Level 42 with special guests Johnny Hates Jazz perform their From Eternity To Here Tour at The Royal Concert Hall Nottingham on Wednesday 13th October 2021



Images and Review by Kevin Cooper

For a night of pure 80s nostalgia the Royal Concert Hall was the place to be last night where Level 42 delivered a night of funk that had the crowd on their feet from the off.

With Johnny Hates Jazz taking to the stage first, their sound barely altering with their pretty synth lines and 80s programmed drumbeats, they thoroughly entertained with their successful hits such as Shattered Dreams and Turn The Clock Back, which they definitely did.

With no new album to promote this was very much a retrospective look back on Level 42’s career. But this was never going to be a sit down and just listen concert because with opener To Be With You they blew the roof off from the start.

Running In The Family set the tone for the night and by the time Heathrow got an airing, the crowd were treated to the formidable bass skills of Mark King who lit up the stage with his masterful playing all night long.

The bands original keyboard player Mike Lindup was in superb voice during Starchild with its unstoppable groove accentuated by a fabulous horn section. Wheeling out the big guns with the inclusion of their unmistakable top ten hit Something About You before a frantic airing of Heaven In My Hands brought the main set to its explosive conclusion.

A three song encore featuring the timeless classic Lessons In Love had many of the crowd dancing in the aisles before The Chinese Way and Hot Water brought an incredible night of music to a close to deafening applause.

Level 42 had delivered a career spanning set that had covered all the bases and had nostalgically transported the crowd back to the 80s. It had been impossible to listen to their level of funkiness and not at least tap your feet.