With the honourable exception of their uplifting theme to the 2012 Olympics, tee-total nu metal quintet Elbow have been uncharacteristically quiet for a couple of years. But they popped up at midnight to unveil a new, two-part song, Fly Boy Blue / Lunette.
You should know what to expect by now: Tender nostalgia and post-pub melancholia. But the new track also comes with a demonic burst of saxophone and some beautifully enigmatic lyrical flourishes from Guy Garvey ("my oldest friends are a serious habit, Fly Boy Blues will bring your faces home, to my sweet trampoline and acres of crash-site love").
The song's accompanied by a short film, featuring footage from the year-long recording process for the band's sixth album, The Take Off and Landing of Everything, which is due in March.
A colleague of mine interviewed Elbow right at the start of their career, and has stayed in touch with the band over the years. She always makes an effort to see them play when they're in town because, she says, "it feels like my best friend and his band from school made it big."
The thing is, I think everyone shares that sentiment, no matter when they first stumbled across Elbow and their tender, melancholy rock lullabies. No band I've ever seen has the power to transform a room full of strangers into a group of instant friends, then transport every single one of them to a whole other plane simply by singing a bit.
This is all down to the ebullient, self-deprecating, beardy frontman Guy Garvey, who wears his heart on his sleeve - even when, as he illustrated at the Roundhouse last night, he struggles to put his jacket on.
Garvey introduces Puncture Repair with a short, but touching speech about the night that inspired the song: "My heart was broken," he told the audience ('awwww,' the chorused; 'I thank you,' he grinned).
"The only person I knew who would be awake at the time of morning it was, because he had a tiny baby, was our drummer Richard," he continued. "So, I phoned Richard and I said [comedy shaky voice] 'my heart's broken, I don't know what to do,' and he came and got me, drove me back to his house, put his baby in my arms, and made me cups of tea while he listened to me blub. Then a few days later, Craig [Potter] and I wrote this.,,"
It's an intimate moment, but its not the only one. When the band face each other in a tight circle and play Weather To Fly, you get the sense that this slightly gruff, blokey band have found in music the only way to express how much they love each other. And when they turn back to face us for a final, exhilarating blast of One Day Like This (the audience even does the harmonies), it's clear they want to share that feeling with the world. Tears were shed, beers were held aloft, there may even have been cuddles.
It was emotional.
The gig was part of the iTunes Festival - so you can stream all 1hr 44min of it on your PC or Apple gadget thing. Here is the link for your convenience.
SETLIST
High Ideals
The Bones of You
Mirrorball
Leaders of the Free World
Grounds for Divorce
The Loneliness of a Tower Crane Driver
The Night Will Always Win
Puncture Repair
Some Riot
Lippy Kids
Station Approach
Weather to Fly
Open Arms
Working at Glastonbury is hard going - 18-hour days, 20 bands to interview, 20 live inserts on 6 Music and Radio 2, covering the death of a politician, and producing eight or nine other radio segments across the weekend.
But let's face it: I'm a lucky pup. I get to see and do things that only a privileged few will ever experience. The lack of sleep is a small price to pay.
So... Here's my top 10 moments from the behind-the-scenes at the world's muddiest festival.
10)The Joy Formidable. Not only did they ROCK the John Peel stage, but they started a rumour that Beyoncé would have a "giant inflatable clitoris on stage as a symbol of female empowerment". We didn't broadcast much of that interview...
9)Jo Whiley getting her umbrella stuck in a door, but still looking inconceivably glamorous.
7)U2... I didn't get to see any of their set, but this stripped-down version of Stay was a highlight of the TV coverage. It's not one of their best-known songs, but it was a subtle and tender moment in a blustering "biggest band in the world" headline set.
The song's subtitle, Far Away, So Close, reflected the general feeling that U2 had fumbled their big moment - thanks in no small part to the weather.
6) Watching Jimmy Cliff at the side of the West Holts stage as he got ready to perform. The 63-year-old reggae star limbered up by spinning his arms like a human windmill, dressed in a chain-mail tracksuit with gold lamé shoes. And what an incredible set he delivered...
5) When Plan B went AWOL 30 minutes before a live interview on Radio One. We had to scramble the emergency phone lines to find another guest, ringing anyone who might have their hands on a pop star. Kaiser Chief Ricky Wilson eventually came through (and was brilliant on air) but not before Steve Lamacq wandered past, laconically noting: "It's ironic that you need a Plan B for Plan B".
