Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark performing their Bauhaus Staircase Tour at The Royal Concert Hall Nottingham on Wednesday 13th March 2024.

Images and Review by Kevin Cooper

From the 80s there were plenty of synth pop bands, some were one hit wonders and some are still active and successful today, like Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark who sold out the Royal Concert Hall on Wednesday night.

Touring to showcase their first album in six years, Bauhaus Staircase and dressed in their signature black, against a back drop that included screens showing psychedelic visuals, Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys captivated the audience from the moment they took to the stage.

Instrumental Evolution Of Species from the new album was followed by another new song, Anthropocene which immediately showcased McCluskey’s iconic, frenetic stage presence. Older songs Messages and Tesla Girls followed which formed part of a set list that was a master class in balancing new material with their classic hits.

There was the protest song Kleptocracy and History Of Modern (Part 1) followed by Souvenir, Joan Of Arc, and Maid Of Orleans (The Waltz Joan Of Arc), which all culled from 1981’s Architecture And Morality and which got the high praise and interaction they deserved from a crowd that was hanging on their every word.

For (Forever) Live And Die, Humphreys took centre stage and McCluskey took over keyboard duty meaning he had to keep still for a few minutes. But normal service was resumed for If You Leave, So In Love, and Locomotion.

The iconic Enola Gay had the crowd dancing which was reminiscent of McCluskey’s own unique style. The catchy Look At You Now from Bauhaus Staircase led the encore together with the brilliantly euphoric Pandora’s Box and the inevitable final song, Electricity.

Having delivered a spell binding performance, OMD are undoubtedly the pioneers of synth pop and are a band that has continuously evolved whilst staying true to their core and that is why there wasn’t a seat to be had.

Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark performing their The Punishment Of Luxury Tour at The Royal Concert Hall on Monday 6th November 2017.

Images and Review by Kevin Cooper

It is not very often that a synthpop band that formed nearly forty years ago is still able to fill the Royal Concert Hall, but last night Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark did just that.

Touring to promote their latest album, The Punishment Of Luxury, it was new song, Ghost Star that opened their set and had the crowd immediately on their feet where they stayed until the very end. Delivering the entire song in near total darkness when the lights did finally find lead singer Andy McCluskey with his endless energy and boundless enthusiasm, the crowd went wild, as he lead them into the Kraftwerk inspired Isotype.

There were other gems from the new album, One More Time, What Have We Done and the title track which had everyone singing along as though the songs had been around for years. But it was the hits that most had come to hear and they were not disappointed.

With the use of backing tapes, there were fans favourites such as Messages and Souvenir sitting alongside She’s Leaving off the Architecture & Morality album, the song voted for by the fans on the night to be included in the set list, the hits just kept coming. Tesla Girls saw the use of strobe lighting that made the band look like robots and highlighted McCluskey’s odd style of dancing which made him look like he was trying to get out of Marcel Marceal’s glass box. There was Maid Of Orleans with its double hand clap and Joan Of Arc with its excellent staccato drumming by Stuart Kershaw.

For (Forever) Live And Die it was the turn of keyboard player Paul Humphrey’s to come to the forefront of the stage. And when the hauntingly wonderful Joan Of Arc (Maid Of Orleans) came to an end, the crowd didn’t want to stop clapping.

Main set finisher the iconic Enola Gay saw a demanded encore that included Secret and Electricity which rounded off a night that had seen OMD deliver a master class in sheer entertainment.