Primal Scream: Sermon On The Mount
On The Mount: Primal Scream at Wasing on Friday, June 30
Review by CAMERON BLACKSHAW
Pictures by PHIL CANNINGS
Scottish rockers Primal Scream brought their unique blend of indie, dance and gospel music to On The Mount, a brand new live music concert series at Wasing Estate, Aldermaston, on Friday night.
Fronted by Bobby Gillespie, the 11-piece live band that included a gospel choir quintet brought a positive and maximalist energy to their set and to the pleasant forest setting.
Although the crowd wasn’t massive, the sheer amount of Screamadlica
T-shirts ensured that the hardcore Scream fans were out in numbers.
The band started with the well-known Screamadelica cut Come Together. The anthem was a perfect start for what felt a very communal and spiritual gathering.
Punters began streaming towards the stage with their hands raised as soon as the music began.
Gillespie, wearing a baby blue suit complete with sparkly shoulders, acted as the evangelical pastor in charge of his congregational audience, with his band’s religiously tinged and high tempo music washing over those in attendance.
The band soon moved into some of their heavier, more rock-orientated material which still had everyone grooving and dancing.
A screen at the back of the stage displayed a dizzying collage of images throughout the set that was a great accompaniment to the music.
Old footage of US icons Elvis Presley and Marlon Brando were juxtaposed with images of military manoeuvres and scenes from risqué European horror films.
The iconic Screamadelica album cover was never far away from sight either.
Halfway through performing it, Gillespie demanded the band restart the fourth song from their set, Sideman from 2013’s More Light, as they weren’t doing it justice.
Beside this brief interruption, the set went smoothly and the group managed to pack 14 songs into their one-and-a-half-hour set.
The middle of the set featured some smoother and sweeter ballads, before Loaded, one of Primal Scream’s greatest and most well-known songs, signalled the concert’s finale.
The one-two punch of Loaded, followed by Movin’ on Up was the gig’s pinnacle.
Gillespie soon brought the concert to a close, but he made sure to remind the crowd that they were gathered “at the high church of rock and roll”.
It was a great performance from the 41-year-old band, one that proved that Gillespie and his disciples have still got the power to thrill and entertain.
