THE PINEAPPLE THIEF

VENUE WORLD CAFÉ LIVE, PHILADELPHIA, USA

DATE 22/11/2024

SUPPORT RANDY MCSTINE

Led by the superbly vulnerable vocals and cynically poignant lyricism of Bruce Soord, The Pineapple Thief have been going strong for 25 years. That’s particularly impressive given that they’ve released 15 studio LPs without ever losing sight of what makes them singular (a characteristic balance of sophisticated arrangements and top-notch songwriting).

Tonight’s show clearly reflects that, as the quartet journey through the last decade or so of their recording career (including a full recreation of 2024’s It Leads To This) with plenty of variety and panache. Aided by touring guitarist/singer Beren Matthews – who also contributed to It Leads To This – and a great opening solo set from Randy McStine (Lo-Fi FRANK WHITE Resistance, Porcupine Tree), The Pineapple Thief have rarely, if ever, been better in concert.

Randy McStine shares some of his Mutual Hallucinations.

According to his recent social media posts, McStine – who’s opened for The Pineapple Thief multiple times before – has been “battling some kind of upper respiratory virus” since the start of the tour. He shows no signs of it while on stage, however, singing and playing wonderfully throughout his half-hour performance.

Specifically, McStine traverses three tunes from 2024’s Mutual Hallucinations: peaceful acoustic ballad Adopted Son, electronics-tinged psychedelic rocker Send Your Light, and remorsefully spacey sound collage Economy Of Differences. Coupled with an engaging rendition of Program (the spiritedly industrial opener of 2020’s McStine & Minnemann collaboration with drummer Marco Minnemann), his soaring voice and expert musicianship evoke plenty of emotion on top of looped instrumentation and sound effects. He presents a stellar overview of his current work and gets the crowd warmed up.

“A remarkable show that illustrates why The Pineapple Thief’s concerts continue to captivate.”

Shortly afterwards, The Pineapple Thief begin replicating their newest full-length collection in its entirety. Rather than play it sequentially and uninterrupted, they mess around with the track order and include other recent gems along the way. Undoubtedly, this provides a fresher and more surprising evening while also ensuring that fans get to experience everything the ensemble’s latest LP has to offer.

Jon Sykes and his big ol’ bass.

For instance, their set kicks off with the fourth piece from It Leads To This – The Frost – a typically catchy, quiet and dejected ode punctuated by smooth melodies and rhythms. Naturally, the audience can’t help but sing along, just as they do for the comparably soft and sorrowful Put It Right and Now It’s Yours. It’s also worth mentioning how much Matthews stands out during these passages, as his guitarwork and backing harmonies are crucial to making the material sound as studio-accurate as possible.

Not much to look at, but who cares when they sound this good?

He’s just as essential to the authenticity of the heavier and more dynamic pieces, too, especially the suspenseful title track, the cathartically chaotic All That’s Left, and the gripping yet off-kilter Every Trace of Us. It’s during these sections that The Pineapple Thief best demonstrate how well It Leads To This captures their more aggressive and complex art/prog rock side as well, with drummer Gavin Harrison and bassist Jon Sykes pulling off some truly tricky rhythmic shakeups during that latter song.

Keyboardist Steve Kitch.

Although it’s disappointing that they don’t dig further into their back catalogue, the band undeniably break up It Leads To This with excellent selections from nearly everything they’ve done since 2012’s All The Wars. From the foreboding intoxications of In Exile and the harrowing urgency of White Mist, to the symphonic antagonism of Give It Back and the multifaceted friskiness of Our Mire, the group are just as adept at representing the wide-ranging glories of those prior full-length works.

Bruce Soord, widdling away.

However, the most endearing portion of the night comes unexpectedly between Rubicon and To Forget, when a keyboard issue forces them to stall for time. So, Harrison comes out from behind the drums to do a charming sleight-of-hand magic trick, after which the troupe leads an impromptu version of the gorgeously bittersweet Snowdrops (from 2006’s Little Man), complete with plenty of clapping accompaniment from the crowd.