Midge Ure
Thursday, 24 Oct 2024, 9:20 PM – 10:40 PM
Zagreb / Tvornica kulture / Croatia
Slovene version (for an English version please scroll down the bar):
Some concerts you genuinely don’t expect in our corner of the world. The incredible James ‘Midge’ Ure — Scottish singer-songwriter, the unmistakable voice of legendary new wave sensation Ultravox, OBE holder, Ivor Novello, Grammy and BASCAP award winner, owner of countless gold and platinum albums, producer of Band Aid and Live Aid, one of the most recognisable vocalists of all time — and we’re still leaving things out — made his very first career appearance in the Croatian capital Zagreb on 24 October 2024! Anyone who knows him and knows the world of Ultravox knew exactly what to expect.
This was one of those evenings that are getting rarer and rarer in these times — in 2024 and the years that follow. An iconic musician who co-defined something on the Himalayan scale when it comes to the image of ’80s pop rock stepped into the club setting of the Croatian Tvornica kulture. The audience hadn’t forgotten him. The venue was well and truly packed by 9:15 PM, when the steely Mr Midge Ure — the nickname ‘Midge’ comes from reading the name Jim backwards — took the stage of this excellent club we always love coming back to.
The crowd at Tvornica that night was exactly the audience that lived through its teenage years with Midge’s music and Ultravox’s in the ’80s — ladies and gentlemen in their fifties-plus as far as the eye could see. There were, of course, some much younger faces who could have been their sons and daughters, except the usual dynamic was flipped. This time the fifty-somethings were pushing to the front; the youngsters were watching from the back!
This concert was a perfect — brilliant, really — reflection of everything that absolute minimalism can bring to a stage. It’s that very minimalism that literally strips you back to a bare point, returning you to the pure act of perceiving music through your ears. To the primary reception of sound by means of the mechanoreceptor organs and nothing else. And that elemental directness is everything when it comes to the raw, primal connection between a listener and a performer’s artistry. A quartet, barely equipped beyond instruments and microphones, lit by a handful of flickering sources from which a few red and blue beams barely pierced the thick fog, zero backdrop — something neither of the authors of this review had ever encountered at this venue in all their years visiting (eds. note). All in black, not a shaft of white light to show their faces. Which is why the photo gallery from tonight is — forgive the expression — absolutely bloody worthless. But, as said! Music takes centre stage. That is its purpose, and it needs no visual effects: stripped of them, it stirs the listener’s imagination and awakens emotions and passions in the most honest way possible. That’s exactly what Midge’s ’80s crowd came for that evening.
Midge and the band kicked off with two tracks from his solo career. First came Call of the Wild — a non-album single from 1986, written during the sessions for debut album “The Gift” but released in the gap between that and the follow-up “Answers To Nothing” (1988). A minor single commercially, but with an infectious chorus melody that could easily have sat on any of the most beloved Ultravox albums. It woke the crowd immediately and got them swaying — with real drive behind it, since Midge’s black Gibson (which brought to mind his brief stint with Thin Lizzy) was anything but shy in the mix, carving out plenty of space with its incisive phrasing alongside those churning, rock-solid bass lines. It gave the whole show a raw undertone of rudimentary punk energy — the exact point from which Ultravox emerged at the end of the ’70s. Then came Dear God, the sole single from his second album “Answers To Nothing”, which confirmed that Midge in his mature years has held on to every bit of his vocal form. The voice served him brilliantly throughout, not a shred lost of everything that elevated him to the altar of essential ’80s pop artistry. Things really ignited when “Rage In Eden” classic I Remember (Death in the Afternoon) appeared in the set — the first proper Ultravox shrapnel of the night — followed by the much-anticipated Visage hit Fade To Gray: an absolute tribute to the late Steve Strange.
