Blur's Alex James brings an orchestra and classic hits to Nottingham on his small run of theatre shows.
The night was always going to be amazing when you combine the genius of Alex James with Britpop classics and inspirations alongside a live orchestra and that is exactly what this show is, a showcase of legendary singalong songs from a universally loved era of music.
As the set began we were treated to a melody of classics ranging from The Beatles, The Who and The Kinks to name a few, before starting the night properly with Ocean Colour Scenes 'The Riverboat Song' in which Simon Fowler joined the band on stage for.
Followed by an appearance from Saffron Sprackling of Republica for 'Ready to Go' and later on an appearance from Gary Stringer from Reef for 'Place Your Hands'
Alex James took a moment to appreciate Manchester, a city in which has brought so much incredible music, with songs followed by Oasis, The Stone Roses and Joy Division.
As the night was hitting full flow and full singalongs from the crowd, the sound suddenly cut out, and within moments as the stage panicked, the audience burst into 'Parklife' and you could see the whole crew just smile, and slowly the orchestra, the singers Alex himself and the rest of the band played the chorus with no speakers ringing out, but helping the crowd along with the song.
When everything came back on, Alex James told the crowd that, that moment was the highlight of the entire tour and that's exactly what the tour is about. Bringing everybody together for a singalong.
The night ended with Pulp hits 'Common People' and 'Disco 2000' Oasis 'Don't Look Back in Anger' and an encore of 'The Universal' by blur. The night was as incredible as you could have imagined, and honestly I can't wait to see the show again later on in the year during the summer shows.
My personal highlight of the night, aside from the crowd singing parklike when everything cut off, was hearing the orchestra play 'Bitter Sweet Symphony' by The Verve. Growing up in a household that listened to the band a lot, that song just hit in a different way.
If you get chance to see one of the shows over the summer I massively encourage you to see it, from start to finish its one big party and full of some of the best of British music.