Last night’s concert with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra was a wonderful experience for us. The orchestra played with such luxurious power and conviction, conducted by Dominic Wheeler, and the Manchester Chamber Choir brought ethereal beauty to, for instance, “Miracles” and “He dreamed of machines” (from our new piece about Alan Turing). To hear Johnny Marr playing the guitar riff from “This must be the place I waited years to leave” was a real thrill so many years after he played on the original record; his acoustic guitar playing on “Breathing space” was gorgeous. Other highlights for me were performing live for the first time “It couldn’t happen here”, “The survivors” and “For all of us”. Sven Helbig’s orchestral arrangements were both magnificent and subtle: “New York City boy” was returned to Broadway; “He dreamed of machines” had a pale beauty. Many thanks to everyone at the BBC, Parlophone and our management and tour personnel for making it happen, to Pete Gleadall for programming and to Jo Whiley for introducing it. The concert can be heard on BBC Radio 2 tonight at 8 pm. I hope you enjoy it. Neil x (Photograph by Kate Southall/BBC.)
Recent Pet Texts
Thanks to the wonderful “Dreamworld” and “Obskur” audiences in Berlin who came out to dance with Pet Shop Boys over the last 3 days. A special thanks to Princess Julia and The Hidden Cameras for performing at the sold-out shows at Huxleys Neue Welt. After a short break, the “Dreamworld” summer tour continues in Spain and Norway before finishing in Denmark.
Photo: Theresa Heyd
Wishing a happy birthday to Neil who is 72 today!
Photo: Chris
Pet Shop Boys had a fantastic evening at Lytham Festival just outside Chris’s hometown on Saturday. Special thanks to Dave Pearce and Scissor Sisters for their performances. The “Dreamworld” tour returns to Italy and Germany this week, final tickets below. See you all very soon!
Photo: Lytham Festival
Thank you Lytham Festival for a windy and fun night!
Photo: Lytham Festival
Pet Shop Boys enjoyed a hot and sunny start to their “Dreamworld” summer tour over the past week. Thanks to all who danced through the heatwave with us in Taranto, Istanbul and Athens. Next up is Paris on Wednesday, before Chris’s homecoming at Lytham Festival this Saturday. See you there!
Photo by: Release Athens Festival
Wednesday’s concert at Blind Fest in Istanbul was such fun thanks to the fabulous audience.
“Pet Shop Boys projected Pride images onto giant screens, sending a well-deserved salute from the stage to our streets where Pride is banned…. The concert, which began emotionally and romantically, suddenly transformed into the warm, party atmosphere of Ibiza towards the end with the weight of the bass and the magnificence of the lights. The stage was fantastic. Right in the middle of the past and the future, of sadness and resistance; we both danced and felt the power of love and music side by side.” (Review from Radio Cazkolik.)
Now we’re in Athens for our Release Festival performance tomorrow evening.
Photo: Blind Fest