Written and Photographed by Sophia Varoumas
The UK’s very own, Modern English spent the night playing After the Snow, in its entirety, the band’s second studio album, initially released in May of 1982, on Wednesday, September 7 at Ardmore Music Hall, with special guests, Bootblacks.
Modern English commemorates its 40th anniversary of I Melt With You this year. The album not only leads them into mainstream exposure but permanence in pop culture, unlike their post-punk counterparts.
Modern English is Robbie Grey on vocals, Gary McDowell on guitar, Stephan Walker on keyboards, Mick Conroy on bass, and Roy Martin on drums.
Leave it to the mainstream to take a dark love song about a nuclear holocaust, and turn it into an anthem of love and hope. Isn’t that beautiful? How the interpretation of the masses can ultimately alter the artist’s creative idea. The band’s interpretation of taking this dark idea of two people making love and melting together during an apocalypse and creating a catchy pop song is artistry. This single became an entire brand, with its worldwide timelessness and universally relatable lyrics, making it quite possibly one of the most well-known songs of our lifetime, by being infiltrated into commercials, movies, etc. Not many songs reach that type of audience. That’s a mainstream wave any band may (secretly) wish they could ride for 40 years. That’s the beauty of art in motion, an evolution from an artist’s pencil to the masses.
Modern English’s performance not only included the songs “Carry Me Down,” “Dawn Chorus,” and “Life in the Gladhouse” they also included songs from their 2016 release “Take Me to the Trees,” “Moonbeam,” and “Hands Across the Sea.” After playing “Face of Wood,” Grey mentioned that he hoped the crowd enjoyed the exclusive performance because that was the 3rd time in 20 years that the band had performed the track. They closed the first night of their tour in America with “Tables Turning” before ending the evening with “After the Snow.”
Grey’s voice is as young and beautiful as ever. To that, ding dong, darling! So, seeing the American leg of their 2022 tour with Bootblacks is imperative to your musical bucket list. Getting chances to hear albums in their entirety is a rarity. These gentlemen are giving you a chance to do it in an intimate setting, with lots of cheap merch! It’s an 80s music lover’s gotta-go show. Especially with their opening act, Bootblacks. This post-punk band from Brooklyn, NY, will give you all the David Gahan of Depeche Mode and Ian Curtis of Joy Division goth, industrial, and electronica vibes you didn’t know you needed in your playlists.
