It’s standard procedure before attending gigs by studio-reared collectives, of which DIV are the very diadem: prepare yourself for a slight letdown, warn yourself not to expect too much in the way of the unexpected, remember that those backing tracks won’t change their tempo for man nor god.
But check this: a full band rig – including live drums, bass and guitar – on the stage. If I didn’t know better, I’d say these boys were planning to rock. When the first kick drum sounds after the long intro to ‘Leather’, the bass bins actually send a blast of refreshing air through the crowd a millisecond before deafening them.
This is fun. Almost all of the material comes from recent and decent album Scorpio Rising, and despite the corporeal absence of Liam Gallagher, his voice rings loud and true on the title track. ‘Girls’ and ‘23 Lies’ also get suitably electrified.
To compensate for the lack of stage focus (no mics, no frontman), there are some nice Indian-themed visuals issuing forth. But the attention-vacuum thing remains a problem, particularly since DIV’s credo is mood over melody. Their tunes are compelling, but not exactly hummable, and don’t change a hell of a lot from start to finish. (Whistle ‘Aisha’. I dare you.)
But by the time the very groovy ‘Hands Around My Throat’ and the absurdly magnificent ‘Help Yourself’ roll around in the encore, all is forgiven. Richard Fearless takes a bow and actually breaks a smile, no less! Next day, I can still faintly hear Nicole Kuperus’ vocal – “I’m in your place, I see your face/The air is cold, I’m still on hold” – through the ringing in my ears. Or maybe I’m just humming it.