And the DELUXE edition:

So lovely to hear it again.

I've been saying it re OU for a while - it's the most effective song in the canon at getting an immediate reaction from people who don't know it. Helped by Jarvis' trick of audience participation into separating us by O's and U's. It's got great energy, arguably the riff of Russell's life (maybe violin or guitar) and a jubilant "Yeah yeah yeah" outro to rival Babies. Absolute travesty it's been overlooked all these years. Mark working the stylophone next to Candida on the keyboard was such a look too.

As for Party Hard, it was so great to hear it (think the last time I did, it broke-down at Sheffield 2012 or was that Help The Aged?).
The only disappointment was that it was under-powered. Emma didn't join-in until the choruses so Mark was carrying the intro and verses. And there was none of the synth-stabs on the second chorus which is probably the poppiest moment on TIH. Just needed to sound bigger and louder especially in an arena so I was a bit surprised.

I'll never tire of seeing the core four out front. Something Changed was probably the song that sealed my love for Pulp years ago, it was my favourite song for years, sometimes it still is. But it's one of the few, that I've felt never really sounds better live than on the album and I've heard them do it live so often that I wouldn't mind it being dropped. But this new version, semi-acoustic, with Jarvis setting the scene for how Pulp got back together, in a living room, just him, Nick, Candida and Mark having a slow jam...it's just perfect! Hope they play it this way for the rest of their natural lives.

I love Mark's involvement in Babies. He des the extra keyboard riffs in Babies when the song heightens, then steps away with a flourish, and waits, looking like a boss before returning to his station for a few more seconds.

It was quite sweet that it was Jarvis' wedding anniversary and dedicated Farmers Market to his missus.

There are probably more observations but they're what come to mind this morning. Great to watch it all with Violin Thing. We have only met at Pulp gigs but used to be colleagues for quite a few years!

Indeed it was Party Hard that broke down. Jarvis with his repetitive "haaaaaaard.......haaaaaaard"s during the intro. 

Eamonn wrote:

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I've been saying it re OU for a while - it's the most effective song in the canon at getting an immediate reaction from people who don't know it. Helped by Jarvis' trick of audience participation into separating us by O's and U's. It's got great energy, arguably the riff of Russell's life (maybe violin or guitar) and a jubilant "Yeah yeah yeah" outro to rival Babies. Absolute travesty it's been overlooked all these years. Mark working the stylophone next to Candida on the keyboard was such a look too.

As for Party Hard, it was so great to hear it (think the last time I did, it broke-down at Sheffield 2012 or was that Help The Aged?).
The only disappointment was that it was under-powered. Emma didn't join-in until the choruses so Mark was carrying the intro and verses. And there was none of the synth-stabs on the second chorus which is probably the poppiest moment on TIH. Just needed to sound bigger and louder especially in an arena so I was a bit surprised.

I'll never tire of seeing the core four out front. Something Changed was probably the song that sealed my love for Pulp years ago, it was my favourite song for years, sometimes it still is. But it's one of the few, that I've felt never really sounds better live than on the album and I've heard them do it live so often that I wouldn't mind it being dropped. But this new version, semi-acoustic, with Jarvis setting the scene for how Pulp got back together, in a living room, just him, Nick, Candida and Mark having a slow jam...it's just perfect! Hope they play it this way for the rest of their natural lives.

I love Mark's involvement in Babies. He des the extra keyboard riffs in Babies when the song heightens, then steps away with a flourish, and waits, looking like a boss before returning to his station for a few more seconds.

It was quite sweet that it was Jarvis' wedding anniversary and dedicated Farmers Market to his missus.

There are probably more observations but they're what come to mind this morning. Great to watch it all with Violin Thing. We have only met at Pulp gigs but used to be colleagues for quite a few years!

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Agree about Party Hard lacking the punch of the album recording (and what I recall from previous times it was played too long ago). Thought the new songs worked well except for Tina which I would have switched for Background Noise or My Sex. Had a good view and the sound was great. I did notice, perhaps obviously, that all the Different Class tracks plus Babies and DYRTFT got a different level of recognition from the majority of the crowd and unsure how many people around me knew the other tracks; although Spike Island seems to have entered the popular consciousness and is now one of the big hits. Hopefully they may end the year with some smaller UK shows (in a dream world I would love a This is Hardcore heavy set).

-- Edited by simmonel on Saturday 14th of June 2025 02:41:34 PM

Cressida Doyle! Could have been worse, don't be a cressida dick...

www.theartsdesk.com/new-music/pulp-o2-arena-review-common-people-us

Mark and Candida singing quietly along to A Sunset was so frickin' cute.

Fran wrote:

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Eamonn wrote:

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Please, her name is Emma and she's part of the Pulp family now.

But please expand on your theory. You mean Russell was technically dodgy so he had to find different ways of being effective?

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 That doesn't have to be casting aspersions on Russell's violin playing. I am not musically literate, so this will be a bit garbled, but my husband, who is extremely musically literate, has said that a person's main instrument affects the way they approach other instruments, so a drummer picking up a guitar will approach it differently from someone who learns it from scratch, or a keyboard player. Maybe like with spoken languages, even fluent people with different first languages speak English a bit differently from each other. Although, I have no idea what Russell learned first.

-- Edited by Fran on Monday 16th of June 2025 07:30:27 PM

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(Well first i dont know the names of the "new" members, so sorry about that ! )

It's more or less that yes. And also because she is not an "official" member so those musicians (touring musicians or whatever you wanna call them) as a whole (not just her) tend to play the safest way, and i feel it's transposed in the overall sound of the band. But that's the way it is, they can't go crazy like Russell did. On the other tours, there was no violin anymore, so there was no comparison to be made. 

Russell had a very unique violin style, I remember being stuck by the sound on the brixton video that i bought in 96. I don't know how he learnt it, but to me it was not very academic. And it produced that very peculiar sometimes agressive sound but not in a classical way, that made you think immediately "that's Russell". 

Don't know if that make sense, but Pulp sound more "professional" as a whole. They sound tight and very good, but less "crazy" without Steve and Russell. 

Yeah Jean there are two types of musicians, and i'm always amazed how "trained" musicians can't play anything without a sheet in front of them. It's like a different kind of way of playing music. I usually look at chords vaguely and then go for it. I just can't follow a sheet, it's very limitating for me. And i cant read music either

I suppose Russell, Jarvis and Steve and the other Pulp members are kinda like that. But the other can't be. They have a "job" when the other 4 play as a band. It's more liberating, so it's not being harsh on the other. It's just the way it is.

PS: Jean, so tell them you're playing piano the Jazz way 

And also Russell's violin always seemed a bit out of tune to me, like if someone just picked up and played it. I dont know, it added a dimension to the violin parts. Like in Have you seen her lately. It's a very strange violin.

Was he placing his fingers inbetween two notes or something, i dont know 

andy wrote:

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And by the way, why wasn't he part of this reunion ? I gotta say i have not followed. Supposed he refused ?

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 I doubt he was asked, to be honest.