4) Sneaking out into the audience for 15 minutes of Elbow - just as they performed my favourite song, Mirrorball. Guy Garvey gave the most affable performance of the weekend, holding the crowd in the palm of his hand with some perfectly-judged bandinage between the songs. I got to be part of his "reverse mexican wave", a beautiful moment of communion between band and audience.
3) Standing next to Beyoncé as she waited to speak to BBC TV. She was totally buzzing from her spectacular set on the Pyramid Stage, glowing like a gorgeous R&B firefly.
We were stood as close as the first "W" and the final "E" of this sentence and, if she hadn't been ushered onto the set, I might have gone all Alexandra Burke and started weeping like an idiot. The interview was incredibly sweet, though. As Olly Richards said on Twitter afterwards: "Beyonce seems lovely. I bet she & Jay-Z just sit at home being brilliant and not feeling a need to make it a big thing."
2) Everything about Janelle Monae. The pin-sharp choreography, the stunning voice, the monochrome stage set (everything was black and white, right down to the string section's instruments)... even the bit where she brought out an easel and started painting in an unexpected tribute to Rolf Harris. Possibly the most gifted and individual performer of the weekend.
1) Interviewing Robert "Kool" Bell of Kool & The Gang. Our chat ended like this...
Me: "You're on stage at the same time as Beyoncé. Do you feel any competition? Who's going to be more funky?"
Kool: "It's interesting that they've put us on at the same time, but I think we have enough people out here. And we gonna get down".
Me: "How do you get down?"
Kool: "We get down... on it."
There were other moments, too... Getting to stand in the wings as Cee-Lo played his set. Having to ask The Vaccines to write their names on a piece of paper, because I kept getting them wrong on air. And the backstage catering, which was of an unfairly high standard compared to the falafel vans on the main site (a special shout-out to whoever made the sticky toffee pudding).
U2 really know how to reach out across a football pitch and tweak your nose. Even at the far end of Wembley Stadium last night, we felt part of Bono's big party, despite our handclaps coming a full beat after everyone else's.
As the wee Irish fella pointed out, though, U2 have had plenty of time to polish their act. "It's just occurred to me - we're older than Wembley Stadium," he noted, recalling the day he slept in Waterloo station clutching a demo tape on his way to a meeting at Island records.
Later, for no apparent reason, he started listing the names of tube stations. "St Paul's, Embankment, Tottenham Court Road, Grange Hill" (are you sure you took proper notes? Ed)
It encapsulated everything that is great and ridiculous about Mr Hewson - the ability to conjure up a tingling feeling of fellowship, only to deflate it with a piece of "poetic" whimsy that makes you snigger into your beer.
The tension between greatness and unadulterated crap carried over to the set-list. Vertigo was enormous, intoxicating, bonkers... and followed by a useless dance remix of I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight. U2 also continue to insist on playing Get On Your Boots, as if everyone had secretly conceded that it wasn't the worst song of their entire career.
The odd stinker aside, however, there were more classic moments at this show than most bands manage in an entire tour. An acoustic version of Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of was an early highpoint, and current album track Unknown Caller proved to be a rousing singalong, thanks to some karakoe lyrics on the big screen.
But the most magical moment of the night came without the need for a hymn sheet. As the audience sang a full-bodied version of I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking, the four members of U2 stopped playing, one-by-one, just to savour the noise of Wembley's biggest ever crowd.
It was a concert experience I will never forget.
Unsurprisingly, the best songs were the old ones. Pride, I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For and Mysterious Ways all hit the sweet spot, while One and With Or Without You once again earned their place in the great rock songbook. Bono seemed a bit impatient with the latter, however, rushing his words as though he was fed up of singing it. We saw a limo arrive backstage during the song, so maybe he just wanted to make sure he caught the Big Brother eviction show.
The infamous "claw" stage, by the way, is amazing. It looks like the festering foot of an otherwise invisible Godzilla, and comes complete with a 360º video screen, moving bridges and a huge cocktail stick topped with a glitter ball. It played such an integral role in making the audience part of the show that you wondered why no-one had ever thought of it before. We also wondered whether we could pay 20p to make the claw scoop up a cuddly toy Bono. The staff at Wembley just looked at us weird when we asked.
All in all, it was a great night out - improved even more by the presence of Elbow as a support band (they really work in a stadium context - it'd be great to see them graduate to that status with their next record).
U2 play at Wembley again tonight and there are still tickets available. If you've got the time and the inclination, you should definitely make the journey.
You won't be disappointed.
