Glittery Cath's Edinburgh 2003 Review
Sitting on the train to Edinburgh, I felt little pulses of excitement and anticipation that I usually experience before going to see a band, but I had no idea what treasures the night had in store. To be honest, I am a relitively new fan of the Cruxshadows. My friend Stewart had mentioned them and had played them a few times upon stumbling back to his in the wee small hours of the morning after a night out. One song stuck out in particular and that was Monument. My boyfriend also started to get into CXS after hearing them at Stewart's and copied some of their albums.
After hearing CXS a few more times I decided to buy myself Wishfire, and it hasn't left my cd player since. I was hooked by the entrancing beats, romantic violin and vocals at once empowered and deeply emotional. Yet I still didn't begin to imagine what the experience of seeing CXS live would really be like. The train finally pulled into Waverly Station and I met my boyfriend who had travelled through earlier in the day to get our tickets. We hurried back to the hotel so I could quickly get changed then headed along the Cowgate. We spotted a few 'gothy' looking lads walking infront of us. Not being familiar with Edinburgh we thought our best bet would be to follow them! Low and behold we arrived at the Subway.
The club seemed very small and was two thirds full of an exciting assortment of people. I think I was expecting a larger venue and much more people. When we arrived, CXS were soundchecking. Their attire seemed a little drab compaired to the photographs I had seen, and their soundcheck wasn't particularly enthusiastic. On looking back they must have been holding back so as not to detract from the actual performance. Soon they left the stage and the dj's began and people began to dance. I was amazed at how good the music was and how friendly the people were! The music at my local 'goth/industrial' club gets more obscure as the people get more pretentious!
The lights dimmed and the band and two stunning, scantily clad dancers, now all dressed in beautiful outfits, took to the stage minus Rogue. They stood with their backs to the audience, staring at the floor. A haunting voice came from the back of the club as Rogue began chanting and walking towards the stage, lit by four blue torches in his pockets. I can remember the excitement bubbling inside of me. I was right infront of the stage and could see every detail. After Rogue's somber monologue was over the band burst into action. The rest of the set is one long, glorious blur. I can't even remember the order of songs as I poured every ounce of energy into enjoying the show and feeling truely part of it.
Between each song Rogue would recite long passages. If any other frontman were to do this it would sound deeply self indulgent and highbrow, but the stillness and intensity linked the songs perfectly and contrasted with the energy that the band emmited as soon as they crashed into the next song. As the show progressed I could feel myself being pulled deeper in. Rogue is truely the most spellbinding frontman I have ever seen. He is at once enigmatic and soul bearing. He strode around the crowd making effort to serenade each and every member of the audience, even stopping to highland dance with a starstruck looking gentleman in a CXS t-shirt! The look in each persons eyes after they had been 'touched by Rogue' was one of exstatic pride and satisfaction. Eventually it was my turn to be serenaded, and after having the excuse to stare into his lovely eyes for a few minutes I couldn't help but let a mile wide grin slip onto my face!
Highlights of the rest of the gig included a version of Tears that had the audience yelling back the chorus, a jubilent Return (Coming Home) and a truely heart wrenching Go Away sang from a chair positioned right in the centre of the crowd. Rachel played a gorgeous violin solo that had everyone captivated. Half way through the set Rogue finally broke from the performance to chat to us, and at last the crowd let loose and really enjoyed themselves. Some crazy dancing ensued and all too soon the band left the stage. To the relief of us all they came back and did a storming Marilyn, My Bitterness. Rogue even chose people to dance on stage and I'm proud to say I was one of them! I can understand why a lot of people reviewing CXS live shows liken it to a religious experience as I was well and truely converted!
After the gig my boyfriend and I made our way to the t-shirt stall to buy posters and cds. After I bought my poster I was delighted to see that Stacey was sitting right next to me. I asked her to sign my poster in eyeliner as it was the only writing material I had! A few minutes later Rachel and Chris appeared and I had a chat with them and got their autograph. Eventually Rogue appeared and I remember being totally lost for words! However, he hung around chatting to fans for ages and I eventually had to courage to chat to him. He had already given my boyfriend a hug so I mumbled something about being jelous. He smiled and then gave me two hugs to make up for it! I was utterly made up. The whole band were really approachable and easy to chat to and it was a perfect end to a perfect night.
Glittery Cath's Photos
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