Birmingham, UK-based band Editors played at the House of the Blues last Thursday, Feb. 18, to one of the more mellow audiences the venue has likely ever seen. The supporting acts, The Antlers and The Dig, displayed a performance as good as any unknown, small band generally could give, lending an impatient atmosphere to the venue as audience members shuffled and nodded their heads, anxious for the main act to come on.
During the break between the end of The Antlers' set and Editors' coming onstage, the main floor filled up quickly and a crowd began chanting the band's name in the hope that it would entice the group onstage faster. But, when the lights finally dimmed and Editors walked onstage, the crowd did not rush forward; it became clear that this would be a more tranquil concert than one might have thought for such an energetic band.
Frontman Tom Smith entered with a quick hello, and then the '80s synthetic, post-punk notes of "In This Light and on This Evening" (2009) filled the room. As the song progressed into its heavier chorus, the band seemed to find its footing and Smith's obvious enjoyment of his music bled through into the crowd as he slapped the piano in time to the drums.
The purpose of Editors' current tour is to promote their newest album "In This Light and on This Evening" (2009)but they still played the crowd-pleasers from their first two albums as well. When Editors played "The Racing Rats" from their second album, "An End Has a Start" (2007), about half an hour into the gig, some audience members finally started to stir more. While the center of the crowd remained fairly static, Smith's frenetic movements inspired small pockets of people around the edges of the room.
While he was singing, Smith cupped the microphone and seemed so immersed in his singing that he appeared to not even realize he was performing live anymore. The next song, fan favorite "Blood" from the album "The Back Room" (2005), finally got most of the crowd moving as red lights swept through the room, and guitarist and synth player Chris Urbanowicz threw his guitar pick to fans dancing madly in the front row.
During the concert, Smith barely spoke any words to the crowd, except to thank everyone for coming and to introduce the members of the band between songs. His voice proved to be just as exceptional live as it is on record. Compared to the likes of Robert Smith of The Cure and Michael Stipe of R.E.M., Tom Smith has a rare depth and passion to his voice that one might think would not come across so well live. But Smith's vocals happen to be the integral part of the band's success.
After playing several more old songs, the band began to promote its new album, playing the more melancholy tune "The Boxer," which prompted several audience members to start swaying in time to the slower beats. After finishing with "Bricks and Mortar," another selection from the new album, the band walked off stage, with Urbanowicz throwing three more picks to the front row. As with any show, several audience members clearly didn't realize that there would be an encore and started to find their way through the mass of people in the dark, stopping short only when a shout of "Encore!" started up from everyone else in the crowd.
The encore presented the obvious choices; the lights flickered back on to the bittersweet tones of "Walk the Fleet Road," showing a more sensitive side to the band and more range to Smith's voice. The mood instantly changed, however, with the upbeat guitar riff for "Munich," the second single from the band's first album. Perhaps the fact that audience members knew the concert was coming to an end gave them incentive to enjoy themselves more, as this song especially produced more dancing in the crowd.
After this song, Editors moved on to "Papillon," the first single from their newest album, which kept the buoyant atmosphere going. Finally, the band finished up with "Fingers in the Factories," a callback to their first album and a good way to keep all the fans happy.
While Editors admittedly have a mellow sound and don't play the kind of music that encourages moshing at their concerts, one would expect a little more energy to be present for a band whose first album was praised by British music magazine New Musical Express as being "dark disco." The fact that they manage to retain the same sound live as they do on thei records and magnify it to a high intensity is an accomplishment for which they must be commended.