SETLIST Breathe No Line on the Horizon Get On Your Boots Magnificent Beautiful Day (incl London Calling, London Bridges and Blackbird) Elevation I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (incl Movin' On Up) Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of Unknown Caller The Unforgettable Fire City Of Blinding Lights Vertigo I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight (remix) Sunday Bloody Sunday (incl Rock The Casbah) Pride (In The Name Of Love) MLK Walk On (incl You'll Never Walk Alone) Where The Streets Have No Name One (incl Desmond Tutu speech) Mysterious Ways
Encore: Ultraviolet (Light My Way) With Or Without You Moment of Surrender
Best British male Ian Brown James Morrison Paul Weller Will Young
Best British female Adele Beth Rowley Duffy Estelle MIA
Best British group Coldplay Elbow Girls Aloud Radiohead Take That
Best British live act Coldplay Elbow Iron Maiden Scouting For Girls The Verve
Best British single Adele - Chasing Pavements Alexandra Burke - Hallelujah Coldplay - Viva La Vida Dizzee Rascal/Calvin Harris/Chrome - Dance Wiv Me Duffy - Mercy Estelle Ft Kanye West - American Boy Girls Aloud - The Promise Leona Lewis - Better in Time Scouting for Girls - Heartbeat X Factor Finalists - Hero
Best British Album Coldplay - Viva La Vida or Death And All His Friends Duffy - Rockferry Elbow - The Seldom Seen Kid Radiohead - In Rainbows The Ting Tings - We Started Nothing
Best British breakthrough act Adele Duffy Last Shadow Puppets Scouting For Girls The Ting Tings
Best international album AC/DC - Black Ice Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes Killers - Day & Age Kings of Leon - Only By The Night MGMT - Oracular Spectacular
Best international male Beck Neil Diamond Jay-Z Kanye West Seasick Steve
Best international female Beyonce Gabriella Cilmi Katy Perry Pink Santogold
Best international group AC/DC Fleet Foxes Killers Kings of Leon MGMT
Critics' Choice: Florence and the Machine
Outstanding Contribution To Music: Pet Shop Boys
A few things to note: 1) There are only four nominees for Best British Male, which has now overtaken Best British Female as the ceremony's joke category. 2) M.I.A. is the sole artist in this list with a semblance of edge or controversy. Jay-Z is welcome, but hardly surprising now that he's gone corporate. 3) Our predictions for the night's big winners are Elbow, Duffy and Kings of Leon. 4) Fuck Scouting For Girls Up Their Stupid Asses. 5) Girls Aloud are performing on the night, which means they have a bigger-than-normal chance of picking up a prize. No-one would dare give them best group over Coldplay, but Take That aren't in the running for best single this year, so maybe, just maybe... 6) We would love to see a performance by poprawk supergroup Kings Of Leona - a mash-up of Sex On Fire and Bleeding Love, perhaps? 7) Poor old Goldfrapp :(
Happy New Year! Here's what happened on my stereo in the old one...
1) Goldfrapp - Seventh Tree
Goldfrapp's detour into folksy acoustic ballads may have lost them a few fans, but Seventh Tree is a near-perfect album - from the muted opening bars of Clowns to the hazy coda of Monster Love. One of my musical highlights of the year was simply lying back and listening to this album in the middle of a field in Devon - it's truly the perfect soundtrack to a lazy rural day. As long, that is, as you ignore the (excellent) lyrics about brainwashing cults, suicide attempts and boob jobs.
2) Ladyhawke - Ladyhawke
Maybe its down to the fact that she has Aspergers Syndrome, but New Zealander Pip Brown recreated the very best bits of 1980s synth-rock with unnerving precision on her debut album. On Oh My she sounds like Stevie Nicks, on Another Runaway she is Pat Benatar, on Better Than Sunday she channels Debbie Harry... it really is that good. Only one of the four singles (My Delirium) was a hit, struggling into the top 40 at the end of 2008, but this atmospheric, ballsy pop record deserved more recognition.
