Screamadelica

  “I wish I had been older in 1991” was the immediate thought I had when watching Primal Scream’s live DVD performance of their 1991 released album, Screamadelica.  That way I could have been a part of musical history.  But I wasn’t old enough; I was only 2 years old.  And at 2 years old, Primal Scream do not, typically, slot into the genre of music you listen to.  However, as the youngest of three, I had an older brother who experienced it first time around and was therefore able to impart some musical wisdom onto me.

20 years later, I am now old enough to appreciate the Screamadelica album and watch it played out live.  Filmed at the London Olympia, November 2011, Bobby and Co. play the album in its entirety, along with a “rock and roll” set compiled of various songs from the band’s other albums.

The set opens on “Movin’ on up” and is followed by “Slip inside this house” which I can’t help but feel are both lacking in the original spirit they were recorded with.  However, on their third track “Don’t fight it, feel it”, Denise Johnson plays guest vocalist and the rest of the band really begin to slip into the rhythm.

The set becomes a little more subdued and relaxed halfway through with Bobby stepping back up to the mic’ and giving us the opportunity to hear his voice on tracks “Damaged”, “I’m coming down” and “Higher than the sun.”  These tracks give us the opportunity to hear Primal Scream doing what they do best, a combination of super “trippy” acid-house and rock music.

The set picks up pace again for penultimate track “Loaded” and “Come Together” makes the perfect closer with gospel choir on the chorus.  The band really feed of the positive energy of the crowd on these final tracks, leaving the set to go out on a high.  

The extra set on the DVD, titled “Rock and Roll” gives the audience the opportunity to see the band step away from their acid-house sound and inject some rock back into their set.  With tracks such as “Jailbird”, “Country Girl” and brilliant “Rocks”, it is definitely an opportunity for the viewer to see how talented and diverse the band have been throughout their long spanning career.