Gary Numan – Big Black Delta – and Roman Remains – at The Mayan Theatre – Los Angeles, CA

Gary Numan headlined a sold out show Thursday night at the Mayan Theatre in downtown Los Angeles and what a show it was! If you were in attendance then your ears may still be ringing. If you weren’t, well you missed out on one of the best shows of the New Year thus far.

Opening the night was Roman Remains who are certainly a band to keep an eye out for. Their dark brand of music (as it seemed to be an ongoing theme for the night) certainly hit a chord with the crowd who made it into the Mayan early and thankfully so. Fronted by a beautiful blonde the band possesses equals amounts of talent and sex appeal. They aren’t too harsh but not too pop and find themselves some place right in the middle which make them edgy, yet accessible.

Main support came from a duo called Big Black Delta who definitely approach electronic music with a more modern technique. Their front man shared laptop duties as well as working the stage by dancing frantically side to side and shouting through a vocal processor. It felt very impersonal as the stage was very dark and most of the time hard to decipher lyrically. Their drummer plays a simple kit to a bombastic rave worthy drum track; it is definitely of the time and would have been better suited as show opener instead of main support.

After two openers, fans were finally treated to the night’s main event, Mr. Gary Numan. With an album just that dropped late last year, Gary is definitely pushing his new material to the max and doing do with the utmost confidence. Looking better and younger than most born during his decade, he shines in darkness and excels where many fail. His voice is crisp, his moves are sleek, and it’s as if he has sipped from the fountain of youth.

His light show and stage production compliment the heavy hard hitting down tuned tracks that hail from “Splinter”. Older jams also get the heavy treatment, which make them eerily reminiscent of Trent Reznor and co. Some would even go as far as calling this era of Gary’s career “Nine Inch Numan”. It is as if the many bands Gary and his “Tubeway Army” originally inspired have in turn inspired the electronic music pioneer. The only unfortunate omission from his set was “Storm Trooper in Drag” which is a longtime fan favorite. Though thankfully every other known Numan hit was performed and done so refreshingly well.



Gary Numan’s tour kicked off just a day before the Los Angeles date, so if he is coming to your local theatre do yourself a favor and get a ticket to one of the best shows currently on the road!

 

 

-Louie Bones-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter

 

 

 

Go HERE to see all the latest show reviews

 

Send your comments to the editor HERE