3) Lykke Li - Youth Novels
Like fellow Swedish starlet Robyn in 2007, Li Lykke Timotej Zachrisson rewrote the rules on what a pop album could sound like. Rather than slapping you about the face with a broken toilet seat going "this is catchy, goddamnit", Youth Novels worked its way into your heart with a series of subtle, genteel ditties. Produced by Björn Yttling (of Peter, Bjorn & John) it is almost entirely acoustic, even down to the inventive, skittering drum lines composed from hand claps, wooden blocks and mallets. Lead single Little Bit was the most affecting love song of the year, while the driving I'm Good, I'm Gone paired sinister, percussive verses with a sweet release of a chorus. Don't believe me? Listen to this acoustic perfomance of the song:
4) Elbow - Seldom Seen Kid
Here are some adjectives that have been used to describe Elbow's fourth album: stunning, lush, bittersweet, exquisite, epic, majestic, uplifting, poetic, impeccable, tender, wondrous, unbearably lovely. Get the picture? The Seldom Seen Kid is a modern masterpiece. It opens with Starlings - two minutes of hushed harmonies and muted marimbas that suddenly explodes into a cacophony of trumpets. It's designed to make you sit up and pay attention to the following suite of lovingly-crafted ballads. Guy Garvey is unapologetically romantic throughout - "I was looking for someone to complete me. Not anymore, dear, everything has changed. You make the moon a mirrorball" is just one lyrical flourish in an album full of poetry. Simply perfect.
5) Fleet Foxes - Fleet Foxes
Who'd have thought a beardy five-piece vocal harmony group from Seattle would produce one of the best albums of the year? Not me. But Fleet Foxes produced an instant classic with their debut CD - full of haunting choral lullabies, which took as their inspiration starlings, swallows, mountains, snow falls and river banks. The music owed a clear debt to the 1960s folk-rock of Simon and Garfunkel, or Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young - but its presence in the hustle, bustle and bombast of 2008 provided a reassuring oasis of serenity.
6) Duffy - Rockferry
Possessor of the wildest vibrato since Snow White, Duffy owned 2008 - selling more than 4m records around the world by the simple act of combining Amy Winehouse with the girl next door. Her album is rather unfairly derided as boring in some quarters, but Rockferry is stuffed full of heart-rending ballads, seductive pop hooks and stirring choruses. As the Welsh 24-year-old's confidence grew throughout the year, she transformed from a sweater-wearing wallflower into a slinky seductress pouring herself into Jessica Rabbit strapless dresses. Maybe she's not just a cuddly Winehouse after all...
7) Camille - Music Hole
Painstakingly constructed from samples and loops of her own voice, Camille's album is probably the most audaciously ambitious record on this list. With the exception of a lone piano, every sound is produced by a human using one of their many "music holes", according to the blurb. It could have been a tedious intellectual experiment, but France's Camille Dalmais possesses a great big vat of soul - which lifts her songs above mere gimmickry. Highlights include the playful Gospel With No Lord, the (literally) barking Cats & Dogs, and the Mariah Carey-baiting single, Money Note. Mental in the good way.
8) Ting Tings - We Started Nothing
The Ting Tings broke America when Shut Up And Let Me Go was chosen to soundtrack an iPod advert - but there couldn't be a worse device to listen to their album on. Those massive drums and growling bass lines need a hefty pair of nerdtastic hi-fi speakers before they really come to life. The shouty party songs - We Walk, Great DJ, That's Not My Name - are the best, but Katie's sweetly melodic turns on Traffic Light and Be The One show that the band's got more than one trick up it's sleeve.
9) Girls Aloud - Out Of Control
Out Of Control, or A Drop In Quality Control? Girls Aloud's fifth album seemed a bit rushed - with precious little of Xenomania's usual sonic invention and off-the-wall song structures. But there were still five or six stand-outs: The Pet Shop Boys-penned The Loving Kind is a four-minute slab of moody synth genius, while Miss You Bow Wow is the sort of deranged throw-everything-at-the-wall-and-see-what-sticks pop gem that the band probably think they've outgrown. Not their finest hour, but still head and shoulders above anything else a mainstream pop act produced in 2008. Five heads and ten shoulders, to be precise.
10) Emiliana Torrini - Me and Armini / Kings Of Leon - Only By The Night / MGMT - Oracular Spectacular / Santogold - Santogold
Bloody hell, I can't decide between these ones... Emiliana Torrini wins points for combining acoustic rock (like Sara Bareilles) and being utterly bonkers (like Bjork). MGMT did the student disco party anthems, with three absolutely stonking singles and a shockingly poor live act. Kings Of Leon were the only band who really rocked in 2008, while Santogold took MIA's trademark soundclash and made it listenable. And I haven't even mentioned Laura Marling, or Kanye West, or Vampire Weekend, or Q-Tip - it really was a vintage year, wasn't it?
Postscript: Not albums of the year 1) Madonna - Hard Candy Madge opened a sweet shop but it only sold aniseed balls - hard and indigestible with a horrible aftertaste.
2) Various Artists - Mamma Mia! OST Abba karaoke. Literally my worst nightmare.
