Gomez – June 20th – Ogden Theatre

Photos by Tim Dwenger

British band Gomez stopped by the Ogden Theatre last week to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their debut album Bring It On.  The album, which won a Mercury Prize in September of 1998, was a fixture in my life when I first moved from the East Coast to Colorado and this show brought back the memories – and it didn’t hurt that my show buddy on this night was one of my roommates from those first few years in the Centennial state.

From the get go, tunes like “Get Miles” and “Whippin’ Piccadilly” took me back.  There is a certain quality that emanates from the Gomez songs that is unique to this quintet.  While the slightly nasal tone of some of their vocals may not appeal to everyone, their music has so many layers that it seems to envelop you as you stand in front of the stage and, for me, that is always a welcome feeling.  While the acoustic guitars of “Get Myself Arrested” prompted a massive sing-along, the piano driven “Bubble Gum Years” flirted with Melancholic Pop before the feedback drenched “Rie’s Wagon” closed out the Bring It On portion of the evening.

The rest of the set featured some gems from the Gomez catalog including a stellar take on one of my favorites, “Shot Shot,” as well “Notice” which was dedicated to a friend of the band in the crowd.  As the show pushed past the 90 minute mark the band built to a blistering wall of sound that mesmerized and amazed many in the crowd.  While they haven’t released an album of new material since 2011, it was great to see a band 20 years into their career still firing on all cylinders.  Now, here’s hoping that a new album is in the works!