Badly Drawn Boy - The Hour of Bewilderbeast - Aviva Studios

Aviva Studios Manchester, 5th April 2025.

WORDS AND IMAGES PAUL EVANS

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Badly Drawn Boy

There’s something in the water in Manchester. It breeds a certain kind of artist, messy, magical, raw and rooted in something deeper than just image. Damon Gough, the man behind Badly Drawn Boy, is one of those rare birds. Equal parts troubadour, nonconformist and reluctant hero, Gough has spent the last quarter-century carving out his own strange little corner of British music.

With his trademark woolly hat, humble demeanour and emotionally incisive songwriting, Gough emerged in the late ’90s as a singular voice in British music. He stood apart from the post-Britpop crowd with a homespun aesthetic and a songwriting style that fused the lo-fi charm of indie folk with soul, classical instrumentation and the intuitive honesty of diary-like lyricism. On this warm spring night, the industrial-yet-intimate Aviva Studios, is a natural stage for Badly Drawn Boy as he returns not just to his city, but to the record that started it all. 2000’s “The Hour of Bewilderbeast”, played in its entirety for the first time in Manchester since its release.

The stage is minimal: strings, piano, guitar, a handful of lights and that unmistakable silhouette. There are huge cheers as the opening chords of “The Shining” drift out like the soundtrack to a memory. Hushed and reverent, the crowd lean into every note. That ghostly French horn, the whispering cello, the almost shy way Gough sings all hit like time travel as the crowd join in. The words beautiful and emotional are just not enough to describe it.

The record unfolds in sequence, “Everybody’s Stalking” adds groove and a grin, its loose-limbed rhythms shaking off the haze. “Bewilder” brings back weird, lo-fi playfulness, while “Fall in a River” turns vulnerability into art. “Stone on the Water” stands tall among the set’s emotional peaks, its melancholy melody wrapping around the crowd like a blanket. “Once Around the Block” draws cheers and quiet tears in equal measure. It’s a song that somehow still sounds like heartbreak and sunshine rolled into one even after all these years. Things turn truly transcendent with “Pissing in the Wind” and “Disillusion” both carrying a weight they never had in 2000. Age has deepened Gough’s voice, roughened its edges, but in doing so, new layers of heartbreak and hope are revealed within the words.

There’s a touch of humour, a story and a restart or two thrown in for good measure, but far from being frustrating, it’s pure Damon, vulnerable, funny and deeply human. It’s a perfect first set to be honest and the feeling in the room is unadulterated warmth.

A second set journeys beyond “Bewilderbeast” each song reanimated with new life. “You Were Right” is thunderous, its jagged riffs and sardonic wit igniting the crowd. “A Journey From A to B” shimmers with longing before “All Possibilities” and “Something to Talk About” bring the night’s biggest reactions, the crowd swaying as one “Tony Wilson Said” is a heartfelt homage to Mr Manchester, the crowd mouthing the words “we’re driving though Rusholme, Moss Side and Whalley Range”. It’s a perfect Mancunian moment through and through.

There’s a strange kind of magic in watching an artist come full circle. This evening, there’s been a reborn Mercury Prize-winning masterpiece, revived heartfelt oddities and one of Manchester’s most treasured voices returning with wisdom, warmth and a few well-timed false starts. No backing tracks, no auto-tune, no choreography, just songs, stories and sincerity. In an age of hyper-curated perfection, this feels nothing short of revolutionary.

Damon Gough has remained defiantly himself through his career and when he’s on fire, as he was tonight, few songwriters in the UK can match the honesty and beauty of his craft. Sometimes the most fragile songs and voices are the ones that linger longest. Tonight, this has most definitely been the case.

Set 1

The Shining

Everybody's Stalking

Bewilder

Fall in a River

Camping Next to Water

Stone on the Water

Another Pearl

Body Rap

Once Around the Block

This Song

Bewilderbeast

Magic in the Air

Cause a Rockslide

Pissing in the Wind

Blistered Heart

Disillusion

Say It Again

Epitaph

Set 2

You Were Right

A Journey from A to B

This Electric

All Possibilities

In Safe Hands

Appletree Boulevard

Something to Talk About

Tony Wilson Said

Fly on the Wall

Promises

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