The Human League + Hoboken - Guildhall, Southampton. 11/12/05.

When I got a call to go and do local crew work at this gig I jumped at the chance and even did the stop on where you remain there all day just so I could watch the gig. I've loved The Human League since I was at school when I had a major crush on the two League ladies; I admit I wasn't in on them right at the start when they were considered the cutting edge of electronic artiness but we had a fine record shop in Leighton Buzzard where I was able to purchase all my vinyl from Discharge, GBH to Gene Loves Jezebel and The March Violets. This is where I picked up my first couple of HL 12" singles, these being Sound Of The Crowd and Love Action and while I did lose them for a while I have come back to loving them via a Greatest Hits CD so this was a gig not to be missed.

So it was an early start with plenty of setting gear up, a nice white futuristic stage design with lights spelling out words and pictures as a back drop and then my first highlight of the day seeing Joanne and Susanne wander in to the catering area and my heart did a little skip and a jump, nice as pie they were and very down to earth and I didn't say a word!
Second highlight comes when Phil Oakey (looking pretty good for his age I may add!) walks in and sits a couple of seats away and the band on stage start their soundcheck and they kick of with Being Boiled, my favourite HL song and the hairs stand up on my arm as it sounds wonderful with these big synth sounds filling the empty hall and I feel like a little kid at christmas time.
Then it's a case of hanging around until showtime and I watch the odd collection of punters arrive, a real mixture of age groups and types from Goths to grannies and the rush for the barrier is quite spectacular and totally unexpected! Support band Hoboken have obviously been chosen carefully, a nice electronic band who look a little geeky with their computer screen and synth drums. They hark back to the 80s but also manage to sound modern, someone keeps shouting out Kraftwerk at them but that is wide of the mark as there is a more human element to them; I'm thinking more Ultravox meets early Depeche Mode with decent tunes and a confidence that allows the front man to stroll around the stage looking like a modern day Midge Ure while leaving the stage to get a drink and all they really need is a mass of screaming girls when he walks back on! They are an interesting band and as I help them clear the equipment from the stage I find they are perfect gentlemen as we don't always get a thankyou for lugging stuff about. Definitely ones to check out if you like abit of retro electronic/new wave/romantic action.

As I'm hanging about backstage for my next job of pulling a large curtain off the stage that will drop when THL music kicks in, I catch a glimpse of the band and some PVC and my pulse goes through the roof and as soon as that curtain is packed I'm out and down the front with a big stupid grin on my face. This is a set of greatest hits as Phil is aiming to move the band on judging by an interview I read recently, and they all sound fantastic. Make no mistake here, this isn't the three vocalists plus a backing band, this a fully functioning Human League and as Tell Me When sparkles into action you just know it's going to be a great gig. They cover later material such as Louise and Heart Like Wheel that sound much better live than on record though there is no denying they have a knack for writing perfect pop hits; earlier tracks like the legendary Things That Dreams Are Made Of and Empire State Human that sound as fresh as ever while the guitars are brought out for the underrated Lebanon.
There are a couple of costume changes and the ladies get to sing a couple of songs and do there dodgy disco dancing while Phil roams the stage, still the heart throb and loving every second of it. The packed audience love every second also and as I look around there are people singing along, hugging each other and having a great time which is what it should all be about. They close on Fascination and Don't You Want Me but there is no way they are leaving without an encore so they come back to do Being Boiled and end with Electric Dreams. We don't want it to end but they have done twenty songs, each one a true classic and this has to be one of my gigs of the year, definitely the most enjoyable.
I spend the next couple of hours loading the gear out but this time feeling wide awake and happy to be doing it after such a great gig, I think some of the younger lads think I'm a bit strange as they just think of THL as some old 80s band without realising just how cutting edge they were and what perfect pop hits they write.