York Barbican Centre, 21/11/01

Pulp have been around for such a long time that sometimes it seems like they've become like a part of the furniture. Jarvis Cocker has become a kind of indie institution, his shuffling, jilted dance and deadpan wit familiar to millions. Classic pop tunes like Babies and Disco 2000 are played every Saturday night in countless clubs around the country, and Jarvis' second-hand corduroy Geography teacher look is a staple style on every university campus in England.

But it's been a while since Pulp have really been on the scene - This Is Hardcore was a dark, low-key release, a comedown album after the Britpop high of A Different Class, bristling and bitter and not yielding any easy singles. Britpop was over - Blur disintegrated into several flimsy side projects and apologetic eightieth albums, Oasis imploded under the wait of their own pomposity. But Pulp are still here, and they're looking stronger than ever.

'Weeds' is a great opener, a rocky, triumphant anthem. Most of the set consists of material from the last two records, including extended versions of 'This Is Hardcore' and 'The Fear', and some brilliant versions of album tracks from 'A Different Class', such as an anthemic rendition of 'F.E.E.L.I.N.G.C.A.L.L.E.D.L.O.V.E.' and a jangly 'Something Changed'. 'Common People' and 'Do You Remember The First Time' were notable by their absence, but the set was all the better for not being over familiar.

There is a quality to Pulp's performance that makes me think perhaps I overlooked just how good they were in the mid-90's. Jarvis became so ubiquitous after his Brit awards stunt that he was over-exposed, and his talents over-familiar - perhaps his convalescence was as good for Pulp's audience as it was for Cocker's health. But now, post-Britpop and post-Kid A, the quality becomes apparent again. The 'kitchen sink' aesthetic, that ground level music about life and how we live it - it seems so much more appealing than almost anything else that's out there at the minute. It makes Radiohead's twice removed paranoia sound drab, it makes Ryan Adams sound over stylised, it makes The Strokes' punky indy sound like a fashion statement.

All hail the twitching Cocker.

By John Rogers

Pulp are touring throughout November 2001. 'We Love Life' is out now on Island.

Resources -
Pulp People (official site)
Acrylic Afternoons (fanpage)
Guardian review