I mentioned in August that I’d been waiting for The Pretty Reckless to tour, and when I got an email alert and went to book the tickets, I discovered that they were supporting Evanescence ! Well, last night I travelled up to Leeds for the gig.
One minor gripe was that I was expecting a 2nd support band from Texas called Fair to Midland – described variously as rock, progressive, metal, alternative, and so on. As it turned out, the 2nd support was a band called Me . They weren’t bad, but… well, you know. I don’t know what happened – Fair to Midland is still listed as the support on the European leg – but it was not the band I was expecting!
The Pretty Reckless were good. There was a sell-out crowd anyway, and it was unusual to see 90% of the crowd in place for the support band(s) ahead of the main act – though this could have been partly due to the O2’s silly policy of making sure Wednesday and Saturday gigs finish by 9.30pm (yes, you read that right) because it is “club night”.
Anyway, they kicked off with Since You’re Gone, and played a total of 10 songs – including a very good cover of The White Stripes’ Seven Nation Army. Make Me Wanna Die – the song that first made me take notice of them – came in near the end.
The Leeds O2 Academy is not a large venue, and the stage set up appeared to be that all Evanescence’s gear was set up, The Pretty Reckless’ stuff was in front of all that, and the first support was in front of – and to the side – of that! Technical glitches seemed to be the order of the day, though I must admit that the overall sound wasn’t bad for the support acts. Lighting though was quite basic, and it wasn’t easy to get good pictures of The Pretty Reckless, except for Taylor Momsen, who is obviously the focal point anyway.
Most of the crowd were there to see Evanescence. It was a young crowd – gauged partly by the fact that they were all trying to take their own pictures on their iPhones to show at school on Monday or to post on Facebook, and partly by the number of them who had forced their way to the middle front stage, and then kept going in and out all night.
The lighting for Evanescence’s set was much better, and much more elaborate than you’d expect for a place the size of the O2 Academy.
They kicked off with What You Want, followed by Going Under. Bring Me To Life made its appearance as the last song of the main set. The encore closed with My Immortal.
There’s no doubting Amy Lee’s musical abilities, and she has a very powerful voice – although the way she uses it in Evanescence is something of an acquired taste (but it does grow on you – hell, I like Rush, and unusual chord structures are their trademark). But if I thought it was hard to get a decent snap of The Pretty Reckless, getting one of Amy Lee was a hundred times more difficult – she must burn off in excess of 5,000 kcal every show with the amount of moving around she does. Trying to get a blur-free picture (or even keep her in frame) was a challenge and a half.
Just to mention that the O2 Academy still has a floor that you can lose your shoes on if you stand still too long (all those alcopops from “club night” no doubt). To their credit, they do seem to have addressed the problem of people smoking in there as though it were still legal.
A very enjoyable night, rounded off with a reasonable curry somewhere in Leeds – and since I was driving, including two pints of mango lassi instead of beer.