Spiritualized® - Massey Hall 20 June Reviews

[The Dr]

Spiritualized at Massey Hall
J. Spaceman conjures a gospel-like space odyssey
By Samantha Edwards
SPIRITUALIZED at Massey Hall, Friday, June 20.
NOW RATING:
NNNN

How do you fit two decades of music into a one-hour set? Skip the stage banter, rarely break for applause and cherry-pick the best songs to play from each album. Even staying within those parameters, a band as prolific as Spiritualized can only make a tiny dent in their discography.

Wearing all white and a pair of black sunglasses, Jason Pierce (aka J. Spaceman) floated onto the stage, picked up his red guitar and took a seat on an ergonomic computer swivel chair, where he remained for the entirety of the set. The lack of stage panache didn’t hinder the performance though. The half-packed audience at Massey Hall already consider Pierce a rock star – he doesn’t need to gallivant around to prove himself.

Pierce and his backing band (the regular synth player/bassist/guitarist/drummer lineup plus two mesmerizing female gospel singers) kicked things off with an epic version of Hey Jane, from 2012’s Sweet Heart Sweet Light. For the first exhilarating half of the set, every song was bigger than the last. The second half felt noticeably more gospel than space rock. Lord Let It Rain On Me and Oh Baby, both from 2003’s Amazing Grace, were epic in the cavernous building; the backup singers angelically juxtaposing Pierce’s strained, emotive vocals and plaintive guitar strums.

But everyone was itching to hear songs from Spiritualized’s masterpiece, Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating In Space. (Especially those of us who missed Pierce’s 2009 European shows where he played the album in full with an orchestra and choir.) And although he didn’t treat us to the title track, he did play the gorgeous space-age slow-burner Come Together.
• Jun 21, 2014 at 02:45 PM


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Spiritualized @ Massey Hall

There was a moment during Spiritualized's Massey Hall performance right when the frenetic track "Electricity" ended and the transition to the languid, shimmery "Shine A Light" began where everything became ... perfect.

It was a synesthetic experience, evoking firefly flashes and shooting star trails throughout the hallowed 120-year-old venue and it validated the best intentions of the NXNE fest planners' very ambitious plan to host three nights of shows at Massey.

The rest of the set, a fair mix of both new and old, rendered by a relatively-economical-by-Spiritualized-standards seven piece was meted out with band leader Jason Pierce's trademark command of high and low, slow and fast, noisy and pretty.

By the time the band roared through set-closer "Come Together" it felt like the brave souls who'd made the trip to Massey had been part of something special.
- Aaron Brophy

[BzaInSpace]

http://exclaim.ca/Reviews/Nxne/spiritua ... on_june_20

By Cam Lindsay
9/10
Aside from the CN Tower, which he played in 1997, Massey Hall felt like the perfect Toronto venue for Jason Pierce's Spiritualized to lift off into their space rock. Touring with a svelte five-piece band and two backing singers, Pierce had a tight, hour-long set to try and deliver his usual epic performance. This meant fewer songs and, in some cases, shorter versions, but he didn't disappoint. He played the entirety of the lengthy trippin' garage-soul burner "Hey Jane." Surprisingly, he chose 2003's Amazing Grace as his favourite on the night, playing "Lord Let It Rain On Me," "Rated X" and "Oh Baby," but didn't forget his classics like the fiery riff-led "Electricity" and the intimate "Shine A Light."

The Spaceman shone brightest during his recent Space Project contribution "Always Forgetting With You," a Motown-influenced ballad that will hopefully make his next album, but they closed the set with arguably their signature song, the epic gospel juggernaut "Come Together," which offered a climax to bring down the house.

[clewsr]

two things to note - I thought / hoped that set had moved on from the inclusion of "Lord Let It Rain On Me," "Rated X" and "Oh Baby,". There just seems to be so many other songs more worthy of being played?

Also the photo shows different drummer. I wonder what is going on with the line up these days? Should we assume that the only permanent members are Jason and Doggen. I think it will be a shame if we don't see any more of the American guys - Kid Millions and the hulking great base player who's name I can't quite remember.

[James T]

Oh Baby and Rated X are great live, I think anyway. There's others I'd prefer to see, but I'm not disappointed to hear them. Hope there's some (proper) uk shows soon.

[angelsighs]

..a band as prolific as Spiritualized can only make a tiny dent in their discography..

Spiritualized? Prolific? has she got the right band?

I agree with James T that Rated X and Oh Baby are pretty damn fine live (although you could argue till the cows come home about what other tracks should be in the setlist). it is strange that he is still playing them all these years later, he must have a soft spot for them.

I really hope that the band aren't becoming just Jason, Doggen, and then whatever random guys they can cobble together..

[The Dr]

prolific in quality, not quantity

i'm glad to see he likes amazing grace. i find it is a greatly underrated album

or maybe he is just going to keep playing it until everyone agrees with him

[clewsr]

to be fair lord let in rain on me live these days is great, and 'oh baby' has managed to convert me once or twice.

it would be good to hear always together with you live. That record store day thing sounded wonderful.

[LunarTunes]

I did a brief review on the thread in the "Gigs (Dates Only)" and you can see the set list there to see what was played. Then decide for yourself if Jason cherry-picked the best songs from each album. (Or started the show with "Hey Jane", for that matter.) And although I would have preferred some changes to the setlist, I actually like "Oh Baby" and "Rated X" live. The latter featured some great guitar feedback manipulation from Doggen. "Always Forgetting With You" was a nice surprise and sounded great! And facts straight or facts slightly skewed, I'm glad the show has gotten good reviews. A full Spiritualized show at Massey Hall would be a thing of beauty...

[The Dr]

hey, thanks for the review- sorry i didn't notice it before starting this thread!


i wonder if there is a live bootleg of forgetting... out there?

[mojo filters]

{snip}
i wonder if there is a live bootleg of forgetting... out there?

That would be so great to hear!

Always Forgetting With You (The Bridge Song) is probably the best material I've heard written by the Spaceman, since Let It Come Down and the magnificent yet often overlooked B-side Going Down Slow