Spiritualized, The Bridgewater Hall. 8th May 2022

Is it just me or does Jason Pierce sound a lot like Graham Coxon with a slight cold? Especially on the opening footstomper ‘Hey Jane’ in the glorious Bridgewater Hall tonight. That might sound like I’m being nasty. I’m really not, he sounds wonderful. Perfectly pitched to layer up with this wall of sound. He’s not alone though, everyone bar the rhythm section is mic’d up, it’s sounds glorious. A brilliant opening volley, stating right away that Spiritualized are hell bent on making the most of the flawless acoustics. I’m on record a lot as disliking large venues. This place is different. Every time I come here it feels special, a bit grown up, serious. Artists tend to bring their A game too. There’s an expectation. Don’t worry though, Spiritualized are up to the task. As they launch into ‘She Kissed Me’ the bloke sat next to me is struggling to sit still. This could be annoying, our chairs joined together, but I really can’t blame him, so instead I start bouncing too, if only to help his rhythm a bit as he’s way off. With the stobes going for it in the crescendo, they drop effortlessly into ‘Shine a Light’. It’s so tight there’s an audible gasp from the sold out crowd. As the gospel vocals from the backing singers kick in, I swear the whole room floats just a little bit. It’s the sort of song most bands would close with it’s that good. We’re only just getting going though. ‘I’m Coming Home Again’ is the first off the latest album and in many ways, these new songs are my favourites. There’s still that warmth to them, but also a hint of menace. Most of the set is from ‘Everything is Beautiful’ and ‘And Nothing Hurt’ and they play flurries from both, with a string of songs from one, then the other. As they drop into the quiet bit on ‘The Morning After’ you can here a pin drop. I’ve heard people complain over the last couple of dates on this tour of lairy crowds not getting Spiritualized’s tenderness and shouting over these moments. Not in Manchester though, we know how to behave, contrary to popular belief. As the groove of ‘Best Thing You Never Had’ locks in, I’m bobbing around in my seat so much, you’d think it was on of those cinema seats that flings you around as things explode in screen. Instead, my mind is exploding to the luscious rhythms and noodley guitar solos. They step things up even further with ‘Let it Bleed’, those soft verses, setting up the raucous chorus beautifully. It’s sounds monstrous inside this place. The band though it has to be said are all very chilled throughout. A reluctant star, there’s not a word from Pierce other than those he sings. Maybe it’s just how much work is actually being put in up there. I’m on the third row and you can really see how much the guitars need to be wrestled to make this work. There’s three on stage, along with bass, drums and keyboard. Together they create that signature sound that starts with delicate subtle notes, soft slide guitars, cozy organs, melodic bass, but as they build and begin to let loose, Christ what a sound! Pierce stays seated throughout, looking cool in sunglasses to the right of the stage. The three singers behind him deserve a lot of credit too, they do a lot of the heavy lifting and sound fantastic. To be fair, everyone is pretty equal though, I can’t remember the last time I saw a band this big where the harmony seemed so true. Even if I am compelled to give the bassist Thomas Wayne a shout out, he really does put a shift in. ‘Come Together’ predictably sounds immense. It’s a proper close your eyes, lift your arms to the sky’s and thank fuck we have music in this world sort of moment. THIS is why I love live music. There. Is. NOTHING else like it and Spiritualized really do live up to their name tonight.