MY BLOODY VALENTINE + CHVRCHES LEAVE ROYAL ALBERT HALL IN AWE

On Friday night, my bloody valentine + CHVRCHES put in jaw-dropping performances for the legendary Teenage Cancer Trust at the Royal Albert Hall series – at the invitation of guest curator Robert Smith.

Spotted in the venue ahead of the my bloody valentine set were stars including Yungblud, comedian Bridget Christie, Stuart Braithwaite of Wednesday headliner Mogwai and Brian Molko, the singer of Placebo, who will perform a stripped back set on Saturday night.

The mbv audience knew they were in for something very special from Kevin Shields, Colm Ó Cíosóig, Debbie Googe and Bilinda Butcher – but few could quite know how the band’s unique sound would adapt to the Royal Albert Hall.

An indisputably classic album, 1991’s Loveless is the bedrock of the work, previously unimagined guitar textures wrapping themselves in unexpected rhythms. In the Royal Albert Hall, the likes of opener ‘i only said’ and ‘come in alone’ brought pounding drums and ambient beauty.

‘to here knows when’ saw a break from the barrage, waves of guitar rippling around the room.

my bloody valentine (credit: John Stead)

The show brought wall of noise, the attack penetrated by beautiful melody, sometimes overwhelming, often building together with ear-splitting volume to create a transcendent sound that brought the audience spontaneously to their feet.

They are a band huge in volume but of few words, a heckler in the crowd briefly drawing a response from Kevin Shields.

“I love you Kevin.”

“I love you too. I love you more.”

‘slow’ was big but ‘soon’ is massive, the volume ramping up and delivering warmth and rhythm, the lighting and projections bathing the Royal Albert Hall into pink light. ‘Wonder 2’, from 2013’s MBV, pulls drum and bass apart and reimagines it as something completely new. Drummer Colm Ó Cíosóig joined his bandmates to add another guitar to the assault in an intense rendition that stretched the old Hall to its limits.

As is the band’s custom, the set ended with an incredible ‘You Made Me Realise’, its sweet melodies punctuated by an avalanche of noise.

NTS Radio DJ Flo Dill, who compered the evening, said: “It was quite surreal – and an honour. I’m a huge Robert Smith, and a huge My Bloody Valentine fan. And it’s a fantastic cause – one that I previously hadn’t thought so much about. But meeting those young people and hearing them speak was inspiring. It’s an extremely important cause, and really beautiful to see everyone coming together and donating.”

Chvrches opened the evening having previously collaborated with curator Robert Smith on the song ‘How Not To Drown’, which featured here. The set was billed as “stripped back” and saw the band’s sound reimagined with electronic drums and guitar sounds leaning into their shoegaze influences.

Guitarist Iain Cook said: “It’s such an honour. We got to do a song with Robert Smith a few years ago so it’s good to hang out and reconnect with him again. To be asked to do this is such a huge honour. We’re all really big cure fans and MBV fans, so it is a dream come true scenario.  And for a wonderful cause. It’s great to be able to do a small bit for the charity. We’re honoured and pleased to be here.”