Creeper: Misery Returns Home

I was lucky enough to be at the first of four intimate shows that Creeper played at The Joiners in Southampton last week. It was a night full of magic that has left me in a haze ever since. Each evening the band would be playing a different setlist and at the show I was at was the fan selected setlist, which is the type of show that only comes around a few times in a band’s career. I knew that this set would therefore be full of older cuts from Creeper’s first album ‘Eternity, In Your Arms’ as well as some fan favourites from newer material.

This would be my first time seeing the band perform live and Creeper are a band known for their theatrics, concept albums and energy filled performances. After the release of ‘Sex, Death & The Infinite Void’ last year and ‘American Noir’ last month, I was super excited to see how these songs would translate live as well.

The Joiners in Southampton is one of my favourite music venues, I’ve only been there a few times but the shows are always incredible there, and to see Creeper who are from Southampton performing there was not something I thought I would have the chance to see. I am super grateful to the venue and band for putting on these shows as they have meant a lot to everyone who has attended.

Miss. Vincent were the support band for the night, and I was drawn in by their enigmatic performance and will definitely be listening to their debut album when it drops next month. I really enjoyed their stage presence and the way they held the crowd, even only being a support band. Stand out songs from their set for me were ‘Heresy’, ‘Gravity’ and ‘Madeline’ so I would really recommend giving them a listen if you are a fan of punk glam rock.

The atmosphere in the crowd leading up to Creeper coming onstage was full of excitement, something I will never get tired of, everyone had been waiting so long for this show and we all knew it was going to be a special night. Bounding with energy Creeper start with Hiding With Boys, a staple from their first album, and we were off.

Will Gould captured the audience completely with his stage presence and persona, who isn’t dissimilar to Gerard Way, with the way he moves to make sure everyone in the audience is having a great time. Everything was sounding incredible, from the soaring guitars and fast paced rhythm section to Gould and Hannah Hermione Greenwood’s vocals melding together perfectly. This was a show.

‘Cyanide’ saw the audience go ballistic at the first song of the night from SD&IV, and then the band just played song after song full of energy and charisma. To me, the slight change in set came by ‘Napalm Girls’, a fan favourite from SD&IV, and the show seemed to get even better as the band interacted with audience members who were crowdsurfing and trying to make everyone feel welcome with ‘Down Below’. I was feeling complete warmth all night, and not just from the sweat, but from the magic of Creeper.

‘Ghosts Over Calvary’ saw Hannah Hermione Greenwood take centre stage for the first time and I was completely captivated and blown away by her performance. Usually we see Greenwood singing softer songs, but I loved this. She is probably one of my favourite vocalists at the moment, so it would be great to see more of this in the future of Creeper. Then came ‘Midnight’ the lead single from ‘American Noir’, which saw Gould and Greenwood at the front together and brining the roof down. These songs were a highlight of the performance for me and I loved how much everyone on the stage was giving to these new songs.

My favourite moment of the whole show had to be ‘Misery’. A classic song from the Creeper catalogue, and one that I’ve listened to on late nights countless times, especially over the last year. This song means a lot to me, and many others who are a fan of the band, so to finally see it being performed live was just incredible. It was a performance of love from the band to the audience and from the audience to the band, and a moment that I won’t forget for a long time.

The set ended with the audience pick of ‘Astral Projection’ which was performed after the band asked for another suggestion, and ‘Annabelle’, one of the stand out songs Creeper released from SD&IV. What an ending it was. Jumping and singing along to that chorus with the whole crowd was amazing.

This may have been an intimate show for Creeper, one with slightly less theatrics than usual, however it was a show that you could see meant a lot to the band as well as the audience. It was a magical night, one that I’m not sure could happen in the same way again, but I for one will definitely be going to see Creeper again if I get the chance.