It’s just a sly thumbs up and a wry half smile but it brings perhaps the biggest cheer of the night. Not known for his audience interaction, this small gesture in response to an inquiry of ‘how it’s going Mark’, is the one time Mark Lanegan really lets his guard down. It feels right though. You don’t expect the king of dark melancholic cool to stand there regaling you with anecdotes. He lets the music do the talking.

 

Able and engaging support comes from free wheelin’ veterans, Sean & Zander. They play aching country songs, upbeat Americana and foot stomping rag time. In stark contrast to the brooding silence provided by the man at the top of the bill, Sean and Zander are all about audience participation. For the grand finale, Ain’t Never Gonna Let Me Go, Sean Wheeler invites sections of the audience to sing along and gleefully conducts the willing response. Its proof that you don’t need to know the songs, to enjoy the performance.

 

With the crowd suitably warmed, the sense of anticipation is building in the air; the feeling that something really special is coming. Initially just Mark and guitarist Jeff Fielder take the stage. Opener When You’re Number Isn’t Up, finds the audience instantly transfixed. Lanegan’s gravelly vocal apes Tom Waits in both tone and imagery, with ominous distorted arpeggios providing the perfect accompaniment. Dead On You also works well with this minimalist set up. The aching call of the chorus line against the bassy picked out notes delivering an absorbing and heady spectacle.

 

When the rest of the band takes the stage, the soundscape is immediately changed as multiple layers are added to the mix. They’re short a bass player tonight, taken ill with appendicitis in Newcastle, but with drums and swirling effects laden keys, it does nothing to diminish the sound created on the stage.

 

The band deliver a range of genres, throughout the evening, each song it’s own perfectly formed and self-sufficient world. The doom laden shoegaze of tracks like No Bells’ On Sunday is engaging but’s it’s when they unleash the full hard driven pounding, industrial noise from 2012’s Blue Funeral that they really come to life.

 

The vast soundscapes created by the four bodies on stage are immense and songs like The Gravediggers Song and Quiver Syndrome pull you right in, absorb you, swallow you whole. Hit The City from 2004’s Bubblegum is another huge moment and a massive fan favourite. Over ten years old now, it’s still fresh and the crowd throw themselves into it, giving back the energy coming from the stage.

 

The band disappear from the stage without a word and are back almost instantly for the encore. They open with Revival, a collaboration with Soulsavers from 2007 that saw Mark provide lead vocals. Again it’s a departure from what’s gone before, offering full on distorted gospel. Hands are in the air and the room is in full sway.

 

Watching Mark Lanegan isn’t necessarily an easy experience – and certainly isn’t for casual music fans – but it is an absorbing and fascinating one. The music is carefully crafted, the crowd are passionate and die hard. Mark Lanegan doesn’t need to rely on jokes or anecdotes. This is about becoming immersed within the sound and engaged with the passion coming from the stage. Once that’s happened, you’re in over your head and there’s no going back.