“I exist to do this”: The power of the Pulp comeback
In 2022, Pulp announced their return, and fans went crazy. In 2023, I attended two of those concerts in a matter of weeks – two of the best live shows I’ve ever been to – as the band burst back onto the stage, mirroring the enthusiasm of the masses. In 2024, I saw them again and found myself talking to friends on the journey home, wondering: Do you think Pulp will release any new music? We agreed, probably not, and decided they didn’t need to when the hits still sounded that good. We were so, so wrong.
The news of Pulp’s return came during a golden moment: Britpop was back. Blur were doing their comeback shows, Oasis rumours were getting louder, and the 1990s were truly having a moment. However, even back then, the band was keen not to be lumped in with that scene. They always sat on the outskirts of the chapter, avoiding the trappings of the hypermasculinity and toxic hedonism of the crowd. As their return was unveiled, live show by live show, slowly edging towards the announcement of the album, this point still rang true.
Pulp’s return was so much more than another band jumping on the wagon. It has been clear from the start that this return was done out of passion; Cocker bounding onto the stage keen to dance again, the band eager to play live, honouring the life of Steve MacKey the best way they could think to with a powerful rendition of ‘Something Changed’ every night. In every little moment of banter between the group and the crowd, with Cocker keeping up his tradition of never writing a script and simply saying what he feels, it was clear that they had decided to return because they wanted to—that’s it.
And it would have been enough. My old point was true that the band could have kept performing year after year with no new music; however, the second ‘Spike Island’ landed, and it was clear we’d all be better off with it. In trying times, bold messages are needed, and while live performances might reach a select few, Pulp’s profound declaration that we all need love on their new album, More, is something that will hopefully stir a reaction from the masses. It’s nostalgic in the sense that it states: better times can come back around again. And that’s nostalgia at its best.
The key all comes down to one verse. “Not a shaman, or a showman, ashamed I was selling the rights / I took a breather, and decided not to ruin my life,” Cocker sings, reflecting on old worries about where Pulp were headed. It seems to suggest an old fear of the group selling out on a mission to stay relevant or with the times, with the decision not to ruin his life marking Cocker’s decision to pause the band. But as the music picks up, powering towards one of the band’s biggest choruses, Cocker finds his footing again; “I was born to perform / It’s a calling / I еxist to do this / Shouting and pointing.”
Tracing the decision to leave and to come back, it’s as simple as that; Cocker is born for this, both as a frontman and clearly still as a lyricist. However, he’s also humble enough to explain that ‘this’ is mere shouting and pointing, a cheerleader of sorts heralding good times ahead.
The decision to come back is as simple as a calling and a desire. When you’re called to be an artist, the urge doesn’t stop. It’s not like Pulp paused and Cocker has spent the last 23 years on holiday. He’s moved through various fascinating projects. His artistry has evolved year on year through interesting iterations like Jarv Is, his soundtrack work, his books and so on. As Cocker reveals, some of the songs on this new album have been around for years upon years; perhaps we would have seen them in some other iteration if the band hadn’t made a return. But it’s also clear that with so many other channels of creativity, so many other ways to honour his calling, Cocker didn’t need Pulp; he wanted it.
Wanting more. That’s the theme from both on and off the stage. From the crowd to the band members, the return of Pulp and the success of that return all come down to everyone wanting more—more of everything.
The success of More comes down to having it to give. As the album steers clear of any comeback trappings of feeling like nothing but reheated ideas or, in Cocker’s own words, ‘a sad cover version’ of the past. Instead, it’s an album packed full of new things and reminders that Cocker’s voice remains sharp and vital. It’s the clear combination of all the years away and the things he’s worked on since, mixed with the excitement of being back in the setting that started it all, combining his matured work with the thrill of the youthful frontman. It’s a culmination of an entire career and also the joyful, necessary message that time can’t fade or rust a calling.
Not just a tired and lazy comeback during a trendy moment, the band would never do a thing like that, as Cocker’s breather seemed to protect them from exactly that wagon-chasing attitude. Instead, after the years that have passed, the work made during it and the enthusiasm on stage during every night of their return, More is proof of exactly what this time apart made the frontman realise; he exists to do this, and we’d always be lucky to have more of it.
In an age where woodchip is back on the walls and common people are feeling the pinch, this was a time primed for the joyous, sincere return of Pulp, a band made for this.
