Weekend at MGM Music Hall Fenway: The 1975 brings their very best
Frontman Matty Healy put his very bones into each and every track, leaving nothing but cigarette smoke and gobs of spit on that stage.
Credit: Adriana Arguijo-Gutierrez
November 13, 2022
Boston was lucky enough to enjoy the presence of The 1975 not once, but twice this weekend at MGM Grand Fenway marking the second stop on “The 1975 At Their Very Best” North America tour.
The venue buzzed with anticipation from a crowd dripping in dramatic eyeliner, ripped fishnets and lookalikes of the band’s frontman, Matty Healy.
The set design made the show feel like a theater production, which it basically was with two distinct stories being told. The first featuring newer music from the band’s current creative era and then a switch back to the mid-2010s, for the second half of the set list.
The set was constructed to look like the inside of a house, fit with a spiral staircase and roof––both of which Healy scaled at different points throughout the show–– multiple levels so band members could be seen, and old-timey TVs. The box televisions set about the stage switched from live footage of Healy’s on-stage antics to news clips and, at one point, a video of President Joe Biden, whose eyes Healy stared intensely into.
As the band transitioned to the second half of their show, Healy was left alone on stage with an acoustic guitar to croon “Be My Mistake.” Silent tears flowed in the crowd as the singer proclaimed, “‘cause I get lonesome sometimes.” His raw vocals on this track sent shivers up and down spines across the arena while eerie men in white coats dissected the set behind him.
He finished the song and was left alone on stage once again to writhe on a black leather couch with a cigarette and flask. He then proceeded to get up, take off his shirt to do push ups (21!), and finally crawl through one of the box TVs on the stage. The over-the-top theatrical moment was met with trembling excitement from the crowd as if they too were stepping through a portal to go back in time with him.
Healy’s return to stage saw him opting for his classic black slacks, button down and skinny tie, and thus the throwback half of the show began.
The band hit all of the quintessential crowd-pleasers, including “Robbers” and “Somebody Else” which were met with what sounded like the entire arena belting every word.
At Healy’s command the entire arena jumped to the chorus of “The Sound” and in a moment of sheer euphoria, it felt like the pit was floating on cotton candy-colored air.
The band closed out the show with an unhinged version of “Give Yourself A Try” and, to many fans’ dismay, did not satisfy our hunger for an encore. Instead, they took the final track at breakneck speed, leaving the crowd on an incredible high. They exited the stage only after Healy had enough time to collapse to the floor, nursing an oxygen mask, recovering from the highly energetic song.
Healy briefly explained the set, saying that he often sits in his house consuming and creating material and the show felt as if it was constructed to give audiences a glimpse into their creative process.
On top of that, the intimacy of the venue and set gave the show a thrum of unbridled sexuality, most of which emanated from the unabashed frontman who made a slew of provocative comments concerning what he spends his time doing while home alone.
While Healy maintained an erratic attitude during the breaks between tracks, it was obvious that the entire band’s heart and soul went into the show. Each song was played masterfully and with so much raw emotion that it was hard to keep it together, especially during the more heart-wrenching ones.
Healy put his very bones into each and every track, leaving nothing but cigarette smoke and gobs of spit on that stage. “The 1975 At Their Very Best” was truly not an exaggeration.
