Review:
Although not the first night of the tour, it was definitely an "I was there" night. I liked the set, nothing too flamboyant but looked effective. There was no big drama or pomp to PiL's entrance, it was straight on stage. A very relaxed happy looking PiL (and John) burst into a cracking version of the self titled Public Image.
The crowd of various ages and looks erupted into a frenzy; it was a great start to the show. When someone from the crowd shouted something out, John replied "We don't do requests and don't rush the talent." After the opener came various tracks from Metal Box, all played very tightly - I thought John's voice was on fine top sneering form. In between the more "up tempo" numbers when the crowd weren't dancing, they stood as I did, mesmerized by the stage presence of John and the fantastic musicianship of Lu, Bruce and Scott. There were a lot of faces that appeared awestruck. Numbers such as Rise, Flowers of Romance and Religion had the crowd going wild. There was no mention of the the Pistols other than when John said some people may not remember acid music and then he said "Acid Vicious" which got a huge cheer.
John said he needed to nip off for a fag and didn't want to break the law by smoking on stage. So he did before returning to finish with brilliant versions of Sun, Rise and Open Up.
PiL were fantastic and although John is the front man of the legendary Pistols, they can in no way shape or form be compared to the Pistols. Was it a good night ??? Yes. If anyone isn't going to see PiL, are they missing out on a piece of history and a fantastic show? Defo, YES.
Review by Ian Fox