3) Britney Spears - Circus Is this really the best music money can buy? Cripes.
4) Portishead - Third When the end of the world comes, this will be the soundtrack.
5) Jonas Brothers - A Little Bit Longer Actually, I take that last comment back. This will be the soundtrack to armageddon.
Hello! I'm back... and it's time for the annual countdown of my top 10 singles of the year.
It's been a weird 12 months for the singles' chart, with a pretty high turnover of quality songs at number one (Basshunter's Now You're Gone was the only real stinker).
This presents something of a problem for my top 10. Usually, one record stands head and shoulders above the rest as my favourite track of the year - but this time round it's a pretty even field. The chart is compiled using my iTunes play count, and I've done my best to make sure recent tracks get a fair placing. This involves the application of maths - I knew I'd find a use for it one day.
The downside of this system is that I've had to leave Sex On Fire off the list, because I only realised how awesome the Kings Of Leon were about three weeks ago. Shame on me.
1) Goldfrapp - A&E
Goldfrapp ushered in their new acoustic incarnation with this - the prettiest song ever recorded about attempting suicide. True, the middle eight is a bit muddy and the video was a load of nonsense, but the song rose above it all like a dove of peace soaring into the twilight sky. After slitting its throat.
2) Estelle - American Boy
Home to Kanye West's most inspired lyric of 2008: "Dressed up like a London bloke / Before he speak, his suit bespoke". Awesome, even if it nicked the backing track wholesale from a will.i.am album track.
3) Janet Jackson - Feedback
Heralding what should have been Janet's big comeback, this ended up being the only single released from her underperforming Discipline album. But what a single - three minutes of thumping electronic pop, with those trademark Jackson harmonies and a stonking space cadet video. We'll politely ignore the lyric about her menstrual cycle, though.
4) Goldfrapp - Caravan Girl
The third single from Seventh Tree, this was the moment when Goldfrapp stopped being all spooky and sinister and set off for a Summer Holiday with Cliff Richard. "We'll run away, we'll run away you and me," sang Alison accompanied, for no good reason, by a 12-piece choir. A highlight of their live shows, the only problem with Caravan Girl is that it fades out at least three minutes too early.
5) Girls Aloud - The Promise
I'm actually surprised at how high this has reached. It's certainly not my favourite Girls Aloud song ever (Biology, in case you're interested) but it seems to be the public's - The Promise is still in the top 20 four months after it was released. Hitching a ride on the 1960s bandwagon, the band played to their strengths by channelling the Shangri-Las instead of Aretha Franklin. Now, if only they'd cover Leader Of The Pack.
6) Elbow - One Day Like This
AKA The one that should have been number three. More emotionally honest and joyful than any other single released in 2008, Guy Garvey's tale of domestic bliss is one of those songs that will soundtrack montages of great sporting moments for the rest of your life. But don't let that put you off. Here's their triumphant Glastonbury performance as proof of how life-affirmingly brilliant this song is.
7) Lykke Li - Breaking It Up
With its music hall piano, children's choir and deranged woman shouting down her absent boyfriend through a megaphone - this should have been an almighty mess. But, no, it was one of the most infectiously bouncy, unselfconciously quirky pop songs of the year. Nice remixes, too.
8) Duffy - Mercy
Judging by her performances at the end of the year, even Duffy got bored of this song. But come back to it in six months' time and you'll realise what a timeless piece of pop writing it really is - from the yeah, yeah, yeahs to the cheeky guitar twang that announces the arrival of the final chorus.
9) Elbow - Grounds For Divorce
You know, the one that goes woah-oh-woah-oh-woah-oh-woah-oh-woah-ah-oh-aooooh.
10) Dizzee Rascal ft Calvin Harris - Dance Wiv Me
I've always thought Dizzee Rascal's "unique" rapping style makes him sound like Zed out of the Police Academy films, thereby lending his attempts to chat up some bird on the dancefloor an unintended air of slapstick comedy. Still, you can't argue with that bassline (it's a non-sentient musical concept, you idiot) and even Calvin Harris's singing isn't all that bad. This acoustic version is enormously awesome, by the way:
So that's that. Tell me what your top 10 was in the comments box (or pop in a link to your own blog countdown, if you have one). The albums list comes next...
It may have taken 18 years, but Elbow have finally made it: A top five album, a Mercury Music Prize, and a three-night stint at Camden's Roundhouse. "We've never done a residency before," says Guy Garvey as the gig gets underway, "I could get used to it... We could open a little bar in Spain and call it El Bow."
