Shot! Level 42 live at the Brighton Dome
Celebrating the 40th anniversary of one of their biggest hits, The Sun Goes Down (Living It Up), the jazz funk pioneers were in Brighton for a show that delivered sonically, but was sadly lacking in spectacle
Founded by bass player extraordinaire Mark King on his native Isle of Wight in 1979, and named after a reference in the novel The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy, Level 42 have sold over 30 million albums worldwide and enjoyed 11 Top 20 albums in the UK as well as 20 Top 40 singles. That’s some success story.
I last saw them back in 1987 when they played no less than 8 nights at London’s Wembley Arena. That same tour also saw them play two shows at the Brighton Centre. Since those heady days their trajectory has flatligned with their last album of original material released seventeen years ago. And that’s a mystery.
Over the years the band’s line-up has changed regularly, so much so that today the only other original member alongside Mark King, is keyboard player Mike Lindup. In truth, those two were always Level 42’s key members, with Lindup’s falsetto contrasting with King’s deep tenor. But it’s King’s thumb-slapping bass which has always defined their sound. Without it Level 42 would not be so immediately distinctive.
That being said, it could be argued that they’re also a bit of a one trick pony, with King’s bass being the dominant sound of all the band’s output. And across 90 minutes there is a definite feeling that their songs sound very similar to each other. This feeling of repetition isn’t helped by their live production, or rather lack of it.
Sonically, the four-piece band sound slick, especially when the three man horn section — one on sax, one on trumpet and one on trombone — add vibrancy and power to most of the setlist. But visually, Level 42 fall short. Indeed, their only nod to visuals is they were all wearing Hawaiian shirts. Beyond that, there’s nothing: no video screens, no staging whatsoever. And for a band, who let’s face it, are left wanting when it comes to flamboyance, it makes for a rather dull watch. Even the lighting was lacklustre.
The reality is, when it comes to production, Level 42 make zero effort to put on a visually engaging show. And that’s surprising in an age when video screens are de rigour for any major artist worth their salt.
On the subject of stagecraft, having done this for over four decades, you’d think Mark King, who’s just turned 65, would have developed a more outgoing stage presence. He comes across as an uncomfortable frontman, barely saying anything between songs and mostly singing with his eyes closed.
For me, the days when you went to a concert just to watch an established act play their music is long gone. Today, it has to be an audio visual experience and while Level 42 delivered the former with aplomb, they failed miserably with the latter. As an example of their visual ambivalence, even one of Lindup’s keyboards was just resting on its well-worn travel case. There’s not even a Level 42 logo in sight. Surely, they can do better than that?
Whether any in the sold-out audience cared, I don’t know. Most I suspect were there to relive their younger days and were content just to hear the hits. They were rewarded with a performance peppered with 80s bangers, most of which have stood the test of time. Two things strike me, first why the reluctance to be experimental with the hits which are delivered in a perfunctory, as-you’d-expect-them style and why did the hit-writing completely dry up after such a run of successful tunes?
It’s telling that no less than eight of the evening’s career-spanning seventeen-song setlist came from two of their earliest albums. Highlights included their debut single Love Games, as well as Running In The Family, Something About You and of course The Sun Goes Down.
Listening to tracks like that, there’s no question about Level 42’s influence on jazz-funk. Indeed, two of my current favourites, Parcels and Jungle, owe much of their sound to them and I’m sure there are plenty of others as well.
Judging by the amount of tribute and legacy acts that are touring right now — and to give an idea of their preponderance, between September and the end of 2023, no less than one third of all the gigs at Brighton’s Concorde 2 are by tribute acts — there’s an almost insatiable appetite for nostalgia among concert-goers.
That means for a band like Level 42 now is an ideal time to be on the road. It’s just a shame that they have no new material to offer and — it seems — no ambition to be anything other than their own tribute act.
Setlist: Almost There | To Be With You Again | Running In The Family | Micro Kid | The Sun Goes Down | Children Say | Heathrow | Love Meeting Love | Kansas City Milkman | World Machine | Love Games | Starchild | Something About You | Lessons In Love | | Heaven In My Hands | The Chinese Way | Hot Water
Behind the shot: These images were taken using the Olympus OM-D E-M1 with the M Zuiko 1.8 75mm lens and the camera’s built-in digital zoom. As it was a seated audience there was no photo pit, meaning I was only allowed to shoot from the side aisles or from the back of the venue. As a result, I couldn’t get the close-up portraits I typically aim for. Photographed in Brighton on 24 October 2023
About the author: Based in Sussex-by-the-Sea, on England’s south coast, Gary is a creative writer and image-maker. He specialises in creating out of the ordinary portraits of musicians and people with interesting faces, as well as photographing some of the world’s finest flowers and gardens, not forgetting an array of automotive exotica.
On the writing side, he has used his research skills to author deep dives into some noteworthy songs beginning with Bryan Ferry’s ‘These Foolish Things’ ‘Ghost Town’ by The Specials, ‘Real Wild Child’ by Ivan and ‘All The Young Dudes’ by Mott the Hoople.
He has also written a biography of Robert Palmer and the stories behind Whitesnake’s blatant Led Zep rip-off, ‘Still Of The Night’, Harry Styles’ anthem to positivity, ‘Treat People With Kindness’ and the little known Queen track ‘Cool Cat.’
Most recently, Gary has penned the fascinating story behind George Orwell’s dystopian novel ‘Nineteen Eighty-Four’ as well as ‘Believe It Or Not’ a look into the rise of fake news and his latest essay ‘Nadir: How the cost of living crisis has brought so many in broken Britain to the depths of despair.’
All these can be found here on Medium, along with his reviews of gigs and events and chats with musicians including the likes of Royal Blood, Joe Satriani and Wolf Alice.
