Review: Mesh – 'Live At Neues Gewandhaus Leipzig'

 

MESH
'Live At Neues Gewandhaus Leipzig'
DEPENDENT

Bristol based electronic act Mesh have enjoyed an enviable career that has seen them build both an impressive discography and live reputation. Their latest album is a sonic vindication of over a quarter of a century's worth of great electronic music with a stunning live album captured at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, Germany in October 2015. Together with a 65 piece orchestra as part of the Gothic Meets Classic festival, the band saw their classic tracks given new arrangements by classical producer and pianist Conrad Oleak with stunning results.

The album includes five songs from the live set; 'Just Leave Us Alone', 'Only Better', 'Save Everyone', 'You Couldn't See This Coming', and 'Taken For Granted' given a symphonic makeover that is both cinematic and melancholic, capturing the essence of the originals and elevating to new levels. What is most notable other than the strength of the original compositions and how they hold up to the new arrangements is the majestic vocal performance turned in by Mark Hockings who once again shows of the full range of his talent.

The album also includes three additional songs recorded in the studio; ’There Must Be A Way’, ‘Can You Mend Hearts’, 'Before The World Ends’, which utilise a smaller ensemble with piano. While a little more intimate and stripped-back in their construction from the live recordings they nevertheless retain the cinematic quality and heightened melancholy of the live set.

The production is crisp and beautiful. The live recording is incredibly high quality with the acoustic sound of the room and the crowd noise being the reminder it is a live performance. But this isn't lost when the album transitions into the new tracks, save for the lack of crowd noise at the end of the songs you'd be forgiven for thinking it was recorded as part of the original performance.

This is a stunning example of electronic/rock music being lovingly transposed into the classical genre. The Gothic Meets Classic festival has already yielded some unexpected albums. But Mesh's 'Live At Neues Gewandhaus Leipzig' feels like one of the first to fully reach it's full potential. While this might not have the greatest appeal beyond the band's most hardcore fans, it is nevertheless a stunning album in its own right.  

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Mesh To Release New Live/Classical Album 'LIVE AT NEUES GEWANDHAUS LEIPZIG'

When the Bristol based electronic act MESH received a standing ovation from almost 2000 attendees
at the end of their sold-out concert at the Gewandhaus in Leipzig, Germany in October 2015, it marked the conclusion of a truly remarkable event. Together with a 65 piece orchestra, they had performed under the heading ‘Gothic Meets Classic’ and convinced even the most hardened of sceptics with their performance. The quartet’s melancholic compositions were a perfect fit for the new arrangements by classical producer and pianist Conrad Oleak, while Mark Hockings proved once again that he is one of the best live vocalists in the electronic pop and rock scenes.

Five songs were recorded live in superb audio quality by sound engineer Jacky Lehmann, with Oleak
responsible for mixing and mastering, including a 5.1 surround sound mix for an audio DVD. Under his aegis, MESH also recorded three additional songs in the studio (’There Must Be A Way’, ‘Can You Mend Hearts’, Before The World Ends’) utilising a smaller ensemble with piano, thereby presenting a full album of high quality classical recordings. The Dependent label does justice to this sonic opulence by releasing the glorious end product on CD, a limited edition 180 gram vinyl LP in a gatefold sleeve  and a special ’Großer Saal’ collectors box set edition that contains the CD, the audio DVD, the LP  plus a 48 page 12” x 12” hardcover art book, a softcover book that includes the sheet music and a hand-signed and numbered certificate of authenticity.  

TRACKLISTING
1 Just Leave Us Alone (live)
2 Only Better (live)
3 Save Everyone (live)
4 You Couldn’t See This Coming (live) 
5 Taken For Granted (live) 
6 Can You Mend Hearts? 
7 There Must Be A Way
8 Before This World Ends

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Review: Mesh - 'Automation Baby'

MESH 

'Automation Baby' 

DEPENDENT 

The duo of Mark Hockings and Richard Silverthorn have created a legacy in Mesh that is truly enviable. Their back catalogue of electro/synthpop albums has been of a consistently high quality for over twenty years now, which has sometimes seen them become victims of their own success. And it is this that their fifth full-length studio album, 'Automation Baby', must measure up against. A daunting task by anyone's estimation, yet Hockings and Silverthorn still manage to breathe new life into their sound.

It is apparent from the the first bars of 'Just Leave Us Alone' that they are on top form as they demonstrate that the past three years since 'A Perfect Solution' has been time well spent. Playing-off the bands penchant for anthemic choruses and memorable melodies, the up-tempo, energetic style propelled by Hockings' strong vocal delivery is both infectious and emotive giving 'Automation Baby' both universal club appeal as well as a lot of live potential.

Songs like the lead single 'Born To Lie' as well as 'Automation Baby', 'This Is The Time', 'Flawless' and 'When The City Breathes' are instant hits that draw from the band's classic sound and will no doubt become integral to the band's live show. While the likes of the two 'AB Incidental' tracks, 'The Way I Feel' and 'You Couldn't See This Coming' simply display the skilful and emotionally evocative writing and execution befitting of two veterans of this calibre.

The album, as you'd come to expect is flawlessly mixed and produced. But best of all, it highlights that Mesh are not afraid to mix more complex arrangements with commercial viability. As a result the album feels a lot more mature and works on a lot of levels so that across the fourteen tracks (clocking up over an hour in total length) the band constantly hold the listener's interest.

Mesh have always been ambitious and on 'Automation Baby' they fully realise their goals in creating not only one of the strongest albums in their own discography, but in the electro-pop genre as a whole.

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