I'd rather they stayed put in Camden. The intimate atmosphere and perfect acoustics at the Roundhouse (formerly a shed used to turn around steam trains, fact fans) provided the perfect setting for Elbow's delicate, heartfelt ballads. And the atmosphere on Saturday night was simply beautiful - with the entire audience seemingly there to celebrate and share in the group's belated success.
"It's just occurred to me that this gig sold out before the Mercury," noted Garvey with obvious glee.
The set focused on the new material, which was brought to life with a powerful, yet understated, sincerity. It was one of those gigs where you don't want to watch the band at all, just close your eyes and be swept away by the tidal highs and lows of the music. The wistful Some Riot and majestic Mirrorball stood out as highlights, as did the rousing sing-along of Grounds For Divorce - one of the few moments where the band really let rip.
Garvey was a genial host throughout, introducing the crowd to his mother and continually inquiring after the audience's wellbeing. A minor technical fault led to an impromptu Q&A session, with the singer fielding questions on the world's largest land mammal and the temperature on stage [there's a clip on youtube (youtube)]
The show's climax came with One Day Like This, probably the most criminally underplayed single of the year. The song's rousing, extended crescendo - "Throw those curtains wide / one day like this a year would see me right" - rang on and on after the band left the stage, providing the best alternative to shouting "more" or "encore" I've ever heard.
All in all, it was a magical evening. One that provided a real sense of northern community in a town known for its stand-offishness. If Elbow can translate that warmth and humanity to their arena gigs next year, they'll deservedly become one of Britain's best-loved bands.
If there's any justice in the world, Elbow will win the Mercury Music Prize later tonight for The Seldom Seen Kid - a towering triumph of classic songwriting.
The band have been telling anyone who'll listen that the reocrd is "our Dark Side of The Moon". Luckily, it's not half as ponderous as that overrated mountain of mystic toss. Instead, it's a collection soaring, heartfelt rock songs written by an endearingly loved-up Guy Garvey.
Coincidentally, with the Mercury awards only 12 hours away, Polydor have released the video for the album's third single, Bones Of You. It is almost like they planned it this way, isn't it?
Here are some scenes from the new Kooks video, Always Where I Need To Be. But what the heck do they mean?
Hello! We are the Kooks. Doing musics is hard.
The song has only started, but I need a rest. Phew, readers, it is tough being a musician with carefully messed up hair.
Okay, we are back playing our song again. But we cannot look at each other because we are concentrating so very hard on being cool.
Look! I have stolen Liam Gallagher's jacket from 1996! Am I a proper musician now?
We have seen and enjoyed episodes of The Monkees.
Hey guys, I am combing my hair! Only joking!!!!!!!!!!
This is Joe Strummer. We are not even in the same league as Joe Strummer.
Well, that was educational, eh? Surprisingly, I do not absolutely hate this song, even if the band are trying way to hard to say "look, that stuff about us going to stage school deosn't mean we're not a proper band, okay?"
Mind you, if we're talking indie rock, the new record by Manchester also-rans Elbow is a million times better. It's like the Strokes buggering Moby with a harmonica. IE - amazing.
As the wee Irish fella pointed out, though, U2 have had plenty of time to polish their act. "It's just occurred to me - we're older than Wembley Stadium," he noted, recalling the day he slept in Waterloo station clutching a demo tape on his way to a meeting at Island records. 
The odd stinker aside, however, there were more classic moments at this show than most bands manage in an entire tour. An acoustic version of Stuck In A Moment You Can't Get Out Of was an early highpoint, and current album track Unknown Caller proved to be a rousing singalong, thanks to some karakoe lyrics on the big screen.
The infamous "claw" stage, by the way, is amazing. It looks like the festering foot of an otherwise invisible Godzilla, and comes complete with a 360º video screen, moving bridges and a huge cocktail stick topped with a glitter ball. It played such an integral role in making the audience part of the show that you wondered why no-one had ever thought of it before. We also wondered whether we could pay 20p to make the claw scoop up a cuddly toy Bono. The staff at Wembley just looked at us weird when we asked.
Sunday Bloody Sunday (incl Rock The Casbah)
Best British female
Best British single
Best international album
The set focused on the new material, which was brought to life with a powerful, yet understated, sincerity. It was one of those gigs where you don't want to watch the band at all, just close your eyes and be swept away by the tidal highs and lows of the music. The wistful Some Riot and majestic Mirrorball stood out as highlights, as did the rousing sing-along of Grounds For Divorce - one of the few moments where the band really let rip.
