T in the Park T in the Park 2000
This
was Groove Armada's first appearance in Scotland. Slightly late
starting due to technical problems which appeared to continue (I
thought the sound was poor - which makes a difference to a band
of GA's quality), they nevertheless put their all into it, and were
rewarded with a great crowd reaction.
Andy
was obviously enjoying himself, flashing his huge smile in disbelief,
then picking up a camcorder to film the crowd, then back to the
keyboard, while the tightest of bands concentrated on ensuring the
perfect groove. Glances between Andy and Tom show the amount of
enjoyment they get from performing live.
Starting
with 'I see you baby' and running through most of the tracks from
Vertigo, they manage to bring what on plastic is quite a chilled
sound onto the stage in a vibrant way that works to perfection.
The only irritation is the singer, who seems more interested in
posing, but is counteracted by the coolest of rappers.
The
highlight is undoubtedly 'Sanddunes', with Andy playing the trombone
while Tom loops the sampled vocals... as it progresses (with Andy
back to the keyboards), the tempo increases, and when Andy returns
to the trombone it's as though he's had a shot of speed... this
is nothing like the album!
Improving
on a '10' is just another days work for Groove Armada - miss them
at your peril!
review by Neil Greenway
photos by Stuart McCandlish & Neil Greenway
more pages about Groove Armada (live)
