Type and hit ENTER

Commonly used tags...

Brighton Festival Brighton Fringe Brighton Pride British Sea Power Cinecity Lewes Psychedelic Festival Locally Sourced Lost & Found Love Supreme Festival Nick Cave Poets Vs MCs Politics Rag'n'Bone Man Record Store Day Save Our Venues Six Of The Best Source Virgins Streets Of Brighton Street Source Tattoos The Great Escape Tru Thoughts Unsung Heroes
  • Home
  • News
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • Food
  • Tickets
  • Contact
  • Contribute
  • Advertise
  • Home
  • News
  • Previews
  • Reviews
  • Features
  • Food
  • Tickets
  • Contact
    • Contact
    • Contribute
    • Advertise
John Carpenter | Brighton Source
John Carpenter | Brighton Source
Reviews

John Carpenter Review

Oct 24, 2016
-
Posted by Steve Clements

Brighton was a late addition to the tour and so it was that the Master of Horror, John Carpenter made his UK concert debut at the (allegedly haunted) Brighton Dome. Carpenter scored nearly all of his classic films so the show was sure to be packed with crowd-pleasing spine-tinglers.

This proved to be the case as the maestro and his five piece band shuffled onstage and fired off the opening chords of Escape From New York which was enhanced with a selection of scenes on the big screen behind them. The minimalist keyboard parts even allowed him to play with one hand in his pocket.

Unmistakable with his snow white hair tied back he nonetheless introduced himself after the dark and brooding Assault On Precinct 13 title theme, with the film’s best scenes getting as much applause as the music. He was clearly enjoying himself judging by his dance moves.

A couple of selections from ‘Lost Themes 1’ had the trademark Carpenter sound with ‘Mystery’ incorporating elements of the Germanic Bowie/Eno period which grew into a grandiose full band attack with soaring guitars. The Fog’s melodic music box theme was punctuated with deep synth splurges as we watched the locals getting dispatched by ghostly mariners. There was a great comedy moment when They Live was stopped short after a few notes for Carpenter to don his sunglasses to check for any skull-faced aliens in the crowd and to read the subliminal propaganda messages that Roddy Piper was discovering in the clips. Carpenter’s son Cody added some jazzy noodlings alongside the jagged guitar work.

The only non-Carpenter piece came with Ennio Morricone’s theme from the remake of The Thing which brought a change of pace and style as it played over the visceral special effects scenes. The biggest cheers came with Big Trouble In Little China and, of course, Halloween, with its repetitive piano, shimmering hi hat and sinister chords the perfect background to Jamie Lee Curtis crying and running away from Michael Myers.

The show ended with a four song encore that began with the choral voicings of Prince Of Darkness and completed by Carpenter advising us to “please drive carefully, Christine is out there” as Arnie Cunningham’s four wheeled beauty wiped out the local bullies. A great end to an excellent multimedia show.

Brighton Dome Concert Hall, Thursday 20th November 2016
Words by Steve Clements

Oct 24, 2016
Email
Steve Clements
Steve has been a SOURCE contributor since Summer 2010 and has also written for Latest 7 magazine. He moved to Brighton in 2006 after working in London at the Royal Albert Hall, Our Price Music and Teletext. Favourite quote - "There's no such thing as a sold out gig".
← PREVIOUS POST
The Damned, Thurs 24th November
NEXT POST →
Haley Bonar at Green Door Store - Photo Review
Mailing List

Recent Posts
  • Two Decades Of Funk Fire With Jalapeno Records
    Jan 18, 2021

    A new compilation celebrates 20 years of funk and soul from world-renowned Brighton label Jalapeno Records.

  • Hansel and Gretel? | Brighton Source
    Hansel and Gretel? Review
    Dec 18, 2020

    A postmodern pantomime with an unrelaible narrator. Outdoors with comedy, dance, camp actors, plenty of fun. On two levels: laughs for kids and jokes for adults

  • Artists Open Houses 2020
    Dec 5, 2020

    After cancelling the May edition, Artists Open Houses tell us what it's like to be back with a December festival that is open to visitors in person for eight days.

  • Cinecity 2020 previewed by Brighton Source
    Cinecity 2020
    Nov 17, 2020

    From the North Laine to Mongolia, Cinecity's lineup is typically eclectic and original this year - catch it before the city's key film festival ends.

  • Macbeth Review
    Nov 2, 2020

    Macbeth in Brighton. One-act play with Scottish Gaelic sounds by This Is My Theatre. Power, ambition, murder, blood. The woods are moving.

  • Lost & Found: Poison Girls
    Nov 2, 2020

    As part of our retrospective series on local bands we look back at the hugely influential and ever-challenging anarcho-punk collective Poison Girls.

  • The Rose Hill | Brighton Source
    Save Our Venues – The Rose Hill
    Oct 26, 2020

    We spoke to the team at the Rose Hill to find out how a series of new creative projects is helping this unique Brighton venue to cope with the current crisis.

  • Spillage! Review
    Oct 19, 2020

    This one-person, one-act play is giddy, funny and seriously entertaining. An odyssey through the madness of corporate pressure on our mental health.

Website developed in Brighton by Infobo
Copyright © Brighton Source 2009-2020
John Carpenter Review - Brighton Source