A PANDORA’S BOX OF SHOEGAZEY TREASURE: SLOWDIVE’S UK TOUR FINALE

LIVE REVIEW | SLOWDIVE | LONDON O2 BRIXTON ACADEMY by Robert McAlaney

Slowdive are one of the defining bands of the shoegaze genre, their feet were tickled with fame and success after early EP’s released at the beginning of the 90’s were met with widespread acclaim. However, a mere 5 years later they were swept under the industry rug as a result of the meteoric rise of grunge and britpop, with bands like Nirvana and Oasis there was no room for Slowdive and they were knocked off a podium that guitarist Neil Halstead states they were “semi-embarrassed” to have been been put on in the first place.

In 1995, Creation Records ordered the band to produce a pop record and when they churned out ‘Pygmalion’, an experimental ambient electronic album, Slowdive were dropped from Creation and the band parted ways. For years the radio was silent with regards to Slowdive, then in 2014 the band reformed, an unprecedented renaissance followed the bands reformation with the release of the self titled ‘Slowdive’ in 2017 and ‘Everything Is Alive’ in 2023. These new albums along with a revisit of older albums such as ‘Souvlaki’ through lenses of hindsight saw critics mend the band’s reputation. Fast forward to present day and Slowdive are regarded as one of the best shoegaze bands, amongst the ranks of My Bloody Valentine and the Cocteau Twins. Never has the phrase ‘better late than never’ been so applicable. 

Slowdive concluded their final show of their UK tour with a sold out night at the famed Brixton Academy, a venue with historical musical significance etched into its walls. Check out Simon Parkes biographical tale, ‘Live At The Brixton Academy’ for an amusing education on how the venue came to be.Opening for the band were LA musical project, Drab Majesty.

Slowdive dawned a stage engulfed in a lime haze to a thundering mix of applause, wails and cheers from their eager crowd who occupied every crevice of the Academy. Rachel Goswel sung the opening lyrics of ‘Avalyn 1’ and with that Slowdive cemented the tone for the evening. With weighted guitar blooms paired with delicate vocals and drums struck with an intense beauty, the band were a well oiled machine. ‘Shanty’ then followed, building itself up with a ferocious electronic zig zag of sound, Neil Halsted and Nick Chaplin played their guitars like a bedtime story, Simon Scott damn near burst the skin stretched over his drums and Goswel produced vocals that were not from this world. It was an ethereal chaos that somehow worked perfectly. This otherworldly presence typically requires great effort for most bands to pull off, for Slowdive it was like breathing. 

The previous track winded the crowd, like a blow to the stomach, after ‘Star Roving’ which was like a kick to the balls spluttered from the speakers whilst the crowd bellowed for the other foot. You’d think Rachel Goswel was a wolf, attempting to seduce the moon. Cherry sweet eruptions of synth filled the Academy’s hall during the live rendition of ‘No Longer Making Time’ and each pluck of Halstead’s guitar string was pure unfiltered satisfaction.

Slowdive sound how drugs feel, and the crowd were certainly at risk of an overdose. I have never seen an audience so present and captivated by the psychedelic orchestra on stage. It became wildly apparent to me during ‘Souvlaki Space Station’ that Slowdive were not performing for our bodies, but our souls; what they play for is something beyond mortal comprehension, it is not from around here. ‘Allison’ took us on a journey of musical transcendence, it was frightening but the band held your hand every step of the way.

Neil Halstead suddenly went absolutely mental on his guitar, he was practically making love to the instrument and the audience went crazy for it. The crowd favourite then followed and snatched the air from everyone’s lungs, if you shut your eyes during ‘When The Sun Hits’ you’d think you were flying. Just when you think the night had peaked, ‘Machine Gun’ filled the room and scratched every itch you’ve ever had, it was more than music – this was an out of body life experience.

Halstead picked up an acoustic guitar and broke the heart of everybody within the Brixton Academy with a gut wrenching performance of ‘Dagger’. You wanted to look away to save yourself the pain but something did not let you; Slowdive were the headlights and us the foolish deer. 

Slowdive are a band of gypsy pirates, hopping from reality to reality in search of treasures to make music from. They brought a chest to Brixton that night and opened it like Pandora’s box. Slowdive have a great discography but to really do their sound justice you must pay them a visit and find out what all the fuss is about, trust me you will be as awestruck as every audience member was leaving Brixton that evening. The bus back was a harsh comedown. 

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