or no) substance will always be found out – irrespective of his threads.
The same goes for venues in Melbourne. Some venues make crap bands sound worse; some make great bands sound very ordinary; and some just work, irrespective of genre, style, equipment or ego. I put The Forum into that latter category. There is no better venue in Melbourne. Period. This is not up for discussion or debate – it is what it is. I’ve even seen perennial strugglers Jet at The Forum (free ticket, kids) and walked out thinking they were … um, well less crappy I guess.
So imagine this. Are you ready? What if you combine the best venue in Melbourne with one of the great live acts of our time. No, I’m not on payroll of either the band or the venue – the Forum is amazing and yes, Mogwai really are that good live.
Walking past the scalpers and security (a harmonious relationship this evening – good to see!), through the double doors, down the side aisle and on to the floor (via the bar), you want to know what the first thing that gets me every time about The Forum? It’s not the layout, it’s not the Michaelangeloesque mannequins with leaves strategically placed over their nether-regions, it’s not even the sizable stage. It’s the blue roof. Yep, the blue lit roof with imitation star-lights is pretty special. These lights stay on all gig and serve as a reminder of where you are and what you are experiencing.
I had a few mates in tow this evening. One, a massive Mogwai fan, another had travelled all the way from Perth to see them. Well, strictly speaking he was here for the Golden Plains festival but lets not let truth ruin a good tale, eh.
I knew very little of support act Beaches, apart from that they were an all girl group and the couple of tracks I had heard on Triple R. After watching their rather short set (only about 30 minutes) I still cant tell you much about them, except that they are good. Very good. An excellent choice of support for Mogwai. Their dual vocals and three-pronged guitar attack release a richer sound that you might expect. Interestingly enough they had cast a spell over the die-hard Mogwai fans there earlier enough to clammer for the front row. Worth a second look.
The first thing that you notice about Mogwai is that there are no microphones on the stage, save the one on the right hand side used solely for the purpose of guitarist Stuart Braithwaite to greet and thank the crowd. Without much fuss they launch into ‘I’m Jim Morrison, ‘I’m Dead’, the lead track of their latest release, The Hawk Is Howling. They lean heavily on this album throughout the evening, playing tracks including ‘I Love You I’m Going To Blow Up Your School’, ‘Thankyou Space Expert’ and ‘Batcat’. They also delve into ‘Scotland’s Shame’ which, while hard to explore or interpret a song with no lyrics, seems to be a powerful and very personal lament about the band’s heritage and homeland. Mogwai then moves to the Come On Die Young album for the full throttle of ‘Christmas Steps’. Mogwai’s great strength is not just that they are brilliant musically, it’s also the skillful method with which they craft their set – ebbing and flowing between the haunting piano and dream-like aura of ‘Friend Of The Night’, to the grind, noise and destruction of such tracks as ‘Like Herod’ (delivered with particular eardrum destroying abandon this evening). This is how they earned their reputation as a great performers.
After rapturous applause Mogwai returns for an encore, delivering ‘The Precipice’ and the deliciously Scottish-titled ‘We No Here’. With the crowd dispersing and the onset of tinnitus inevitable, I relive the the gig from the comfort of my tram seat and smile, knowing that I have witnessed a tour-de-force in modern music. Oh yeah, and that ‘they’ would approve.
