Embrace - London Royal Albert Hall - 1/2/02
4/5
By: Matt Tomiak
Set-List: 'Over', 'My Weakness Is None Of Your Business', 'All You Good Good People', 'You're Not Alone', 'The Love It Takes', 'Now You're Nobody', 'Come Back To What You Know', 'If You've Never Been In Love with Anything', 'New Adam, New Eve', 'Drawn From Memory', 'The Good Will Out', 'Hope You're Happy Now', 'Three is the Magic Number', 'Hooligan', 'Save Me', ENCORE #1, New Song ('Forever Young'), 'Retread', 'Wonder', ENCORE #2, 'Fireworks' (Danny solo), 'One Big Family'.
Embrace have always been a band that like to do things big - and it doesn't get much bigger than the grandiose environs of the Royal Albert Hall.
Despite the rumoured full-scale orchestra's non-appearance, Embrace sound absolutely epic. A two hour set encapsulates all that is great about the best British band since Oasis. The fact that the superlative 'Come Back To What You Know', which frontman Danny McNamara admits is likely to be aired for the last ever time tonight - yet it remains their biggest hit to date (number six in June 1998) - is little short of staggering; however, aside from this, could there have been a better singles band to emerge from this country in the last five years?
But Danny's congregation doesn't care about the non-believers. 'You don't fill a place like this on your own: its all about you people,' he acknowledges genuinely.
And so, we get it all: the huge, rousing wide-screen anthems from the early days ('All You Good Good People', 'The Good Will Out'), the ebullient, joyful rockers ('New Adam New Eve', 'Save Me'), and tender, heartfelt balladeering ('Retread', 'The Love It Takes'). But it is the frontman's haunting solo rendition of the ever-exquisite 'Fireworks' in which he foregoes all instrumental support, and catapults the evening damn close to the 'legendary' category.
To summarise plainly, then? A triumph. And those that aren't aware of such a spectacle are most spectacularly the ones missing out.
Artists in this article: Embrace
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