WAYNE HUSSEY ROLLS INTO GLASGOW FOR AN EVENING OF MUSIC AND BANTER TO SUPPORT HIS AUTOBIOGRAPHY.
Full disclosure, I’ve followed The Mission since 1986 and certainly seen them perform more times than I care to remember. So safe to say, tonight’s show was a reunion of sorts, not just for myself but also the 250 punters crammed into the sold out, compact and not so bijou venue.
Most, if not all, already had a shared history in some form or other, with Wayne Hussey, The Mission, The Sisters of Mercy but now thanks to his recent autobiography ‘Salad Daze’, we’ve been given an insight into his life before he became the ‘Goth Hat’ wearing overlord of amphetamine fueled chaos and debauchery we’ve all known and loved for the last four decades. It’s the afore mentioned ‘Salad Daze’ that Wayne is on the road promoting and the set certainly provided an eclectic musical history lesson to compliment the book.
Wayne is accompanied on stage by a Liverpool FC supporting teddy bear, a vast array of guitars, a piano, some clever sequencers and for a few songs at least – the wonderful Evi Vine who is providing support and occasional backing vocals for the UK leg of the tour. Being seated throughout the show, he’s eyeball to eyeball with the audience which only enhances the intimate nature of the gig and makes for plenty of good humoured banter.
In the main, the set is a journey through the mellower end of Wayne’s back catalogue – these being better suited to the stripped down arrangements. And it works, with the likes of ‘Dragonfly, ‘Like a Child Again’, mixing well with classics from the first incarnation of The Mission. ‘Naked and Savage’, ‘Wasteland’ and ‘Garden of Delight’. All are subject to some particularly enthusiastic audience participation. There’s also a healthy sprinkling of covers, some are well known Mission standards like Pattie Smith’s ‘Dancing Barefoot’ and Neil Young’s ‘Like a Hurricane’ but we also get NIN’s ‘Hurt’ and ‘Lucky’ from Radiohead. All are equally well received from the audience. The arrangements not only give Wayne an opportunity to demonstrate what a skilled guitarist he is, but it lets his voice shine through. It may be a little bit worse for wear after 9 weeks touring but you can’t deny he can sure carry a good tune, something that’s always been at the core of his songwriting. Classics such as ‘Butterfly on a Wheel’ and ‘Severina’ stand testament to this.
Midway through we have an interlude where the guitars are put aside and we’re treated to an excerpt from ‘Salad Daze’. If you’ve ever wondered how Wayne came about his trademark black ‘goth hat’… ..buy the book, it’s worth it! It was a little disappointing there wasn’t a little more reading but the little stories and banter between songs ensured the evening kept moving along at a good pace.
Closing out the main set with an acoustic medley that included a further mix of Mission tracks and covers – ‘Personal Jesus’,’ Marianne’, ‘ Never let me down’ and ‘Crystal Ocean’, all get a few bars. Saving the best for last, ‘Swan Song’ is a more recent Mission track but it’s grown to become a fan favourite. With just his Schecter guitar and drum machine he gradually layered the guitar parts using loop and effect pedals until we had what was more or less the full band version of the track. It certainly ticked all the boxes in the audience with a sea of arms raised towards the stage singing their hearts out.
As the line in song goes ‘There’s life left in this old dog yet…’. With parting shot of ‘See you at The Barrowlands next year’, it certainly doesn’t look like he’s hanging up his guitar just yet.