**UPDATED 7th June 2022 - This is the full Kink NL Broadcast, fingers
crossed that using the eerie powers of persuasion I've managed to secure
it a permanent home here at the Archive. Sorry for the delay, folks ;)
(Referencing the onstage flamethrowers) - "I think these things have run out of gas...we've not" - Tom prior to Munich
Recorded on the night by Kink, this is the hour long broadcast of Editors slot at Vestrock 3rd June 2022, although with all the various interruptions it didn't fill the full 60 minutes. But what we got, was pretty awesome. This was the first chance to hear 2 of the 3 new songs professionally mixed in a live setting, so you folks that like to try and decipher the lyrics were in for a treat. Kiss wasn't aired, but Karma Climb was, but there's a compelling reason for that (wink, wink).
The sound is great here, and you can hear a lot more of the intricacies that make up all the compositions, like Elliott's backing vocals on Heart Attack and Bullets, for example or Nic's guitar work. I also noticed that Ed uses his sticks to count Tom in for Racing Rats but then immediately drops away,
unlike ye olden days when he was there until the drums kicked in proper.
Kink were late starting the show, which caused momentary stress to your humble narrator and reduced the amount of time available to squeeze the set in. Having had a week to let the new tracks settle in, I think they really do benefit from repeated listens. Still immediate, and all possessing hooks galore. I like the way they chose Heart Attack to open the set and just establish their new identity from the get-go, a conversely brave and assured move. This wasn't a shy shuffle back into the spotlight, and that swagger continued through both Karma Climb. I've said it before but I really do think there will come a time when much older songs like Munich and Smokers will no longer make the set list, and based on what we're hearing lately, they have sensational replacements.
From the various clips on YouTube I could see that Elliott is working very hard during Karma Climb, doing vocals, guitar and keys alternately and simultaneously at times. It's also nice to hear Russell on the piano again during No Sound but the Wind. It would be very easy to make a lazy comparison to In This Light and on This Evening, and the way various band members changed between instruments at times during their gigs, but until we hear the full complete album we should probably set them aside.
The only negative thing I have to say, and it's a minor triviality, is how the gig ended. I do find it strange from the live shows we've seen and heard on this tour that the choice of set-closer is No Sound but the Wind. It's for the same reason that I didn't like the way their An End Has a Start album signed off. I like the song Well Worn Hand, but not as a goodbye for that record which is so full of joyful noise and ambition. A long and exciting build up to a deflating "so-long". NSBTW has been a passenger that has accompanied the band for almost 13 years, and taken many forms. It's survived the near break up, reformation and expansion of the group and there it stands with all the history it possesses. I really like the song, it's beautiful, but it feels like the energy collected prior to it appearing is distilled away as it concludes. Unlike the way that Fingers in the Factories used to wring every last ounce of effort from everyone in the room, or the rising and falling drama of Marching Orders which would take the crowd on a trip. Still, Editors isn't a committee run by fans so my opinion is only that, my opinion.
If I'm correct, and in the interests of spreading rumours, I think Rahi was moving stealthily around the stage with them for this set at various points in the way he did for the "Ghosts" video. What that means for future projects, we'll have to wait and see.
In closing, this was another great reintroduction to Editors and there are several reasons to feel optimistic about the upcoming record and live shows. It feels like the last two years with all its absences and disappointments never happened to the band at all. Also, fair play to Kink for allowing the broadcast of more wonderful "Tom Swears" interludes during Papillon and Magazine. Enjoy the music and the delightfully coarse language ;)
stream it here *full broadcast including Munich*
Broadcast Setlist MP3s
Heart Attack - download here
Racing Rats - download here
Bullets - download here
Karma Climb - download here
Magazine - download here
An End Has a Start - download here
Papillon/Frankenstein - download here
Munich - download here
Smokers - download here
No Sound but the Wind - download here
Filmed backstage on the day of the show, here's a chance to hang out with Ed, Elliott and Russell as they drop knowledge about the new record and other things. Witness first-hand Ed's curious decaphobia affliction, as he does everything he can to avoid mentioning the number 10.
brought to you with lots and lots of lemming-love ;) x
