13 posts tagged “mgmt”
I get the tube down to Brixton; at least I get to read some French on the way. It is chaos in there, so this is what the Brits would be like of the NME ran it all. It does have a real energy, there is anarchy to it all and the red carpet and paparazzi is for real instead of the polite staged affair at The Brits. I go and say hi to Glasvegas, Kasabian and MGMT who are all down the front on their tables. I get to hear that Blur, or rather Damon and Graham are performing which makes for a really very special occasion. I desert my label and go and sit with MGMT near the front. Mark Jones is in front of me waiting for Grace Jones to appear, she is presenting an award.
The host is Mark Watson, trying to get the place gong by shouting “Cunt” a lot” The venue actually works well for a show, everyone feels at home here, Indigo didn’t work in the same way. What it does deliver is amazing sound “White Lies” have never sounded so good, delivering an impressively brutal rendition of “Death” Then it all kicks off proper with Elbow performing with a full orchestra and Guy Garvey driving the beat home on the drum. It is a huge powerful sound that could bring granite to tears of emotion. Grace Jones steps up with suitable crazed charisma to present Muse with best Live Act. Florence and the Machine arrive to give The Arctic Monkeys best DVD. It all gets exciting when the cast of Skins appear to present the best new band award. It has been a good year but it is MGMT who win the award. The table erupts and Ben and Andrew step up to the stage in pretty bemused fashion. Total stars giving another surreal twist to the Narnia stage setting.
Dizzee Rascal picks up Dancefloor Filler for him and Calvin Harris’ “Dance with Me” his entrance is the blueprint for how it should be done, climbing over the audience, slapping all of their hands before diving back into the crowd and being carried aloft by them all. Franz Ferdinand are up on stage in some strikingly colorful suits performing a new song from the album before launching into Blondie’s “Call Me” with La Roux who looks like a very exotic bird for the evening. Then we get Kings of Leon picking up Best Album, a pretty major achievement, poor loves are in a dressing room in Germany and it is difficult to burst with excitement on that environment. Big Pink are presented with the Philip Hall Radar award by Rab and Caroline from Glasvegas. “Didn’t do us much fucking good tonight” chuckles Rab, which is fair comment, they really should be picking up an award.
The moment of real genius for the awards though is getting Damon and Graham back on stage for the first time in public since The Royal Festival Hall back in 2000. They perform an acoustic version of “This is a Low” and it really does get me, I never thought I would be seeing this again and it is so wonderful to hear Damon singing that song again. He walks from the stage with his arm round Graham and all is right with the world once more. Dave and Alex get to crash the party, presenting the best solo artist award to Pete Doherty who still looks an absolute star in this vast fedora. I go and sit with all of The Blur boys for a while; it is quite something seeing them all together again and all looking so happy and excited. Jamie is with them bouncing with enthusiasm. The family is reunited.
Elbow rightfully pick up Outstanding Contribution and The Mighty Boosh of course get the Best TV show. Glasvegas and Florence deliver an absolutely incredible performance of “Suspicious Minds’ over this huge wall of Phil Spector guitars. They look incredible up there wrapped around each other on the stage, a proper moment. The Killers get Best International and then MGMT walk off with Track of the Year for “Time to Pretend” We are all going mental at our table by now, I think they are the only ones to win two awards this evening and it is a real affirmation of everything we have all achieved. What a journey that has been. I am sure there are more awards but by now everyone is on their feet and it is all getting properly chaotic.
The night ends with The Cure delivering a Greatest Hits set. I would never have expected this to be a fitting climax to what has been the best NME awards I can ever remember, but along with everyone else in the room I find myself squeezed down the front singing along to every word. They look sensational, Robert Smith all happy and excited at the centre, Simon Gallup a total picture of Rock and Roll cool, straight out of the Ace Café, looking not a day older than when he first joined the band. And Porl Thompson, a total freakshow but how amazing is he to watch. This is a band conjured up out of the imagination playing songs that everyone knows and loves at breakneck speed. It is amazing. We are all up in the tables dancing to “Killing of an Arab”
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