On Sept. 15, Bristol punk band IDLES rocked the Tabernacle with an electric set spanning their entire discography. Atlanta was the band’s second stop of this leg of their tour titled Love is the Fing, named after their leading single “Grace.” With an opening act from fellow British band, English Teacher, the night was filled with vulnerable performances, a passionate crowd and brave political statements that prove IDLES have established themselves as one of the leading faces of punk music for today’s generation.
Starting the night off, English Teacher opened the show with the song, “The World’s Biggest Paving Slab.” Lead singer, Lily Fontaine, wowed the crowd with her ethereal vocals and alluring stage presence. After receiving the 2024 Mercury Prize for their debut album, “This Could Be Texas,” the band has faced a sudden rise in popularity. The eight-track setlist consisted of almost entirely songs from “This Could Be Texas,” including the tour debut of “Mental Maths.”
As the clock struck 9 p.m., the lights began to dim, and the crowd immediately swarmed towards the barricade. With drummer Jon Beavis entering the stage first, the crowd screamed out as he began the opening to “IDEA 01.” One by one, each member of IDLES appeared to begin the ballad. “IDEA 01” is the opening track to the band’s most recent release, “Tangk,” so it is no wonder that they traded out their usual opening track for this tour. Joe Talbot’s soft vocals on “IDEA 01” are a major contrast to his typical screaming, making for an unexpected kickoff to the rest of the night.
The crowd anxiously anticipated what would come next following the slow and steady opening with “IDEA 01.” As they started “Colossus,” the crowd’s energy began to amplify and immediately the center of the crowd opened to form a monstrous pit. The steady guitar strums from Lee Kiernan and Mark Bowen slowly began to get faster as they built up to the powerful bridge of the song, when suddenly Talbot stopped the band from playing. Talbot then instructed the crowd to split down the middle, dividing left and right, and warned the crowd to take care of one another. As soon as the band picked up with Talbot screaming, “I don’t want to be your man,” the two sides of the crowd launched at one another. “Colossus” set the tone for the rest of the night, creating a nonstop, 90-minute mosh pit that was full of energy and love.
After fifteen years together as a band, IDLES certainly have perfected their stage presence. The show saw everything from witty stage banter between members, audience participation and interaction, and even Bowen and Kiernan themselves diving into the crowd. As Joe Talbot announced, “This one is for all of the scumbags out there,” the audience yelled out for the obviously fan favorite, “I’m Scum,” from the band’s second album, “Joy as an Act of Resistance.” As the bridge of that song was coming to an end, Talbot requested that everyone sit on the floor and begin doing squats. As he quietly sang the lyrics, the crowd waited until Talbot began to scream again in the final chorus to leap back up and continue to mosh. Talbot’s antics are not the only notable feature to the band’s performance though. During the song “Benzocaine,” the two guitarists simultaneously hopped off the stage to get aid from security guards in helping them to the center of the crowd. As they created a path towards the pit, the two made their way to the middle, in which they announced the formation of a circle around them.
Once the circle was created, Bowen and Kiernan began playing their respective parts as the crowd began running around the two. The guitarists never missed a note, even as they were being carried out of the pit by audience members back to the stage. This would not be the only time that the guitarists would enter the crowd over the set, as Kiernan stepped back down to give a longtime fan that he recognized from previous shows a hug during one of their rowdiest songs.
Just as Kiernan expressed through this wholesome encounter, the foundations of the band are rooted in love and equality, which IDLES clearly expressed throughout their show. One of the most compelling and honorable aspects of IDLES is their bravery in being vulnerable with speaking out about various difficult and controversial issues. Over the course of the show, Talbot expressed his personal experiences with alcoholism and toxic masculinity, as well as his support for Palestine and his opposition to Cop City.
Bowen also makes a statement on toxic masculinity as he now almost exclusively performs in sundresses, sometimes even made by local artists. In a genre that is historically filled with a harsh masculine presence, IDLES provides a refreshingly safe space at their shows as they scream out about love and compassion. It is impressive that IDLES can maintain such large commercial success and a dedicated fan base while making such brave political statements in a genre that typically repents emotional vulnerability.
As the night came to a close, IDLES finalized their set with “Danny Nedelko” and “Rottweiler” from “Joy as an Act of Resistance.” During their lengthy extension of “Danny Nedelko,” the band included a shortened cover of Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” a bit they began a few years ago during the “Ultra Mono” tours. Talbot and Bowen’s raspy vocals contrasted with the song’s clean lyrics makes for a humorous moment in the show and a number of confused faces in the crowd.
Before jumping into the rowdy closing with “Rottweiler,” Talbot makes a speech ensuring that the audience is aware of his love for them. He even goes on to express his sympathies for the tense political state that Atlanta and the rest of the United States is currently facing, saying that we all must look out for one another.
IDLES’s persistent courage to speak out on political and social crises, matched with their unruly punk anthems created a beautifully spirited night at the Tabernacle. The band left the stage playing no encore, leaving the fans restlessly begging for more.