Who really won the battle of Britpop? You could argue that it was Blur (who are still recording and releasing music to this day), or Oasis (who made waves recently with their reunion announcement), but in my book the real winners were Pulp. The Sheffield-based band had humble beginnings - they toured and recorded for nearly a decade in relative obscurity before their meteoric rise to fame in the early 90s. With the 1994 album His 'n' Hers, Pulp became known for their moody art-rock sound and lyrics that explored class divides, social outcasts, and the bleak mundanity of young adult life. The following year, their album Different Class produced the instantly iconic single "Common People", often regarded as the defining anthem of the Britpop movement.
Since their last album (2001's We Love Life), the band has reunited only infrequently to play a handful of shows - their last visit to the United States was in 2012. Since we've been deprived of them for over a decade, their 2024 "This Is What We Do For an Encore" tour was met with an overwhelming response. Tickets at Kings Theatre in Brooklyn, NY sold out almost immediately, and the second date they added went just as quickly. I was lucky enough to land a ticket for their September 13th concert.
The opening band, Escape-ism, took the stage promptly at 8pm. Ian Svenonius (vocals and guitar) and Sandi Denton (bass and keyboards) played sparse, provocative punk rock, like a Bizarro version of the Cramps. Their half-hour set was over quickly, and by 9pm all the gear was in place for Pulp to take the stage. Most notably, a large round screen was set up at center stage, which soon lit up with the following dramatic message:
"Good evening
You are about to see the 555th show by Pulp
This is a night you will remember for the rest of your life"
The band launched into the opening strains of "I Spy" - a wash of tense synthesizers and a slow, menacing whisper. Pulp frontman Jarvis Cocker wound his way onto the stage, silhouetted by the stage lights. After a minute, the drums kicked in and the song exploded into life at a frenetic pace. Jarvis held the crowd spellbound, leaping around the stage and posing rakishly in his distinctive manner. Every time he spoke the song's title, a flash of lights illuminated the cheering audience, ratcheting up the excitement to a fever pitch.
Attending the band's 555th show - on Friday the 13th, no less - seemed like an auspicious coincidence. Jarvis pointed this out himself in between songs, wondering if the date held any particular magic. As the band launched into fan favorite "Disco 2000", I knew he was onto something. There was something really special about standing in a packed room of strangers, hearing the echo of thousands of voices singing in unison. "Disco 2000" is a wistful, nostalgic song about first love, and it name-checks hometown landmarks and even the names of childhood friends. We were an ocean and several decades away from Jarvis Cocker's adolescence in Sheffield, but the crowd loved the song enough to match him word for word, as though his lovelorn teenage woes were our own.
The rest of the night was also nothing short of magical. Old classics like the voyeuristic pop hit "Babies" and the orchestral showstopper "This is Hardcore" sounded exciting and fresh. "Pink Glove", a seedy love song from the perspective of a jealous ex-boyfriend, was enhanced by the presence of an actual pink glove, which Jarvis danced around with for a bit before flinging it into the crowd. I was particularly delighted to hear the lesser-known single "O.U. (Gone, Gone)" being performed as well. The band was in fine form; Candida Doyle (keyboards), Nick Banks (drums) and Mark Webber (guitar), plus touring musicians Andrew McKinney, Emma Smith and Adam Betts, filled the theatre with the complex, gloomy soundscape I had previously only heard on Pulp's records. One notable absence was longtime Pulp bassist Steve Mackey, who passed away in 2023. Jarvis shared a few fond memories of Steve and dedicated the ballad "Something Changed" to his memory.
After bringing down the house with an electrifying rendition of "Common People", something even more monumental happened - Pulp debuted a brand new song. "Got to Have Love" was a mid-tempo rocker with a catchy, sampled chorus, consisting of just the title phrase on repeat. With this, plus reports of more new songs being performed at other stops on the tour, the chances of there being a new Pulp release - perhaps even a new album - seem highly likely.
Their second and final encore concluded with the song "Glory Days":
"Come and play the tunes of glory
Raise your voice in celebration
Of the days that we have wasted in the cafe in the station
(...) And if it all amounts to nothing
It doesn't matter
These are still our glory days"
There were no better words to exemplify a band like Pulp that excels at finding the magic in the mundane. I left the theater with a smile on my face and a renewed zest for live music, and maybe even life in general. The night was a definitive triumph for Pulp - I only hope it doesn't take them another twelve years to come back again.
