London-born
and ex Star Wars prop-maker, Elliot Gleave aka Example
returned
to Nottingham after a near two year absence in a night that perhaps
spoke greater volumes than he perhaps intended. His last show, a sell
out Capital FM Arena show, this time around was a near sold-out show
at Rock City, which whilst a venue steeped in history, arguably maps
the electronic artist’s slight fall.
Before all criticism or critique, it should be pointed out here that Example delivers all he promises to his fans; from start to finish he gives a rapturous performance to a room that appears to be crammed full of people that adore him. Where other similar artist perhaps fall is in their inability to command a stage flanked by a supporting band. This however proves to be no such problem for Example, who jumps in unison with his sweaty crowd to his opening trio of songs which features Stay Awake with its feel-good, plucked synths and sing-along choruses and Say Nothing and Watch The Sun Come Up. I am immediately struck by his ability to command the attention of all, with the energy from the crowd moving and fluctuating as if attached to a string upon the singer’s finger; the gig is at times deafening.
From
here on in however, we see the obvious failings of Example and
perhaps, why the undeniably charming London man is no longer filling
arenas. Throughout his set, whilst there are moments in which he
provides the things that gained him notoriety in the first place -
infectious chorus and bouncy, dance-inspired electronics - they are
few and far between. Indeed, in the case of All
The Wrong Places,
from new album Live
Life Living we
are met with trashy Clubland-esque electronics which comes across
garish in every sense. The whole ‘Clubland’ aspect of his music
is naturally appealing to many, but in terms of Example, his failure
to sustain his relevance as an electronic pioneer is totally and
utterly unsurprising. Indeed, the gig is riddled with tacky moments
in which Example seemingly rushes through a track so as to reach some
kind of drop to trigger a response from his crowd, and in essence,
these highs are all too easy to execute from an artistic perspective
and all too familiar from a critical perspective.
Example
will always have a career in music, as ultimately he taps into a
genre of music which has always stood the test of time. He has songs
in the form of Kickstarts
and
Changed
The Way You Kissed Me
that
will always bring the crowds in, and indeed, are enjoyable in this
particular outing. Ultimately however, his change from pioneer to
reactionary in his music will confine him within an unambitious cycle
that unfortunately, can only get worse.
Words - Matt Taylor
Example Official