Review by: Val Tapia
In spite of the record heat of 109 degrees on June 13, there were 2500 fans of 1980s British new wave music who were perfectly fine with braving the warm temps at the gorgeous Mesa Amphitheatre.
Truth be told though, by the time The Human League took the stage at 8:40 p.m. for its 75-minute, 14-song set with The Sound of The Crowd (from 1981’s groundbreaking Dare) it wasn’t too bad weather-wise.
In fact, Dare is widely considered to be “ground zero” for the Second British Invasion that would eventually rule the first two years of MTV, which also commenced in 1981.
Yes, MTV is celebrating 45 years on the air in 2026. Make no mistake though, today’s version of the channel doesn’t even come remotely close to the channel’s origins. Just stating the obvious good readers.
Back onstage, lead vocalist Philip Oakey and co-lead vocalists Susan Ann Sulley and Joann Catherall were in solid form throughout the night. Even though Sulley conceded that she didn’t have as much energy due to the “scorching heat”. She quipped, “I don’t know how the people in Mesa stand it this hot. But we thank you so much for coming out anyway”.
Overall, the sound was highly polished and the band delivered a visually crisp production. It was a clean stage design that translated pretty well outdoors, all things considered.
Of course, the hits kept coming. Songs like Mirror Man and especially (Keep Feeling) Fascination got the audience off the lawn and dancing when the mood struck.
The material played on Saturday night was faithful to the original studio recordings by-and-large. Which is exactly what the audience expected, and understandably so.
In other words, spontaneity wasn’t the tour’s strong suit. Nor did it have to be, quite frankly.
Human certainly received a warm response from the fans, mainly because it was a comeback hit for the band in 1986. Oakey looked back on the track, written by R&B songwriting team Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and candidly said to the audience that it “saved our career” at the time.
One drawback to the show was a lack of reserved seats, which the Amp can and does incorporate for certain shows. This should have been one of them, and the blame lies with promoter Luckyman Concerts just as much as the Amphitheatre itself. Hopefully, both will do better next time for a future 80s-era tour held there.
Alison Moyet went down surprisingly well, who Oakey even acknowledged is a tough act to follow onstage. With songs from her days in Yazoo as well as a few solo songs, her voice has remained in fine form. That said, the song that brought the crowd to its feet was Situation without a doubt.
Soft Cell was musically the “darkest” on the bill, or at least on the surface they were. To their credit, they also played a couple of new songs. Danceteria and Nostalgia Machine stand up alongside past classics like Memorabilia and Loving You, Hating Me.
But fairly or unfairly, the fans were really waiting for Tainted Love that was mashed up with Where Did Our Love Go.
Bottom line: most of the fans went home satisfied.
The final verdict? Three out of five stars.
