The Wombats AO Arena review: Enduring band prove the spirit of the indie disco is alive and well
The Liverpool three-piece, formed in 2003, stopped in Manchester on Saturday night as part of their arena tour supporting the band's sixth album Oh! The Ocean. The thousands packed into the venue undoubtedly enjoyed value for money with support coming from Red Rum Club and Everything Everything.
The latter, a Manchester favourite, produced a 10-song stint which featured Kemosabe, Spring/Sun/Winter/Dread, Cough Cough and Distant Past in one of the best 'warm-ups' you are likely to see. Frontman Jonathan Higgs' unique vocals were as flawless as ever with him putting them to full use on Everything Everything's closer No Reptites.
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Arguably Everything Everything's booking felt a little 'grown up' for the festivities but given how many people arrived early, to see them, that clearly didn't materialise into an issue. Rightfully so, as the band are arena headliner quality on their own.
Soon after, The Wombats took to the stage, arriving to The Power of Love, by Huey Lewis and The News, invoking inevitable thoughts of classic 1980s film franchise Back to The Future.
What followed was a demonstration of longevity which has set The Wombats apart from some of their peers who now, rather sadly, reside in indie landfill. Not afraid to go big early, with renditions of Moving to New York and Techno Fan, the 10,000 plus people in Manchester's AO Arena were assuredly in for a good time.
This was confirmed when lead Matthew Murphy asked 'How the f**k are we doing tonight?' with enthusiastic loud cheers and whoops coming back at him. The group's indie pop calling cards have ensured such affection remains for The Wombats, aided by their sense of fun, and in more recent times their latest releases have helped them capture a new generation of fans - always evident by the fresh from exams crowds at the band's Leeds Festival sets.
On Saturday, Murphy engaged fans with a song about a gender he'll never understand through Kill The Director and talk of Japan with an airing of Tokyo before a wisdom of wombats (a quick Google was needed to discover the collective term for the animal) joined Murphy and bandmates Tord Øverland Knudsen and Dan Haggis for main set closer Let's Dance to Joy Division.
The resourceful wisdom firing confetti from cannons into the audience. Just for the avoidance of confusion, it was people in wombat suits...
Returning for a three-song encore, Murphy declared Manchester to be 'one of the greatest cities on planet earth'. The very enjoyable evening of frolics was brought to a close with Greek Tragedy as huge inflatable colourful balls descended from above.
Lots of fans took the mammoth items of memorabilia out of the venue as they headed onto Manchester's city centre streets.
Sorry I'm Late, I Didn't Want to Come
Moving to New York
Cheetah Tongue
Techno Fan
Kate Moss
Ready for the High
1996
Pink Lemonade
I Love America and She Hates Me
Kill the Director
My Head Is Not My Friend
Lethal Combination
Blood On the Hospital Floor
Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves)
Patricia the Stripper
The World's Not Out to Get Me, I Am
Method to the Madness
Lemon to a Knife Fight
If You Ever Leave, I'm Coming With You
Let's Dance to Joy Division
Encore
Can't Say No
Turn
Greek Tragedy
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Time Magazine
2 hours ago
- Time Magazine
Breaking Down the Unconventional Rom-Com Ending of Oh, Hi!
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This is a different kind of romantic comedy, clearly, but it's also a thoughtful interrogation on the idea of being 'crazy,' a word often hurled as an accusation towards women. Of course, Iris is wrong to leave Isaac restrained, but Isaac manipulated her by taking her on a romantic getaway and acting like a madly in love couple, only to suddenly retract and say he's not interested in anything serious. You might say it's enough to make someone go…crazy. Oh, Hi! is a romantic comedy about contemporary dating, but also the way expectations impact our decision-making. 'Expectation and want are the makeup of every story,' says Brooks, who co-wrote and directed Oh, Hi! 'Expectations are inherent to conflict, and inherent to relationships.' Having Isaac and Iris be misaligned in their expectations reflects modern dating. We've gotten into a system where having wants and needs can be considered too much, and everyone should play it cool and act like they don't care.' When working on the movie, her second feature, Brooks was inspired by Joachim Trier's 2021 film The Worst Person in the World to write a rom-com that had a twist of darkness, that stuck to the genre's conventions while making something authentic about the perils of modern dating. 'I really wanted to have this female character who was unashamed of her desire for a relationship. Often in film and our culture, a man wanting love is considered romantic, and a woman wanting love is considered desperate or embarrassing. I think that's really unfair,' says Brooks. 'I'm leaning into the trope of the crazy woman, so she goes too far, and the moral is that you should never convince someone to be with you. But having expectations of someone you're wanting to date feels like a very normal thing to want.' Trying to find a way to get out of accidentally kidnapping Isaac, Iris recruits her best friend, Max (Geraldine Viswanathan), who brings along her boyfriend, Kenny (John Reynolds). 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When they're dancing in the dream sequence, it's enough to make you think that if circumstances were different, these two may have had a real chance at romance. 'There are so many miscommunications in the movie, and they're never on the same page, but in this dream sequence, they're completely aligned. It felt like an opportunity to see into Isaac's psyche and show that he does like her, and perhaps love her, but something is limiting him.' When Isaac awakes, he puts into action his escape plan. He's still handcuffed to the bed, but he plays it cool, acting like he has no memory of the events. Iris buys it, and uncuffs him. It speaks to her blind optimism and utter belief in the power of love that she could pull off a magical spell to rid Isaac of his memory, potentially even allowing them to start over. Heading downstairs, Isaac suggests making pancakes, but the flour is in the car. 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USA Today
5 hours ago
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This isn't the first time Trump's been parodied on 'South Park'
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'Members Only' (Season 20, Episode 8) In the next episode, "Members Only," President Garrison begins his duties. He gets a Trump-style toupee, tours the Pentagon, is given a book of "military secrets" and gets in a heated phone call with Boris Johnson, the former prime minister of the United Kingdom. 'Put It Down' (Season 21, Episode 2) "Put It Down" highlights the United States' relationship with North Korea and references Trump's presence on social media. In the episode, which aired in September 2017, President Garrison posts aggressive tweets about North Korea, specifically about a nuclear missile fired by the country, which causes car accidents by drivers who are distracted by the posts. 'Doubling Down' (Season 21, Episode 7) "Doubling Down," references the decreasing popularity of Trump during his first presidential administration. The episode aired in November 2017. 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Airing in September 2020, the episodes satirize the United States' handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and civil unrest amid the Black Lives Matter movement. President Garrison makes minor appearances in the episodes, notably using a flamethrower to encourage citizens to vote in the 2020 presidential election. 'Spring Break' (Season 26, Episode 6) "Spring Break" parodies the insurrection of Jan. 6, 2021. In the episode, Mr. Garrison, who freshly lost the 2020 presidential election, goes on a trip with his boyfriend to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The episode aired in March 2023. During the trip, Mr. Garrison starts to slink away to Make America Great Again rallies, despite his boyfriend's pleas not to. The episode ends with Mr. Garrison leading a chant that results in his supporters rushing the U.S. Capitol. Want to watch old episodes? Here's how Old and new episodes of "South Park" are now available for streaming on Paramount+ with a paid subscription. A Paramount+ Essential subscription is $7.99 a month with ads, and a Paramount+ Premium subscription is $12.99 a month without ads. Contributing: Brian Truitt and Brendan Morrow, USA TODAY Greta Cross is a national trending reporter at USA TODAY. Story idea? Email her at gcross@
