Gary Numan dwell on the Cheese & Grain, Frome, 27 June 2025
★★★★★
With three Glastonbury warm-up gigs in Brighton booked previous to Gary Numan’s landmark look on The Park Stage this weekend, the addition of a Frome date got here considerably out of the blue… not least for the Cheese & Grain itself. Chatting with Basic Pop forward of the present, programme and manufacturing supervisor Robert Dahl stated: “It’s humorous as a result of we noticed the Brighton exhibits have been occurring, and Gary posted on his social media that they have been on the lookout for one other warm-up however hadn’t been capable of finding one – which appeared ridiculous! Why nobody had bitten his hand off was past me. So we jumped straight on to it and emailed his agent saying, ‘We’d very very similar to a Gary Numan present, please’. They have been very receptive to the thought, as a result of we’ve acquired historical past of doing Glastonbury warm-up exhibits.”
Having Emily Eavis as a patron has little question helped the (comparatively) small venue play host to arena-sized headline acts corresponding to Paul McCartney and Foo Fighters up to now. This week alone, it welcomed sold-out exhibits by CMAT and Wunderhorse with The Selecter enjoying too – however Numan’s look induced explicit delight. “We’ve had a very nice cross part of gigs this yr,” continued Dahl, “however Gary Numan was undoubtedly one of many fastest-selling exhibits that we’ve ever had, and we might’ve offered the place out three or 4 occasions over. Gary is a reputation that we’ve all the time needed to deliver to the venue, however didn’t essentially assume we might. Having an icon like him on that stage is wonderful, and we’re all very excited to have him right here.”
Image credit score: Cara-Jayne Bentley
Candy Desires
Because the venue fills with a various vary of followers – from unique silver-haired Numanoids to the charcoal-eyed teen goths – Basic Pop rapidly asks Robert if there are any explicit songs he’s hoping to listen to? “Nicely, he’s acquired such a wealthy catalogue of unbelievable tracks. After all, I’d love to listen to the plain ones – Are ‘Pals’ Electrical?, Vehicles, Down In The Park – however I actually like his newer stuff from Intruder too, like I Am Screaming, The Reward, The Chosen, The Finish Of Dragons. However let’s be trustworthy, no matter he performs, it’s gonna be nice and I believe everybody’s going to be blown away by it regardless.”
So on to the present, and particular point out first have to be made for native assist act Candy Machine. Drawing affect from the likes of John Foxx, Human League, OMD, Kraftwerk, Gentle Cell and, undoubtedly, Gary Numan himself, the synthpop stylings of the duo’s unique numbers all sound surprisingly acquainted – not a lot a tribute act, extra an affectionate homage to full-on 80s pop.
Simply as night time follows day, the distinction between the sunshine electronica of Candy Machine and the industrial-strength onslaught of the principle occasion is palpable. Hitting the stage with a blistering blast by way of Halo from 2006’s Jagged, earlier than tearing into The Chosen from Intruder, Numan is greeted by an enraptured viewers just like the all-conquering hero he really is. Welcome to Numan’s deliciously darkish dystopian future.
Image credit score: Cara-Jayne Bentley
Deliciously Darkish
Flanked by bassist Tim Slade and guitarist Steve Harris, the relentlessly recognisable opening chorus of The Pleasure Precept’s Steel is reimagined as a metallic monster earlier than the singer straps on his guitar for a run by way of a mighty, melodramatic In A Darkish Place. Stalking the shadows, the showman is visibly in his aspect – the peace of Glastonbury’s Park Stage received’t know what’s hit it. And one should surprise what a few of the extra informal followers in attendance tonight may be considering too, earlier than Numan reveals the ace up his tattooed sleeve: Vehicles. As David Brooks’ elegant synth heralds the opening to the groundbreaking UK chart-topper a sea of telephone cameras seize the second as Jimmy Lucido belts out the unremitting beat on the drums to ferocious impact.
Following earth-shattering renditions of Haunted and Every little thing Comes Down To This, the rock star icon turns proud-as-punch father when daughter Raven joins him on stage for her atmospheric Nothing’s What It Appears, earlier than her youthful sibling Persia offers vocals on a haunting My Identify Is Spoil.
Image credit score: Cara-Jayne Bentley
Pleasure Precept
Too chilly to carry when it topped the charts for 4 weeks in the summertime of 1979, Tubeway Military’s timeless traditional Are ‘Pals’ Electrical? is just too sizzling to deal with tonight, as the extreme warmth contained in the Cheese & Grain reaches pressure-cooker ranges. “So it’s time to depart, you see it meant every thing to me,” Numan talk-sings – and also you get the impression that being on stage on this second really does imply every thing. Nonetheless, it’s not time to depart simply but, because the doom-laden one-two knockout punches of Down In The Park and M.E. units every thing up for the finale of Pray For The Ache You Serve and I Die You Die – the latter a pleasant style of what’s to come back when Numan excursions the 45th anniversary of Telekon in November.
With a well mannered, “Thanks very a lot, I actually admire it,” Numan returns for a swift two-song encore of Movies – the fourth and last Pleasure Precept outing we’re handled to tonight – and nearer Right here In The Black. Taking time to share bottled water with followers on the entrance, Numan should relish the intimacy of nights like this.
Right here In The Black
As followers escape into the cool black night time, Basic Pop occurs upon a smiling Robert Dahl, happy with a job nicely performed: “I actually assume the Cheese & Grain’s industrial aesthetic suited Gary and I hope he loved his time right here in Frome.”
“Reveals like this are very important as a result of they spotlight how there are venues outdoors of the massive cities,” he continued. “Everyone seems to be conscious of the struggles dwell music and small grassroot venues like us face. Massive names like Gary Numan actually draw consideration, however I’m very happy with the work we do day-after-day of the yr and all of the exhibits we placed on in Frome.”
Posters on the wall spotlight an unbelievable array of Basic Pop pleasant acts coming quickly: Supergrass (11 July), Kate Nash (24 July), Teenage Fanclub (9 August), Heaven 17 (15 August), The South (20 September), Dodgy (10 October), Gary Kemp (11 October), Wendy James (14 October), Stewart Copeland (16 October), New Mannequin Military (17 October), The Orb (13 December) and plenty of extra. For info click on right here
Footage courtesy of Cara-Jayne Bentley
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