MORRISSEY | LIVE REVIEW
Motorpoint Arena, Cardiff, Wed 18 Mar
Despite the passing of 30 years, Steven Patrick Morrissey has withered not and his unnerving passion for animal rights, anti-royalism and Tory-hating have barely abated in the availing years.
His gladioli-waving days maybe behind him, but a consummate performance lifted even the most morose hearts of his eager Welsh fans. Who dare not fall in love again with the Mancunian, who revels in getting people’s backs up: the set’s opener The Queen Is Dead, a staple Smiths number and a red flag to the mainly fortysomething crowd, established the tone. The visual barrage of cultural icons spanning any number of decades: Visage (notably the late Steve Strange), the New York Dolls, the Ramones, and Edith Sitwell gives an insight into this enquiring mind.
At an evergreen 55, although he joked about being 32, Morrissey remains a passionate voice against animal suffering and cruelty. A barrage of sickening slaughterhouse imagery assaulted an audience, who probably weren’t quite expecting this vivid horror, but the message was received loud and clear. His self proclaimed ‘animal protectionist’ title was all the more poignant for it.
His set list may have been devoid of This Charming Man and The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get, but this didn’t detract from his iconic status. As a whole, the show stayed consistently inviting to the now-whooping throng. Morrissey remains a legend and a true pop icon, one who will not be swayed. His best was left for last and his encore First Of The Gang To Die sent the already dizzy with joy fans into a rapture of delight. Faultless.
words ASHLEY HARRISON photos SIMON AYRE