JOHN CALE + TOM McRAE – DE LA WARR PAVILION – BEXHILL-ON-SEA 27.3.25
The sleek lines of the art deco De La Warr Pavilion always raises a smile and a sense of calm for me along with the anticipation of what I’m about to see, but never more so than tonight and the legend that is John Cale. You never know what you’ll be getting from this remarkable artist, but you’re assured that it’ll be inspirational, exciting and driven by his constant musical experimentation.To quote the main himself: “I don’t like to dwell on the past, I just try to get on with things. That’s always been the case. With me, it’s always, what’s next?”
This event is titled for the ‘POPtical Illusion Tour’ after the album which was released in 2024 on Double Six / Domino to great plaudits.
Tom McRae, as support, enters to a thin spattering of audience which thankfully swells throughout his set, as it should be for this remarkable artist. Very rarely do I find the average support act exciting, but tonight I was treated to a performance that more than excelled expectations from this Mercury Prize winner.
His opener ‘Lately’s All I Know’ shows his great vocal in this moody and haunting song. He moves into ‘For The Restless’ which is a tortured vision in a bleak vista.
He’s a funny guy Tom McRae “that’s the upbeat start of the set” he says at this point, often alluding to the darkness of his songs, telling the audience that he hopes the songs aren’t triggering to anyone. However he states that however bad you may feel you can obtain solace in that his life is much worse!
He explains how he has ended up supporting John Cale by telling a great story of meeting Cale and David Bowie after a performance 25 years ago in which he gushed, out of control, saying how much he loved both of their work. Charming and self-depreciating.
Yes his songs are disturbing, heavy and doom laden but they are strikingly entrancing and I will buying some of his work as soon as I can.
Tom McRae setlist:
‘Lately’s All I Know’
‘For The Restless’
‘You Cut Her Hair’
‘For The Restless’
‘A & B Song’
‘Half On My Mind’
‘The Boy With The Bubble Gun’
As John Cale and his band arrive on stage the audience explodes. The lighting floods the stage with red as a perfect visual representation of the vibe of ‘Shark-Shark’ with Cale playing guitar in front of the video for said track realised, stunningly, by Abigail Porter.
Throughout the set, back projections feature pop art psychedelic imagery mixed with retro features. We presume that this is also the work of Abigail Porter. The lighting similarly moves between bright primary pop art colours.
The gig is powerful throughout with prominent themes including those of anti-war, displacement, animal cruelty and conservation. Cale has been a powerful supporting voice of many campaigns down the decades and this still continues now.
He has, this month, celebrated his 83rd birthday but there’s no sign of him resting on his laurels and taking it easy; rather he’s constantly breaking new ground in his music. The set is a compendium of new and historical music, but each track has been re-imagined with new orchestrations, multi-layered vocals and electronic treatments.
It’s hard to isolate tracks for plaudits but one of my favourites, his cover of Elvis Presley’s ‘Heartbreak Hotel’ particularly deserves comment.
In the 70s I heard it for the first time at a gig in Camden, London where it was just himself and a grand piano and it took my breath away then but this re-imagining tonight, with layers of electronica, was jaw droppingly wonderful encapsulating total desolation.
A new offering ‘Company Commander’ was discordant with a violent pounding beat with Cale taking no prisoners in its brutality but disintegrating into a beautiful, lyrical ending.
The greatest song of the night was ‘Barracuda’, raising it to another level of rock extravaganza, revealing at its conclusion merely jazz piano and a pounding beat. Utter genius! As the denouement of the set John Cale delivers us a manic rendition of the classic ‘I’m Waiting For The Man’ and I rise to my feet starting a well-deserved standing ovation. We’re met with a broad smile from the man himself and a promise that he’ll see us again soon and I can assure him that I will be there as, I’m sure, will every audience member from tonight.
It was a surprisingly moving performance for myself and my friend, a similarly avid John Cale fan, who has seen him perform over 25 times down the years. He voiced exactly what I was thinking when he said that this was the best of the man’s gigs ever. It’s hard to believe that he could ever top this, but this constantly evolving, hungry to explore new vista, genius will, I’m sure, prove me wrong.
John Cale:
John Cale – vocals, keys, guitar
Dustin Boyer – guitar
Joey Maramba – bass
Alex Thomas – drums
John Cale setlist:
‘Shark-Shark’
‘Letter From Abroad’
‘How We See The Light’
‘Heartbreak Hotel’ (Elvis Presley cover)
‘Long Way Out Of Pain’
‘My Maria’
‘Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night’
‘Set Me Free’
‘Company Commander’
‘Out Your Window’
‘Frozen Warnings’ (Nico cover)
‘Barracuda’
(encore)
‘I’m Waiting For The Man’
