There’s nothing like a Spiritualized show

Image courtesy: Bella Union, and the artist
On Saturday, one of the most understatedly great band’s in a generation – England’s Spiritualized – is coming to Denver. And, you might want to go ahead and get a ticket, because they might not be coming back, with this current tour being rumored as the band’s last.
 
And the truth is, there’s absolutely nothing like a Spiritualized show. The fact that Spiritualized is bringing their show to the Gothic Theatre is a cause for celebration. That the tour is coming off the heels of the band’s best work in a decade, the gorgeously arranged and painstakingly composed And Nothing Hurt, adds plenty of lure to the occasion. 
 

You probably know Spiritualized from their Magnum Opus, Ladies and Gentleman We Are Floating In Space, from 1997. Or 1995’s Pure Phase. Or maybe 2012’s Sweet Heart Sweet Light. Or maybe any of the other eight albums Jason Pierce and Co. have put out since 1992. (Or, equally as important, Pierce’s first band, Spacemen 3). 

Combining the essence of blues and gospel, and the droning call and response of old-time spirituals, the best way to experience them is in concert, in full orchestral bombast.

Live, their music rises to the rafters and leaves you shuddering. I’ve never been to a Spiritualized show without being moved to tears.

The best Spiritualized show I ever saw? How about maybe the best show, ever? It was spring 2012, and I was fortunate enough to be in Europe, lost in the fog of recently losing my father. Spiritualized, as fans know, is exactly the kind of music to get you through things like that.

So off I went to Dublin to see them, and that night in March, just before Easter, I got to Vicar Street early enough to be in the front, with a perfect spot to get absolutely mind-bent, in the very best way.

Voice-of-angels choir adding vocals, lilting slide guitar building into total cacophony, and Pierce, plain-faced, stage left singing, plucking chords out of the sky. The kind stuff you never forget.

They opened with “Hey Jane”, a not-subtle riff on The Velvet Underground’s “Sweet Jane” and moved flawlessly into “Lord Let It Rain On Me”, a song that was written in its own state of fog. Pierce has overcome addiction, near-death, and almost everything else, with dead-pan faith. 

So on Saturday, I’ll be right there again, front row and full circle. A religious experience? You bet. A top-of-its-game band? No doubt.

It’ll be like waves washing right over you. You walk into a Spiritualized show feeling one way, and you leave feeling absolutely healed.