“Squire was consummate, be it chopping out the rhythm of Sally Cinnamon or doing his guitar hero bit on the unsinkable Love Spreads. Reni once again proved his worth as perhaps the leading drummer of his generation, laying down the propulsive grooves that set The Stone Roses apart in the late ‘80s as the indie band who dared to dance. And Ian Brown, whose on-stage braggadocio has been copped wholesale by everyone from Kasabian to Liam Gallagher (whose Beady Eye were among tonight’s support acts), led the charge in his inimitable way, the focal point for a mass outbreak of idolatry.”
“It’s an odd sensation, witnessing a gig that seems to be as much about the crowd as it is the band performing: you’re struck by the weirdly moving sensation of how much people have invested in this band and these songs. You could argue they are less an audience than people indulging in a mass experiment in wish fulfilment but, as people hug and sing along, it is hard not to feel that the experiment is successfully.”
Alternatively…
“Less anthemic numbers exposed the easily reached limits of Brown’s voice, the singer tunelessly groaning his way through “(Song for My) Sugar Spun Sister” and “Sally Cinnamon” as he walked vaguely around the stage. The physical swagger of old was gone: like an ageing sportsman, Brown’s legs are gone. Meanwhile, his co-Roses – guitarist John Squire, bassist Gary “Mani Mounfield and drummer Alan “Reni” Wren – played as though they were strangers.”
Ludovic Hunter-Tilney, Financial Times
And the forecast?
Waterfall Forecast For Stones Roses Gig (Ronan McGreevy, Irish Times)
Illustration by Sheilagh Tighe
Thanks Jody
