By Mollie Campbell.
Band: Tears for Fears
Opening Act: Alison Moyet
Location: Bournemouth
Rating 9/10
A nostalgia storm swept through Bournemouth last night as 80’s band ‘Tears for Fears’ took to the stage at the BIC, treating the audience to their iconic back catalogue of hits plus some fan favourites. The band, comprised of Roland Orzabal (Guitar, Vocals) and Curt Smith (Bass, Vocals), stepped on to the stage with a skillful and polished calibre, they are now seasoned performers, meaning that this tour was a homecoming, a celebration of an iconic band whose music contributed to the soundtracks of our youth. Whilst I am only 21, meaning I wasn’t even born when they released their most iconic songs, I too can understand the meaning of these songs, the indescribable sound of a memory, or the warmth of a touch, intertwined in every note escaping from the hands of the musicians we are watching. These songs were the soundtrack to my youth as well, and the moment the band breaks into ‘Everybody Wants to Rule the World’ it filled me with a profound sense of reminiscence, happiness, pain, and everything in between. Smith and Orzabal performed it with such ease and mastery, it sounded incredible, proving that these bands still have the timeless factor when competing with modern music, they belted out each song with such conviction it felt like it still meant something, and it does.
To the rest of the world it was just a two hour time slot on a Thursday evening, but to the attendees of this show, it felt like a wave of synth based electricity hitting our bodies with such an impactful sentiment, all within what felt like two minutes. The band accompanying them were brilliant and the atmosphere these musicians created was quite inspirational, the fact that they still got such pleasure out of performing classic songs like ‘Mad World’, which really was a highlight. It is easy to stereotype Tears for Fears simply as an 80’s pop band with a string of ‘standard’ mainstream hits, but when they are onstage this stereotype is struck down in its prime, they are more than just synth-reliant vocalists…they are talented on their instruments, a highlight was watching Smith’s bass solo and how Orzabal interacted with him and his guitar, as well as the drummer and pianist. It really confirmed that this band is so much more than a reminiscent pop band, they are talented and use the stage to tell a story, every song is meaningful, the lyrics are powerful and they sang them with such feeling and devotion, it was moving.
As the show went on, they seemed to get better, feeling the rush of the crowd’s enthusiasm… they chose ‘Shout’ as the encore, they couldn’t close a show with any other song. This is their anthem, the crowd recites it word for word, looping on the chorus again and again. This song is timeless, and as long as we continue to find the voices within ourselves, it will always be relevant. They exit the stage in a bubble of happiness, leaving the audience feeling electrified and a tiny bit more connected with the past they may have been scared of losing.
Mollie Writes 