Gary Numan
Trocadero Theatre
Philadelphia, PA
March 23, 2014
Gary Numan will always be best known for his 1980 hit "Cars," but Sunday night at the Trocadero he proved he is no nostalgia act with a blazing nineteen song set of electronic rock heaviosity. Numan released one of his best works ever in late 2013, his twentieth album Splinter, and is on tour supporting it following a buzz-generating performance at the SXSW Festival. Numan and his four piece band fittingly took the stage to the strains of the instrumental "Resurrection" and launched into the stark industrial wasteland of new song "I Am Dust." Numan strapped on a Gibson Les Paul and churned out riffs alongside his guitar player while white strobe lights exploded behind him and a sea of industrial blips and bleeps sounded around them, setting the tone for the night. Numan spent most of the set slithering up and down his mic stand; hanging onto it was the only thing keeping him from being sucked into the black emotional void of his music. His backing band of a bass player, drummer, keyboard player and guitarist spent most of the night in the shadows but stood out by supporting Numan's powerful vocals with equally powerful riffs and rhythms. Half of the set consisted of songs from Splinter, which held their own against Numan's older songs. One standout new song was "The Calling," which featured a throbbing heartbeat-like beat that had the crowd grooving. Another was new song "Here In The Black," an anthemic blast of gothy metal goodness featuring eerie whispered vocals by Numan and the heaviest guitar riffs of the night. His two classic songs impressed live also with one featuring his best vocals of the night and another being paired with one of his new tunes to devastating emotional effect. First up was "Down In The Park" which featured Numan's loudest and most emotional singing of the night as his voice battled to rise over the glacial swelling and swirling keyboard riffs. Next, mournful blue lights strafed the crowd as Numan and Co. delivered the fragile but beautiful new paean to a love-gone-bad,"Lost." Numan's gentle bruised vocals combined with a sparse piano riff and sprays of frustration-filled notes from his guitar player to create a palpable feeling of despair. Seconds after the song ended the memorable keyboard riffs of the claustrophobic classic "Cars" sounded, bringing the crowd from their depths and raising the energy in the room. The song took on a new life live, with the guitar and bass dominating the keyboards and Numan dropping the detached icy vocals of the record. The man who was once sounded happy to be locked in that car now sings like a man who wants to break free from its confines. Numan has found the soul in the machine.
