“Always remember, music is a competition”, Marcus Mumford jokingly declares to a sold out crowd at London’s O2 Arena.
Described as a ‘ground-breaking new show in the round’, the Delta tour’s incredibly intricate and dramatic production has already postponed four dates to next June. The stage, consisting of a main stage sandwiched between two slightly elevated smaller ones, stretches across the middle of the venue, splitting the crowd in two. “You know this whole thing is really just a competition between this side and this side”, Mumford gestures, hyping up the crowd.
For some bands, a production of this scale could be difficult to maneuver; perhaps even intimidating; yet the South London natives have clearly thought this one through. With instruments and microphones scattered around the stage, Mumford and his (non-biological) sons command the room and its patrons with a massive 22 song set, making use of every inch of staging. Accompanied by a collection of touring musicians and a large, impeccably crafted lighting rig that moves above them like tentacles, the amount of planning and work put into this tour is evident as the crowd lap up every moment.
Opening with the arms-wide-open ballad from the tour’s namesake, their fourth album Delta, the band power through tracks both old and new. Unsurprisingly it is the older ‘stomp your feet and dance along’ classics ‘Little Lion Man’, ‘The Cave’ and ‘I Will Wait’ that get the crowd going the most. While some of the newer offerings, such as tender tune ‘The Wild’, feel underwhelming, Mumford’s confidence and flawless vocals keep the focus. ‘Lover Of The Light’ shows off his impressive drumming skills while the stunning stripped back sounds of ‘Delta’ are enough to pierce even the coldest of hearts.
It seems as though parts of the world are infatuated with the idea of hating Mumford and Sons, and yet they sit firmly in the history books as one of the UK’s biggest bands. If music is a competition, Mumford and co needn’t worry. With the UK leg of their 80 date world tour about to wrap, one thing’s for sure; they’re in league all of their own. It seems, whatever it is, they’ve already won.
Backstage Goss 