Underworld are one of those bands I wasn’t certain I’d get to see live. Most of their tours are in the UK and Europe, and I didn’t get to see them the last time they were in the Midwest at Detroit’s Movement Music Festival years ago on a Sunday night.
Lo and behold, they announced a brief U.S. spring tour with only five stops, and one was in Chicago at Radius. I snagged tickets from the presale as soon as they were available. To my further delight, they announced it would be an “open to close” show with two full sets and no opening act.
They brought in a big crowd and instantly had us dancing with them. They barely let up during the first set, banging out classics like “Low Burn” and “Techno Shinkansen” while a simple and effective light show played out behind them.
During the twenty-five-minute intermission, I met a family of three who’d flown in from Atlanta, Georgia for the show. The mom and dad had brought their fourteen-year-old son (It was an all-ages show.) there for his first concert ever, and they all had a great time. I’m sure there were many people like them in the crowd, as Underworld was only doing six shows on this U.S. tour: One in Brooklyn, the Chicago show, and then four out west — Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, and Bakersfield, California. It was a rare opportunity to see them east of the Mississippi River.
The second set was loaded with fan-favorites, including “Pearl’s Girl,” a fun version of “Dark & Long (Dark Train),” “Two Months Off,” a faster, almost jungle version of “Cowgirl,” a hard-hitting version of “King of Snake,” and, of course, “Born Slippy” to close it off.
As we walked back to our car after the show, I could hear behind us a father asking his daughter if she enjoyed it. She did. He explained how “Born Slippy” “was from this movie called Trainspotting. It’s a really good movie that’s from before your time.” Most of Underworld’s music is from before his daughter’s time (They are still making excellent albums.), so it was great to see so many younger people at this show and for Underworld to make it an all-ages performance. We need more of that…and them.
Keep your mind open.
[Don’t forget to subscribe!]