There was simply no escaping the magic the quartet conjured on that stage. A voice chiselled and sharp, a driving groove that grabbed you. Midge didn’t talk much during the concert. He thanked the crowd from the heart a few times, mentioned the immense honour of playing Zagreb for the first time in his career — but otherwise the music was the only thing in focus. He really detonated in the mid-eight passages, where the guitar, working those carefully chosen minimalist tones, squealed and thundered all the harder for it.
Where do you even begin. Hit after hit. Solo ’80s material including No Regrets — his first solo single, an adaptation of Tom Rush’s original. The focus was, of course, the Ultravox anthems: Passing Strangers, All Stood Still, New Europeans (an absolute surprise from the “Vienna” album). Then mid-set, If I Was blew things wide open — by far Ure’s biggest hit, whose solo-career success is said to have contributed to the eventual break-up of Ultravox. We glanced at each other. Is this already the end? He usually saves that one for the finale. But no worries. From that point to the close it was an unbroken run of the biggest Ultravox hits, led by Vienna — sung back at full volume by the whole of Tvornica — followed in quick succession by the long-awaited Hymn, The Voice (Midge switching to keys), the non-Lament crowd pleaser Love’s Great Adventure, and of course Dancing With Tears In My Eyes, which closed the main set with the swing of one enormous atmospheric crescendo.
“Lament” ended the main set — and with the “Lament” album we stayed for the encore too! Worth noting that this outstanding Ultravox album was reissued just this past September in an expanded vinyl deluxe edition (with a Wilson remix)! One Small Day closed the show. I was at least hoping for a Reap The Wild Wind or We Came To Dance, Visions In Blue, The Thin Wall, Sleepwalk, Mine For Life… Just the one encore then. But all the sweeter for it. The end.
There’s still a stack of hits up the sleeve of this extraordinary musician — but time is the eternal executioner at gigs like this, and it always wins in the end. The concert flew by in a flash. Great sound, great form from the legendary Midge Ure and his band. He and his musicians even came out after the show to meet the fans who had been waiting for Midge at Tvornica kulture with all the right kit. He chatted with them well into the night. It was one of those unforgettable concerts where only the message of musical art truly speaks out, and with force — touching each heart in its own particular way. It doesn’t get deeper or more genuine than this. To have fully satisfied everyone that evening, Midge would have had to play a three-hour concert in two ninety-minute halves. Hats off to a legend! Here’s hoping this was not our last encounter with this subtle, extraordinary Scottish artist!
English version:
Some concerts you genuinely don’t expect in our part of the world. The incredible James ‘Midge’ Ure — Scottish singer-songwriter, the unmistakable voice of legendary new wave sensation Ultravox, OBE holder, Ivor Novello, Grammy and BASCAP award winner, owner of countless gold and platinum albums, producer of Band Aid and Live Aid, and one of the most recognisable vocalists of all time — touched down in the Croatian capital Zagreb on 24 October 2024, for the very first time in his career! Anyone who knows him and knows what Ultravox is all about knew exactly what to expect.
The crowd was exactly the audience that had lived through their teenage years with his music and Ultravox’s in the ’80s. Ladies and gentlemen in their fifties-plus as far as the eye could see. There were, of course, some much younger faces who could have been their sons and daughters, except the usual dynamic was reversed. This time the older fans were in the front rows, while the youngsters watched from the back!
This concert was a perfect — brilliant, even — reflection of everything that absolute minimalism can deliver on a stage. That minimalism literally brings you to a bare point, returning you to the pure act of perceiving music through your ears alone. To the primary reception of sound by means of the mechanoreceptor organs and nothing else. And that elemental simplicity is essential when it comes to the raw, first-contact connection between a listener and a performer’s artistry. A quartet, barely equipped beyond instruments and microphones, lit by a few light sources from which some red and blue beams barely pierced the thick fog — without a single backdrop. In black outfits, not a shaft of white light to illuminate their faces. Music comes to the fore. That is its purpose, and it needs no visual effects — without them it stirs the listener’s imagination and awakens emotions and passions in the most honest way possible. That’s exactly what Midge’s ’80s audience came for that evening.
