Gary Numan / Rock City / Nottingham

I have to admit a slight bias on this one. The first album I ever had was 1979’s The Pleasure Principle. I was 11, and my older sister had bought it because it was #1 and EVERYONE had it. She played it once or twice, and hated it ! I was fascinated by it, so to get rid of me hanging round, she gave it to me. I loved it, basically because she hated it lol. And that approach has shaped my musical tastes ever since. If the mainstream don’t like it…. Bring it on! Thanks sis !!!

My first ever gig was at the Nottingham Royal Concert Hall on Gary’s 1984 Berserker tour, and my older brother-in-law took me. I was mesmerised by the ice cold, stark blue and white imagery and pounding robotic almost noise. My first solo show was then on the 1985 The Fury tour (at the same venue). Since that 1984 show, I think I’ve only missed one tour.

So, you may spot a slight bias in this one ……

A packed Rock City was so up for this. Gary has a truly incredible and loyal fan base (the Numanoids) who turn out show after show after show, but it’s great to see such a mix of ages here tonight.

Support on this tour is provided by dark wave / industrial rock trio Divine Shade who are Ren, Nico and Emile. Their set seemed to get louder and heavier as it progressed, and they were excellent, painting some very dark moody dystopian soundscapes.

It must be quite daunting to support someone so respected in the industry especially when it’s someone you cite as a core influence, but the French trio took the opportunity with both hands. The synth tones shake the very heart of the place assisted by the snarling loud guitar and they deliver a truly passionate performance.

There are the obvious comparisons and influences on show here such as Numan himself, Nine Inch Nails and the darker Depeche Mode stuff, but their sound is heavy and uniquely their own. An absolutely perfect opener and an excellent performance, brilliantly setting the mood for what’s to come.

Gary Numan has always been a trailblazer, and he has constantly pushed boundaries throughout his career. After his initial success there was a time, Gary himself thought of giving up, feeling demotivated and producing music ‘demanded’ by the record company. But once he set up his own Numa record label it gave him the freedom to develop and produce what he truly wanted to. We saw the sparks in the 90’s with “Sacrifice” (1994) and “Exile” (1997) but he truly came into his own in the 2000’s with a string of outstanding albums, culminating in “Dead Son Rising” (2011), my favourite “Splinter” (2013), “Savage” (2017) and most recently “Intruder” 2021. Now albums are produced through online crowd funding, and it gives him ultimate control on the content, and it really shows.

And the result…. Is a sound that is unlike anything else in the industrial music genre. Powerful, emotional and constructed from complex layer synth tones. Simply stunning.

You can almost sense the anticipation in the crowd as they wait for their hero to enter the stage. The band take their positions and the dark ominous synth tones fill the air, then Numan appears through the mists and grabs the mic stand menacingly as the title track Intruder opens up. As ever, his voice is strong and unique and sits well on top of the loud synth/guitar led tones. This is clearly a band that are enjoying playing together and are on top of their game.

Numan has always struggled with being in the limelight and feels very self-conscious but has shaped this into his own style, that masks this self-doubt so well and gives a sense of someone truly commanding the space around him. We switch back and forth between early classics, such as second track Remind Me To Smile, and newer material such as Halo (from 2006’s “Jagged” album) sounding as ominous as ever, with a huge bass tone.

What I find amazing with Numan is how he has changed and developed his back catelogue, sonically bringing his earlier work along with him for the ride. For me (and some Numan fans will hate this) I sometimes struggle now to listen to the original tracks. Things like Cars, as played back in 1979/80, sounds sparce, simple and well…. Repetitive. But Numan has brought all the old material right up to date and they are performed with raw guitar in a new style, and it works amazingly.

Metal is a perfect example of this, which now has lost its original skin completely and has been transformed into this new grinding guitar driven industrial assault on the ears ! By now, Numan is in full flow on stage, pulling shapes and smiling relaxed and clearly enjoying the night.

Other fan favourites delight the crowd with Films and Everyday I Die getting the crowd roaring along, and the atmosphere, if it could get any more intense, hits the roof with the classic Cars.

Numan is someone whose whole career has been embedded in the latest technology from the early MiniMoogs right upto the latest software synths today, and if you say Numan’s early material was ‘simplistic’ in tone, the new material is sonically very complex and layered, but in a way is still very ‘primitive’, in that it has a rawness to it. We see this here with My Name Is Ruin (“Savage” 2017), and one of my favourite tracks Love Hurt Bleed (Splinter 2013) and The Chosen (“Intruder” 2021).

The main set closes with another classic in I Die You Die. This is an iconic live track which again has been transformed from pioneering shiny synth gemstone, into a dark grungy heavy industrial anthem, full of menace and foreboding, which has the crowd roaring along to the chorus. An incredible sight and sound.

Numan returns to the stage to screams and cheers, and the two song encore is the classics Me I Disconnect From You followed by what else, but Are Friends Electric? Again, both songs brought right up to date and thrilling the large (and by now, very hot) crowd.

To think, this is a guy that retired from touring in 1981 at Wembley Arena because of the pressures and stress of performing, and here we are now, 41 years later (revisiting Wembley for the first time since then earlier on this tour!) and producing a visual and musical spectacle second to none.

Numan is truly a unique musical character. Someone that just gets better, year on year, re-imaging the old and creating new material that pushes boundaries. Often you get to a point that you think an artist really ought to stop performing, but not Numan…. The best is always the next show, and just around the corner…… And long may that continue.

Set List

Intruder

Remind Me to Smile

Halo

The Gift

Metal

The Promise

Is This World Not Enough

Films

Pure

Resurrection / Down in the Park

A Black Sun