Festival experience tends to be overwhelming (multiple stages, food trucks, weather forecasts), and I believe that it took me some time to realise that Jason Pierce would really be playing later that night. I think that it was only when I got close to the main stage, twenty minutes or so before the start of the concert, that I fully grasped the idea that I would be seeing Spiritualized for the second time in my life. The first time was about ten years ago in Dublin, back when they were playing Ladies and Gentlemen We are Floating in Space in its entirety. The world, it seems, was a very different place back then.
Together with Slowdive and King Krule, Spiritualized were the main headliners of this year's Off Festival in Katowice. And while I do have a lot of time for Slowdive and there was a particular Belarusian band I wanted to support (more on them later this month), it really was all about Jason Pierce. That was, essentially, why I was in Upper Silesia on a day that threatened to burst open with rain but never really delivered on its terrible promise. To see Spiritualized, and to remember that wild tingling sensation I experienced years ago, back when I got my very first assignment at Oxford Music Magazine. The assignment was to review a new album by Spiritualized titled Sweet Heart, Sweet Light. The song was "Hey Jane", and it felt life-changing.
This time, in 2023, as they entered the stage and stood in an almost intimate semi-circle, this was the opening salvo that was heard: 'Hey Jane, where are you going today?..' It was a staggering start, one they could not really top. Thankfully, they never let it slide either. With great musicianship, with excellent back-up singers, with Jason Pierce crouched in the corner on a tall stool (trademark arrangement), it was that classic mixture of tasteful space-rock noise ("The Morning After"), anthemic explosions ("I'm Your Man") and absolute heart-wrenching beauty ("Damaged"). The sound felt huge, as did the whole event.
These days, Jason Pierce favours newer material, and I have no problem with that. Later in the night, Slowdive would be playing "Alison", "When The Sun Hits", "Catch The Breeze" and the rest of their storied back catalogue, but the wealth of Spiritualized's recent material is such that it feels only natural for Pierce to explore it and give it a chance to breathe and develop... And all of a sudden, "Here It Comes (The Road) Let's Go" hits you as hard as "Cool Waves" and "Broken Heart". Most of the songs performed at Katowice are taken from the last three albums, with the odd classic ("Shine A Light") thrown in for good measure. Overall, it is lazer guided melodies all around. You are transfixed, and you are blown away.
And then, after an hour and a half of heartache and explosions, there came the moment. There is always that moment at a great concert, the one that feels different, and unique, and gets into you more than anything else. The moment lasted seven minutes, in fact, and it was Spiritualized doing a phenomenal version of "So Long You Pretty Thing". The sweet, fragile start that threatens to fall apart but keeps you on edge instead. The beautifully melodious and understated middle section. And then, of course, the tears flood your face as you scream that glorious coda at the absolute top of your lungs. It actually took me a couple of weeks to recover from the experience and write this review.