Midge and the band got off to a flying start with two tracks from his solo career. The first was Call of the Wild — a non-album single from 1986, written during the sessions for debut album “The Gift” but released in the period between that and the follow-up “Answers To Nothing” (1988). A minor single commercially, but with an infectious chorus melody that could easily have sat on one of the most beloved Ultravox albums. It woke the crowd immediately and got them swaying — with real drive behind it, since Midge’s black Gibson (calling to mind his brief stint with Thin Lizzy) carved out plenty of space in the mix with its incisive phrasing, alongside those churning, powerful bass lines. This gave the whole show a raw undertone of rudimentary punk energy — the exact starting point from which Ultravox emerged at the end of the ’70s. And then came Dear God, the sole single from his second album “Answers To Nothing”!
Midge has held on to every bit of his vocal prowess in his mature years. The voice served him brilliantly throughout the concert and the man has genuinely not lost a shred of everything that elevated him to the altar of ’80s pop artistry. The crowd really lit up when “Rage In Eden” classic I Remember (Death in the Afternoon) arrived in the set — the first proper Ultravox shrapnel of the night — followed by the much-anticipated Visage hit Fade To Gray: an absolute tribute to the late Steve Strange.
There was simply no escaping the magic the quartet conjured on that stage. A voice chiselled and unwavering, an irresistible drive and groove. Midge didn’t say much during the concert. He thanked the crowd from the heart a couple of times, mentioned the immense honour of playing Zagreb for the first time in his career — but otherwise the music was the only thing in focus. He really detonated in the mid-eight passages, where the guitar, carefully working its minimalist tones, squealed and thundered all the harder for it.
Hit after hit. Solo ’80s material including No Regrets — his first solo single, an adaptation of Tom Rush’s original. The focus was, of course, the Ultravox anthems: Passing Strangers, All Stood Still, New Europeans (an absolute surprise from the “Vienna” album). But the brilliant atmosphere was blown wide open mid-set by If I Was — by far Ure’s biggest hit, whose solo success is said to have contributed to the eventual break-up of Ultravox. We glanced at each other. Is this the end already? He usually saves that one for the final stretch. But no worries. From that point to the close, the biggest Ultravox hits kept coming, led by Vienna — sung back at full volume by the whole of Tvornica — followed by the long-awaited Hymn, The Voice (Midge switching to keys), the non-Lament crowd pleaser Love’s Great Adventure, and of course Dancing With Tears In My Eyes, which closed the main set with the swing of one enormous atmospheric crescendo.
Encore! One Small Day closed the show — and we stayed with “Lament” for that too! Just the one encore then. But so much sweeter for it. The end. I was hoping for at least a Reap The Wild Wind or We Came To Dance, Visions In Blue, The Thin Wall, Sleepwalk, Mine For Life, …
There’s still a stack of hits up the sleeve of this extraordinary musician, but time is the eternal executioner at gigs like this and it always wins in the end. The concert flew by in a flash. Great sound, great form from the legendary Midge Ure and his band. He and his musicians even came out after the show to meet the fans waiting for him at Tvornica kulture — and he chatted with them well into the night. It was one of those unforgettable concerts where only the message of musical art truly speaks out, and with force — touching each heart in its own particular way. It doesn’t get deeper or more genuine than that. To fully satisfy everyone that evening, Midge would have had to play a three-hour show in two ninety-minute halves. Hats off to a legend! Here’s hoping this was not our last encounter with this quietly extraordinary Scottish artist!
Authors: Edita Klemen & Aleš Podbrežnik
Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik & Edita Klemen
Setlist:
1. Call of the Wild
2. Dear God
3. I Remember (Death in the Afternoon)
4. Fade to Grey
5. Passing Strangers
6. No Regrets
7. New Europeans
8. Supernatural
9. All Stood Still
10. If I Was
11. Vienna
12. Love’s Great Adventure
13. Hymn
14. The Voice
15. Dancing With Tears in My Eyes
—encore—
16. One Small Day
