If the questions were "What's it like to be in Editors when they play live?" and "So, what exactly do you do in the group?", this is as close to the answers as we'll ever get without being hired.
Have you ever been asked the question "What superpower would you prefer, being able to fly or being invisible?". Both of them have their benefits; flying means you get to travel wherever you want whenever you feel like it, but invisibility would offer you the ability to observe without detection. To see people and things in their most natural state. For their show in Utrecht, 4th December 2018 long time collaborator and visual artist Rahi
Rezvani did indeed opt to go invisible, taking his camera into Editors' workplace and effectively
acting as a voyeur for the entire set which was streamed on Facebook. But it goes further than that. Before the music even begins he quietly mingles among them in the dressing room, when they're relaxed and chatting and the atmosphere is calm. The Power Hour, as they call it. Then that 3 minute warning comes in and the mood changes to one of focus and anticipation, before we follow them out onto the stage. I say we follow them out but it's all vicariously done. If there's one thing I can compare this to it's an old, old film about the Cure called "The Cure Play Out", in which the band gave the producers of an excellent music show called SnubTV access to them as they rehearsed for the Brit Awards. It showed a whole new side to them. Given the socially low-key and reserved nature of Editors, how often do you get the chance to see this far behind the curtain?
The thing about this situation, is that it lives or dies purely on the amount of trust that
has been built between Rahi and Editors. Without it, it doesn't happen. I
don't believe that there are many scenarios where they would be
comfortable and at ease enough put on their usual kind of show, knowing that a stranger was stalking them onstage for almost
two hours. But Rahi has a proven history in making Editors look good. This is a guy that can tell you one of his ideas for No Harm is to fire an extinguisher into your face and film it in slow motion, as well as blasting you with a leaf blower to make your skin ripple. Or how about submerging you in a water tank as part of a teaser film for In Dream? Maybe you'll find yourself under a rain machine for the very end of Hallelujah? The thing is, they trusted him enough to do all of these things and that belief in his vision carried on here.
I like how whenever he's focusing on a single member of the group you can hear their contribution above everyone else. Sweeping past Russell means crazy bass sounds, and then over to listen to Ed banging on the drums, while continuing to the right means you'll hear Elliott doing backing vocals and playing the keys. It makes everything dreamlike, as if you can't focus on one thing but you're just noticing it all as it moves past you. When you're an audience member at an Editors show it's all about becoming lost in the music, and you rarely get to see all the moving parts that provoke that experience. Until now.
For me, and in random order, here's my own high points:-
The anxiety/readiness before they walked onstage.
Wow, you forget just how much Elliott does back there.
Justin has fast hands when he plays.
Tom blows Rahi's cover.
King Leetch's bass of death at the beginning of Darkness at the Door.
EdiBow cameo
Getting up close and personal with Tom during Salvation.
Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.
Goth smoke for No Harm.
Tom singing along to Tinseltown in the Rain backstage
Russell grooves to Geno by Dexy's
Russell grooves to Geno by Dexy's
Guitar flourishes by Elliott.
Hard working Ed Lay. Powerful.
The words to Salvation pinned onto Tom's Piano.
Bro hugs.
Bro hugs.
Justin's Effects Pedal Pornography (also a great band name).
Beer break during Ocean of Night
Oblivious crowd who forget that Rahi is pointing a camera at them.
Andy Freaking Burrows
Stage crew cameos.
The eerie way it goes from loud to quiet the further away from the stage they get at the very end.
The only thing I'm suspicious about is that they weren't followed offstage during the encore. I'm not able to divulge any sources (because I'm making this up) but I have heard from people close to the band that this is the time when they light the black candles and all say a satanic prayer to Nick Cave, performing a ritual sacrifice of a turnip (hey, we live in enlightened times and why should an animal die for rock 'n 'roll) to help them play the final few numbers. If it wasn't filmed, it smells like a conspiracy to these nostrils. We didn't see it, but we know.
The only thing I'm suspicious about is that they weren't followed offstage during the encore. I'm not able to divulge any sources (because I'm making this up) but I have heard from people close to the band that this is the time when they light the black candles and all say a satanic prayer to Nick Cave, performing a ritual sacrifice of a turnip (hey, we live in enlightened times and why should an animal die for rock 'n 'roll) to help them play the final few numbers. If it wasn't filmed, it smells like a conspiracy to these nostrils. We didn't see it, but we know.
What I learned from this little experiment is that however disparate it may have sounded, the combined noise of those 5 folks onstage is still a beautiful thing. I've seen how it's made and I like it even more because of it. That they're 15 years into this thing and they still take chances and stray from the traditional promotional path by doing stuff like this is a credit to them. Enjoy the access ;)
The Setlist
Backstage with Editors
The Boxer
The Boxer
Sugar
Hallelujah (So Low)
All Sparks
AEHAS
Bullets
Darkness at the Door
Salvation
Violence
No Harm
ERM=BD
A Ton of Love
Formaldehyde
Nothingness
Ocean of Night
Blood
Papillon
Magazine
Smokers
The Weight
Cold
Racing Rats
Munich
Nothing
Offstage with Editors
Offstage with Editors
brought to you with lots and lots of lemming-love ;) x
