Mike & The Mechanics

I realize this could be kind of a hard sell. “Genesis bass player Mike Rutherford’s solo project” isn’t exactly the kind of description that sets hearts racing at fifty paces but like with most things in life, the description on paper is very different to how it is in real life. Mike + The Mechanics drop Genesis’ experimental streak, replace it with a very 80’s sense of accessibility but temper it with a distinctly un-80’s dignity. This is soft rock with a brain to match the heart. A lot of that comes from how, like any band with a prog background, the musicianship is exquisite and it’s only gotten better nearly thirty years after the formation. Even now, with a few core members down (original vocalist Paul Young tragically passed in 2000 after a heart attack), the band are on better form than ever before. Genesis’ reformation in 2007 has meant that Rutherford can do whatever he pleases and it shows in the skill and joy on offer at every Mike + The Mechanics show he plays. Not to mention that if you say you don’t love songs like The Living Years, Word of Mouth and All I Need is a Miracle, you’re a liar and a cad. It may not be the coolest thing to do with an evening, but it’s guaranteed to be one of the best. Highly recommended.

Wow! While 90% of the crowd seemed like Prog rock fans secretly hoping M & M would break out into "Dancing With The Moonlit Knight," they were not disappointed by what transpired. They started with a recent single, "Get Up," that kicked off a set of carefully crafted 80's radio style songs that had hidden gems of quality musicianship included. My expectation was to enjoy the concert, the result was one of the best concerts I have seen in the past ten years! The newer musicians injected more of a soulful mix to songs that are established pillars of M & Ms success long ago. Andrew Roachford and Tim Howar were the highlight of the night trading off lead vocals while Mike dutifully played band leader trading off bass and guitar roles. They surprised the crowd with two Genesis songs that, if you closed your eyes, would believe it was in fact a Genesis show you were attending. Even with that, the songs one might not be familiar with were enjoyable and instantly catchy. The encore was an awesome display of each band members talents as they improved their way through Toto, Hendrix, and Stevie Wonder. My suggestion is go and take the entire family. This band really delivers. Took my seventeen year old son and he really enjoyed it too.

Stuttgart is a city of ballet and theatre. When you think of a location for Rock acts only the Schleyerhalle, a big concert hall from the 80s with rather terrible sound, comes to mind. The more prestigious Liederhalle from 1956 is, as it's called, a "culture and congress hall" - even the big Hegelsaal feels pretty intimate with a capacity of around 1600.

Nevertheless, some Rock 'n Roll history happened here, such as a performance by Jimmy Hendrix back in 1969. So the atmosphere should be great - and it was. The sound was really good from the beginning, and a dense mix of hits and newer material did its part to get the rather enthusiastic audience on their feet - sometimes a thousand people can feel louder than ten thousand.

The set list was pretty standard - Mike + the Mechanics hits mixed with the odd Genesis track. And while the voice of Paul Carrack is dearly missed, Tim Howard and Andrew Roachford make for a very enjoyable evening. In fact, Mike Rutherford stays in the background most of the time, switching between guitar and bass - he has gathered some excellent musicians around him and nothing to prove. But for me the star of the evening was Gary Wallis, laying a foundation on which not much could go wrong.

I’m not sure there’s been a time in Mike Rutherford’s career where he hasn’t been successful. As one of the founding members of Genesis he’d already made a huge mark on the musical landscape but, during a particularly fruitful creative streak, he put together a band to help bring his solo material to life and hit upon immediate commercial success. Still touring today it’s not hard to see why they were such an instant hit.

Their songs are the key to the band’s success. Anthemic yet personal they can get a crowd fired up whilst still reaching members of the audience on a personal level and helping to create that emotional response that always makes for a great live show. Driven by the stunning dual-lead vocals of Andrew Roachford and Tim Howar the songs can easily fill out a huge stage, all topped off by the steady energy of the backing band. When Mike Rutherford stands upon the arena stage and sees how happy the fans are to hear his music being played, he has to feel pretty happy with the way his career’s gone.

Mike and the Mechanics is the rock super group made up of members from the hit band Genesis. Their career saw a great amount of success being snapped up by record labels, Virgin and Atlantic. They are one of those bands that any progressive rock fanatic will pay good money to come and see. It’s hard to pigeonhole this audience, as it is quite mixture, but hey, this should be a fun one, with the virtuosic qualities of each member.
This band has done so well in the context of singles, which a lot of people are definitely here to see this evening. Tonight they walk on the stage in blue light, to the sustained roar of the crowd, and launch straight into “Word of Mouth”, the huge guitar laden single that made it to 13 in the UK. “Over My Shoulder” keeps the party at full speed and “Taken In” is the closer of the set. Encouraged to do an encore, this band close with “The Living Years”

I bought 2 tickets for my best friend Traceys birthday.Although I like to listen to Genisis and Mike and the Mechanics on the radio I haven't got any of their music in my collection. I was more than pleasantly suprised at how much I enjoyed the concert, infact it is in my top 10 of concerts (and I have been to a fair few). Loved every minute of it, total music quality. The added bonus was Roachford as I have seen him as a solo artist in the early 90's in Southampton( I think). It was like having 3 groups on one stage, bonus!! Tim was a great front man, fab voice and smiling all the time and the whole group looked as though they enjoyed every minute as we did. Thankyou for a fantastic evening and I will be adding some of your tunes to my collection. Kate and Tracey.

Not being a huge fan of Mike & Co. I didn't go to this concert with any real preconceptions, except perhaps a couple of big hits from quite a few years ago.

Congratulations to Mike Rutherford though for putting together an excellent band and creating a great sound (and lighting show).

The audience clearly appreciated it too. Not too dependent on his Genesis heritage, the range of material was always interesting - including a couple of "unrecorded" songs which I guess signal another album at some stage soon.

If you've half a mind to go - do!

Disappointing. Havent seen MATM for a few years and didnt realise that Mike was no longer on vocals.
While Andrew amd Tim were both great vocalists, it felt more like a tribute act than the real thing.
Somewhat awkward and 'staged'

Just pure magic and diversity. Thoroughly enjoyed their enthusiasm and fab to hear new material from the soon to be released album. Would have loved a few hours more but then who wouldn't have!

Long may they continue!

perfekter Abend in Leipzig. Musiker waren sehr gut aufgelegt und spielten bis 21:45 Uhr.
Die Bestuhlung im Haus Auensee ist allerdings eine Zumutung. Ich würde auf jeden Fall nochmal zu einem Konzert von m & M gehen