Nearly four decades since their debut album dropped and almost thirty years since they last played in the City of Lights (well, Ris Orangis, close enough), Del Amitri returned to Paris in support of Simple Minds' Global Tour. Unfortunately, a sizable portion of the audience didn't bother showing up for the opening act: it's their loss. For the ones that did show up, Del Amitri's set was quite the treat, like seeing a long-lost friend.
Bookending their show with two of their biggest hits "Always The Last To Know" and "Nothing Ever Happens", the band took the audience on a journey through their finely honed pop/rock repertoire, leaning heavily on their nineties catalogue while sprinkling in a taste of their latest album "Fatal Mistakes." The absence of "Roll To Me" was a little puzzling, but heartbreaking setlist choices have to be made when you only have a forty-five minute support slot...
Frontman Justin Currie's voice is still as enchanting as ever, seemingly unaffected by his battle with Parkinson's. The tremors are becoming obvious on the songs where he sings without a bass or guitar in his hands, but somehow his timbre is as youthful and honest as it was all those years ago. Guitarist Iain Harvie is a true rock guitar hero in a pop setting, displaying attitude and an acute sense of melody with each epic solo.
All in all, ten tracks of pure pop/rock euphoria, each acting as a miniature masterpiece of melody and emotion, with lush vocal harmonies, finely honed songwriting, and driving guitar riffs. Here's to hoping we won't have to wait another thirty years for them to grace a Paris stage again...
Experience or re-live the concert by playing the setlist in the embedded Apple Music player below
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