The word ‘Riverside’ in musical terms is synonymous with Newcastle folklore and while the location may have changed, it was with intrigue I headed to the opening show of the new ‘Riverside,’ to see Interpol. I must say I was largely impressed with the venue; it’s spacious, airy and the high ceilings allow for the sound to travel rather than reverberate.
The support act, Newcastle’s own Warm Digits took to the stage a little later than advertised, but as they rolled into what became a forty-five minute rolling track the crowd completely took to them. For an instrumental two-piece they created a fantastic array of sounds and the sheer energy of the drummer who was relentless in his playing was admirable to the say the least, and the ovation they received thoroughly deserved as the mix finally came to an end.
The main event though was Interpol, and by now the venue was packed out. One of the big advantages to Riverside is its size, and while I wouldn’t like to speculate at the attendance I would suggest similar to that of The Cluny, but with a town center location, definitely an advantage.
They took to the stage opening with Say Hello To The Angels which they ploughed through flawlessly and quickly following it up with Evil. Such a popular track so soon into the setlist settled the audience into the groove and this continued with fellow ‘Antics’ track C’Mere. This rapid fire opening to the set allowed the band to sample the water with the first of three new tracks they would play during the show, My Desire. It was well received, as were the other two, Anywhere and All The Rage Back Home and the setlist as a whole was solid and performed immaculately, highlighted by The Heincrich Maneuver, Obstacle and closed out with Slow Hands.
One thing I would say about the show, is that Slow Hands seemed a good way to end out the show, and send fans home happy, however the band came back for an encore. I’m loathe to criticize such a thing but I can’t help feeling that the encore was lackluster and probably the weakest part of the show. However, this is of course no more than picking for the sake of picking. Overall it was a thoroughly enjoyable show.
The band showed they certainly still have it as they go off to headline the NME Tour, while the venue shows that it could cement its own place in Newcastle’s music scene to follow its oh so famous namesake.
Words: Ian Mason
Photo: David Wala
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