Music Editor Alfie Warner reviews IDLES show at the O2 Academy for their ‘Love Is The Fing’ world tour, commenting on IDLES’ showmanship and the dangers of rowdy crowds
Trigger Warning: Mention of Sexual Assault
IDLES have become a staple band in the UK since their debut album Brutalism in 2017. Fronted by the ever-outspoken Joe Talbot, IDLES sound continues to be a fusion of post-punk and hardcore rock despite their insistence that they are not. Their most recent album, TANGK, was released at the beginning of this year, and serves as a detour from their punk-rock roots; they’re still there, but the aggression in their musical style has been neutered from several of their tracks, but not at the cost of their passion.
Support for their first O2 Academy show was Willie J Healey which was not advertised anywhere much to my disappointment – all advertising for the show made it seem like IDLES had no support for their first night, so I was gutted to turn up as Willie J Healey performed his final song. IDLES’ crowds are rowdy at the best of times, and their set was marked at a gruelling two hours long.
IDLES’ crowds are rowdy at the best of times, and their set was marked at a gruelling two hours long
I was surprised that people were already getting moshy during the opening song from TANGK, ‘IDEA 01’, which is by all accounts a quiet, calm ballad with just piano, drums, and vocals. I’ve been to a few IDLES shows before, so I knew how rough they could get, but this was a new record, not to mention quite jarring compared to the slow song being performed on stage.
Once ‘IDEA 01’ concluded, it was non-stop from then on out. Performing old hits such as ‘Colossus’ and ‘Mother’ from Joy as an Act of Resistance and Brutalism respectively, interspersed with newer material like ‘Gift Horse’, ‘Mr. Motivator’, and ‘Car Crash’ from TANGK, Ultra Mono, and CRAWLER.
Talbot did not sing the first line of ‘Mr. Motivator’ which goes: ‘Like Connor McGregor with a samurai sword on rollerblades.’ Apart from being a ridiculous lyric in and of itself, his silence was to condemn McGregor after he was found guilty last month of sexually assaulting Ms. Nikita Hand in 2018. IDLES is a band that has never shied away from difficult or political topics, which blatantly shows through their lyrics and crowdwork.
IDLES is a band that has never shied away from difficult or political topics
It was about a third of the way through the set when they performed ‘I’m Scum’ that spelt the end of the gig for me, as I was knocked down and had my foot soundly crushed beneath at least ten other people. I quickly hobbled my way out of the pit, and after making sure nothing was broken, I resumed watching the gig, albeit in a lot of pain.
Standout songs for the remainder of the gig were mostly from the album CRAWLER: ‘The Wheel’, ‘When The Lights Come On’, and ‘Crawl!’ were all well received. I especially enjoyed hearing them as I had not seen IDLES properly since just after the pandemic.
IDLES closed the set off with a triple combo of ‘Never Fight A Man With A Perm’, ‘Danny Nedelko’, and ‘Rottweiler’ to end. Songs like ‘Danny Nedelko’ resonate strongly in a post-Brexit UK; it is a song that celebrates immigrants in the UK and how Brexit politicians demonised large immigrant demographics throughout the country for their own ends.
there are far more people looking out for one another on the floor and making sure everyone is ok – that unity is what IDLES is all about
The show as a whole was everything I had come to expect from IDLES; as a stage presence, they are the right blend of excitement, passion, and care. The latter becomes the most important considering just how violent those mosh pits can get – I’ve been in a fair few rowdy crowds over the years, some of them being IDLES gigs, but I unfortunately got unlucky and was hurt. The band’s music encourages mosh pits, but unfortunately there are a handful of people with no crowd etiquette who pose a serious risk to the safety of other members in the crowd. Thankfully, there are far more people looking out for one another on the floor and making sure everyone is ok – that unity is what IDLES is all about.
IDLES are an acquired taste, and it may be that despite all they stand for, their music is just not for a lot of people. I would encourage everyone to at least give them a try, their newer albums are less bracing than their original material, but it is all incredibly written.
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