Elbow @ The Roundhouse
By: Adam Johnstone
"Profound" is a word bandied about far too much in the contemporary music press. It affixes to music an elevated, almost ethereal sense of meaning, which in practice is rarely attainable.
A far less lofty but no less admirable goal is to simply say something that means a great deal to a large volume of people - which is something Elbow has done so well for so long, that on this gloomy Camden day, the Roundhouse swells with a feeling of affection quite unlike anything I've experienced at a gig before. On Elbow's recorded work, Guy Garvey speaks to his audience with a colloquial honesty that can so perfectly encapsulate what makes everyday life so complex. In person, Garvey is no less charming and far happier, making his first appearance early in the evening to introduce supporting act Jesca Hoop. "Her music is quite nuanced," he rambles jovially. "So you'd do well to pay it the attention it deserves."
"Starlings" opens the show proper, with each band member blasting a single triumphant note on the trumpet in front of glaring white lights. Seen through a forest of raised arms, it's an incredibly dramatic moment that solidifies the notion that where other bands raise spirits in a live setting, Elbow soar. Later on, during the impossibly tragic "Red", they swoon where others might settle for merely lilting. The set list focuses mostly on material from The Seldom Seen Kid, but songs like "Scattered Black and Whites" serve to remind the audience that Elbow have been exceptional for over 8 years.
What makes this band so special, however, is how they forge a connection with the listener. "Weather to Fly" opens with the band huddled together at the side of the stage, quietly performing a cappella to each other, yet as the music crescendos, the band unfolds across the stage, letting the audience in on the secret and launching into one of many sing-a-longs. On this day, in this place, lyrics such as "When we make the moon our mirror ball / The street's an empty stage / The city sirens - violins" from the song "Mirrorball" take on an entirely new context as a private moment between lovers becomes some kind of public support group. With a lyrical repertoire that focuses so absolutely on exclusion, in a live setting Elbow's music becomes a rallying point for everyday outsiders.
The gig is exceptionally paced, with wrought numbers like "Newborn" brushing up against back-of-the-bar stompers like "Grounds for Divorce" and the seething intensity of "Leaders of the Free World". Across a backdrop of shimmering keyboard riffs and stark guitars, Garvey reaches out for the sky, the audience, and in the most thrilling moment of the evening, a cascade of balloons and streamers descend from the ceiling with the now iconic climax to "One Day Like This". Having avoided any reference to their recent Mercury Prize triumph, Elbow finally, emphatically, assures the audience: "We did it." Everyone in the room knew that he was including them in that statement, too.
