Mogwai live review: blowing away the cobwebs at Brighton Dome
Having been a Mogwai fan for some years and somehow not getting around to seeing their live show, I was delighted to hear the band announce a winter tour last September. As I’m sure you’re aware, the band is known for atmospheric post-rock musings, often void of vocals. On many an occasion, I have enjoyed listening to my Happy Songs for Happy People record at wall-rattling volumes, but nothing could have prepared me for this enrapturing concert.
When I told a friend of mine that I was going to see Mogwai at the Brighton Dome earlier in the week, he told me two things: firstly, prepare for the noise, and secondly, that the Dome was the perfect venue for it – and by Jove, was he was right on both fronts.
After a belated Valentine’s meal, I was running a tad late but thankfully slipped through the doors before Mogwai were due to begin at 9pm. I had been to the Brighton Dome on one prior occasion, namely to see Spiritualized last April during their Everything Was Beautiful tour. One thing I gleaned from this magnificent performance was that the Dome is among the greatest venues in Brighton, strides ahead of the Brighton Centre.
The building, constructed by the Prince Regent, is sympathetic to sound thanks to its circular shape, and for this reason, I was particularly excited to hear what Mogwai would create in the environment. Fortunately, for this concert, we were sat almost slap bang in the centre of the upper circle – as far as I’m concerned, the best seats in the house. At 26, I already feel too old and decrepit to use my legs for an entire set.
As we breathed down the neck of 9pm, the theatre began to pack out with all manner of intriguing characters. At a glance, the demographic ranged from teenagers to septuagenarians, but the modal attendee was, as expected, around the 40-50 mark. One obvious positive to such crowds is the notable absence of phones throughout the set.
After taking the stage, the Scottish five-piece got cracking on ‘Yes! I Am a Long Way From Home’, a fine opening choice from their 1997 debut album, Mogwai Young Team. After the characteristic, stripped-back melodic elevation, the first chaotic crescendo made it apparent that earplugs might have been a sensible idea. That said, it’s not every day one sees a band like Mogwai, so why hamper the experience with aural contraception?
My previous visit to the Dome had been mildly marred by people talking throughout Spiritualized’s more delicate songs. Fortunately, Mogwai’s thunderous roar rattles the ribcage and demands your full, undivided attention. The early highlights came with ‘Killing All the Flies’ from Happy Songs for Happy People and ‘Ritchie Sacramento’, the popular track from 2021’s Mercury Prize-nominated album, As the Love Continues. The latter hears rare vocals from Stuart Braithwaite, and if I were pressed to offer one criticism of the deft performance, I would like to have turned his mic up a notch. Occasionally, his lines were totally drowned out by the wall of sound.
As the band surged through the tracks, the ominous presence of the As the Love Continues fox loomed above the band, intermittently illuminated by the subtly brilliant light show. Towards the end of the set, two late highlights came in the form of ‘Remurdered’ and ‘Ratts of the Capital’. During the former, a pesky technical glitch caused the sound to drop out a couple of times in the build-up. However, it gave the band a chance to showcase their experience and resolve as they persevered to deliver one of the show’s finest moments at the climax.
After a brief encore, during which I first noticed the ringing in my ears, the group returned to the stage for one more song: the 2001 epic ‘My Father My King’. The song struck a chord with the audience, who, throughout, had been transfixed by Mogwai’s enveloping textures. The 20-minute belter served as a fitting climax to the set. As the strobe lighting flickered, I saw headbangers and possibly the most emphatic air-drumming I’ve ever laid eyes on. It was truly a beautiful sight.
As we filed out of the building into the bleak night, the fog that’s clung to Brighton over the past few days was eerily emblematic of my hearing damage. That set may have stuffed cotton wool into my ears for a couple of days, but the voluminous serving of sound certainly blew away the cobwebs. I’m already excited for the next time Mogwai come to town; hopefully, the ears will be back in full working order by then.
Setlist for Mogwai at the Brighton Dome 2023:
- ‘Yes! I Am a Long Way From Home’
- ‘Boltfor’
- ‘Killing All the Flies’
- ‘Ritchie Sacramento’
- ‘Don’t Believe the Fife’
- ‘Christmas Steps’
- ‘How to Be a Werewolf’
- ‘Drive the Nail’
- ‘Summer’
- ‘2 Rights Make 1 Wrong’
- ‘Remurdered’
- ‘Ratts of the Capital’
- ‘My Father My King’
