Live review: South Yorkshire icons The Human League still sparkle in electric dreams
Incredibly, it is now almost fifty years since the mighty Human League first got together in the back streets of Sheffield and began crafting their new wave synth classics.
It was in the Queen’s Silver Jubilee year of 1977 that the band first came into being in an experimental and electronic line-up before shifting into the pop-sheened trio we know and love today a few years later.
Lead singer Phil Oakey and his esteemed bandmates Joanne Catherall and Susan Sulley are still going strong with a tried and tested format that’s still packing ‘em in at shows and festivals around the world.
And so it was that Sheffield’s finest found themselves inside the historic surrounds of Halifax’s Piece Hall, once again delighting their fanbase with all the hits on a scorching summer’s night in Yorkshire.
But first up, it was a real trip down memory lane, with Blancmange opening proceedings with their upbeat synth pop favourites in the shape of Don’t Tell Me and Living On The Ceiling before The Thompson Twins’ Tom Bailey (back in his Halifax birthplace) guided mass singalongs in the shape of Hold Me Now, You Take Me Up and Love On Your Side.
After a slight delay (apparently due to a wardrobe malfunction with Joanne’s dress) the Human League took to the stage to raucous cheers – and opened rather approrpiately with The Sound Of The Crowd, which instantly got everyone inside the beautiful setting.
And from then on, it was hit after hit as the League deliverd pop classic after pop classic to ever increasing noise levels among a clearly overjoyed audience.
With costume changes aplenty, the Human League certainly know how to deliver a sleek and polished set dripping with gems.
Mirror Man and The Lebanon still shimmer just like they did back in the day, while more recent tracks such as Heart Like A Wheel and Soundtrack To A Generation fit perfectly into their surroundings.
Of course, the back end of the set is absolutely stacked with all the favourites – Love Action (I Believe In Love), Tell Me When and Keep Feeling Fascination keeping the party vibes going well into the balmy night.
Naturally, the biggest singalong comes in main set closer Don’t You Want Me, the 1981 number one single that catapulted the group to stardom.
After a brief interval, the trio return with their very first single Being Boiled, before sparking yet another huge sing along with the 80s anthem, Together In Electric Dreams.
It’s a joyous trip back to more carefree times from a band still very much at the peak of their profession and who have done South Yorkshire proud over the years.
You can see from the three of them that they still clearly love doing what they do – and while new music might now be a rarity, they have the power and punch to keep entertaining audiences with a true pop canon of some of the very best songs.
Don’t you want me?
Of course we do – and we’ll always be together in those ongoing electric dreams.