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LIVE REVIEW
IDLES
NEWCASTLE CITY HALL 24/11/24
With their latest album 'TANGK' going down a storm with their fans around the globe, Bristolian rockers IDLES have spent the best part of 2024 touring the world. From Hong Kong to New Orleans and a tonne of places in between, IDLES have literally rocked all over the world. With the winter UK leg of their mammoth tour kicking off in Belfast earlier this month and culminating in two sold-out shows in Manchester, IDLES tickets have fast become the hottest tickets in town.
We were lucky enough to go along to the band's Newcastle show at the historic Newcastle City Hall. Opening for them in Newcastle was Willie J Healey. The singer from Oxfordshire brought along a full band to help him warm up the fans as City Hall filled up with people. Having previously toured with the likes of Florence & the Machine and Arctic Monkeys, Willie J Healey knows exactly what to do to get the crowd going. His voice was spot on, and his bluesy, funky rock style was just what the doctor ordered. A real musical gem.
We were lucky enough to go along to the band's Newcastle show at the historic Newcastle City Hall. Opening for them in Newcastle was Willie J Healey. The singer from Oxfordshire brought along a full band to help him warm up the fans as City Hall filled up with people. Having previously toured with the likes of Florence & the Machine and Arctic Monkeys, Willie J Healey knows exactly what to do to get the crowd going. His voice was spot on, and his bluesy, funky rock style was just what the doctor ordered. A real musical gem.
By the time IDLES hit the stage, the City Hall was packed to the rafters, and you could feel an excited energy buzzing around the room. Kicking things off with 'IDEA 01', you could sense by the crowd's reaction that we were in for one hell of a ride.
It was great to see Adam donning a mid-90s Newcastle United away strip; as an avid Magpies fan, I guess you could say that this was kind of a hometown gig for him. Mark also had the same strip on with footballing legend Ginola emblazoned on the back, a nice touch.
In terms of atmosphere, the crowd interaction was next level, and frontman Joe took control of proceedings early on. As a gap started to form in the crowd during 'Colossus', Joe said, "Thank you very much, Newcastle, for your exuberance!" before encouraging the crowd to make that gap wider, forming a mini wall of death as the crowd got ready to let themselves go, go they very much did as the music kicked back in.
At one point, guitarist Lee jumped the barrier and enjoyed a bit of crowd surfing while still managing to play. The amount of energy in the room was unreal, with the IDLES faithful blowing off steam and getting very hot and sweaty as they rocked out to a banging set that included 'I'm Scum', 'Gratitude', and, of course, 'Crawl!'.
There is no doubt that the band gave the fans exactly what they came for. From those in the balcony to the people in the pit, IDLES made sure that everyone had a good time.
Towards the end of the night, Mark ditched his guitar for a microphone and took his turn at surfing the crowd while singing, 'Danny Nedelko'. Topping off the night with 'Rottweiler' it is safe to say that this show will go down in a lot of the fans' lists of best shows ever.
Yes, IDLES may have been the subject of controversy at times, but it is the fans whose opinion actually matters and judging by the turn out and the reaction, IDLES fans have given this tour a stamp of approval for sure.
It was great to see Adam donning a mid-90s Newcastle United away strip; as an avid Magpies fan, I guess you could say that this was kind of a hometown gig for him. Mark also had the same strip on with footballing legend Ginola emblazoned on the back, a nice touch.
In terms of atmosphere, the crowd interaction was next level, and frontman Joe took control of proceedings early on. As a gap started to form in the crowd during 'Colossus', Joe said, "Thank you very much, Newcastle, for your exuberance!" before encouraging the crowd to make that gap wider, forming a mini wall of death as the crowd got ready to let themselves go, go they very much did as the music kicked back in.
At one point, guitarist Lee jumped the barrier and enjoyed a bit of crowd surfing while still managing to play. The amount of energy in the room was unreal, with the IDLES faithful blowing off steam and getting very hot and sweaty as they rocked out to a banging set that included 'I'm Scum', 'Gratitude', and, of course, 'Crawl!'.
There is no doubt that the band gave the fans exactly what they came for. From those in the balcony to the people in the pit, IDLES made sure that everyone had a good time.
Towards the end of the night, Mark ditched his guitar for a microphone and took his turn at surfing the crowd while singing, 'Danny Nedelko'. Topping off the night with 'Rottweiler' it is safe to say that this show will go down in a lot of the fans' lists of best shows ever.
Yes, IDLES may have been the subject of controversy at times, but it is the fans whose opinion actually matters and judging by the turn out and the reaction, IDLES fans have given this tour a stamp of approval for sure.
