Photo: Chris MacDonald
Few reunions these days are worth much more than the initial sharp intake of breath at the news. It soon turns into a sigh when your brightest hopes for the band you once loved amount to little more than a touring hit parade, on the road for a pay cheque. Luckily, Death From Above 1979 never had a hit - just two members, an insane cult following, and the unfulfilled promise of the great band they should have been.
Tonight, they became that band.
After one short but brutal album and even more ferocious few years of touring, DFA 1979 split in 2006 on exceedingly acrimonious terms – leaving behind a beautiful bloodied corpse behind. But tonight, that corpse is brought screaming back to life, pulverising anyone and anything that crosses its path.
After the screeching siren intro to 'Turn It Out' united the Ballroom in frenzy, the sideways menace of 'Right On Frankenstein' led the charge for the new tracks from new LP The Physical World that dominated tonight's set. A risky move, but their confidence in their present and future was more than reflected by the sheer ecstasy of the crowd.
Proving that it was well worth the 10-year wait for new material, the Ballroom was in as full a voice for new tracks from The Physical World as they were for that from their immaculate debut, as the sweaty venue became a storm of howling cheers and flailing limbs.
It's good to have you back, DFA, never leave us again.
What the Canadian two-piece deliver can be described as nothing short of a glorious onslaught of noise and power. It was like they’d never been away, and they're sure as hell not going anywhere anytime soon.
Death From Above 1979 played:
Turn It Out
Right On, Frankenstein!
Virgins
Cheap Talk
You're a Woman, I'm a Machine
Go Home, Get Down
White Is Red
Trainwreck 1979
Crystal Ball
Nothin' Left
Going Steady
Gemini
Little Girl
Government Trash
Always On
Encore:
Cold War
Romantic Rights
The Physical World
Below: 11 photos of Death From Above 1979 tearing up The Electric Ballroom
