CONFIDENCE MAN DELIVER OPTIMISM IN GLASTONBURY WARM UP
LIVE REVIEW | CONFIDENCE MAN | BRIGHTON CHALK 18/06/24 by Tom Jenkinson
Standing in line outside Brighton’s Chalk venue on a muggy Tuesday evening, you would be forgiven for thinking the grey sky was an omen for the summer ahead: England not bringing it home, cancelled BBQs, and Googling “how to prevent trench foot from a festival welly”.
However, any pessimism over the outlook for summer dissipated immediately the moment
Confidence Man stepped on stage for their first show of their Glastonbury warm-up tour.
The Australian group have found a welcome home in the UK: their unique flavour of pop and irony has resonated with British audiences and their debut Glastonbury appearance in 2022 cemented their cult status here, leading them to ditch the Australian beaches and establish themselves permanently on UK soil. Fast forward to 2024 and Con Man know exactly what the Brits want and how to give it to them.
They launch straight into ‘Now U Do‘ turning the sold-out 800-capacity audience into one, giant
homogenous wave. Before anyone has a chance to catch their breath, they are straight into ‘Out The Window‘ from their debut Confident Music for Confident People. The intro to ‘Does It Make You Feel Good‘ lets the audience know there is simply no time to chat, they are here to get down to business. The four bandmates take centre stage, dancing in sync, showing everyone that this is a band that is one. They might be a part of the British landscape, but they are not standing on ceremony.
The set alternates between classics and new favourites (‘On & On (Again)‘, ‘I Can’t Lose You‘,
‘Feels Like a Different Thing‘) with the band taking advantage of every inch of available of the stage
like circus acrobats in designer suits. A short musical interlude gives the duo time to change into all-white, Janet Planet donning a light up
bra and white swim goggles that would give Madonna a run for her money. The costume change is short-lived however as somewhere between ‘Don’t You Know I’m In a Band‘ and ‘So What‘, Sugar is topless, swinging his shirt around his head before spraying champagne over the thirsty crowd. This band are having a party, and everyone is invited.
It is not hard to see how Confidence Man have gone from the cool new kids on the playground to
everyone’s favourite and tonight’s performance at Chalk shows why they are back at Glastonbury two years on from their debut. With the final bars of set finale ‘Holiday‘ still pumping around my body, I note it has been raining outside, the skies have cleared and it feels that there is hope for the summer yet.
SET LIST
Now U Do (DJ Seinfeld & Confidence Man cover)
Out the Window
Does It Make You Feel Good?
On & On (Again)
I Can’t Lose You
Firebreak
Feels Like a Different Thing
C.O.O.L Party
(Unknown)
Don’t You Know I’m in a Band
So What
Boyfriend (Repeat)
Holiday
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