If Gary Numan didn’t make music, the universe would look, and sound, a whole lot different.
He may not be ‘big’ in mainstream terms, but his legacy is significant.
Not only would we be without a (mostly) stellar catalogue of music spanning forty years, we’d also likely be without a plethora of other artists that hail him as their inspiration.
And it's not just the electronic world that would miss the famously shy performer. The industrial, alt-rock and metal music genres would also feel a little on the sparse side.
Oh, and there’s that Sugababes song.
Despite his massive influence, the man born Gary Webb has never quite made it to the status he perhaps deserves - instead maintaining a more respectable and steady following thanks to his army of loyal Numaniods.
Not that he’s ever complained - this way he gets to do music on his own terms - using platforms including Pledge Music and Patreon to offer a more personal connection to his fans.
His control over his art rolls down into his live tours - and his warm welcome to the stage at Manchester’s Albert Hall for his (R)evolition 40th anniversary tour proves he must be still doing something right.
Swapping his post-apocalyptic cream coloured get-up from his album tour for a more relaxed look, Gary’s smile illuminates the venue as he kicks off in the present with My Name is Ruin (along with daughter Persia, who later joins him again for My Breathing) from his most recent album Savage.
He doesn't think twice about jumping between years - classics such as I Die: You Die and Metal raise the roof and have the crowd jumping up and down along with their infectious beat.
Numan makes it quite clear that he's here to celebrate the hell out of the evening.
He mixes big hits with some surprise offerings you don’t normally hear, such as Stories from his Dance album, which is lapped up by the sold out audience, many of whom are perhaps taking advantage of hearing it live for the first time.
Numan has been playing slightly different setlists at each of his anniversary gigs - probably just to mix it up for his own sanity - however it does have the potential to disappoint when certain songs are omitted from dates (M.E. on this occasion). Then again, that's the problem with tours such as this - there’s so much material to go off that there is simply not enough time to fit them all in.
On the flip side, there are plenty of moments of delight - his 1979 Replicas album opener Me! I Disconnect From You is a surprise highlight, loaded with more chuggy guitars but still keeping true to his electro sound, expertly followed by the haunting Ghost Nation, the first song on his most recent release.
The way he seamlessly flicks between eras without the music feeling disjointed or out of place is a testament to how timeless his songs are. His tweaked versions of the eerie Down In The Park and the classic Are Friends Electric? just add to the punchy but atmospheric feel to his performance.
Key to this is his trademark electronic sound that can be heard in even his most recent songs including Here In The Black - an absolute powerhouse that still offers dreamy synths to break up the heavy bassline.
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The free-for-all seating/standing element of the Albert Hall can mean it's a bit of a lottery with sound depending on where you sit or stand, which is perhaps a surprise to those who are used to seeing Numan at academy-sized venues.
Not one to scrimp on a political message (concept album Savage surrounded a post-apocalyptic world that has become desertified as a result of global warming), Absolution sees hard hitting footage displayed in montage form behind the band, such as the 9/11 attack on the World Trade Centre, offering a poignant moment.
A Prayer For The Unborn, which he almost always plays, still has the ability to affect the crowd as they watch Gary revist personal tragedy over a miscarried child. But the uplifting end to the song does nothing but bring the atmosphere back to electric.
Not one to speak too much to the audience, Gary saves his words for the encore when he offers some laughs as he tries to comprehend his milestone. But his humble thanks to his fans for being with him through thick and thin resonates through everyone - from those who were with him at the start to his younger fans.
Delving back into his catalogue for Voix brings people back to jumping around mode, then he brings it back to the here and now for a ‘demo’ version of a new track from Intruder, the as yet unreleased follow up to Savage (“if it’s no good, it’s because it’s a demo” - he's always the first to be self depreciating) and finishes with an acoustic performance of Tubeway Army fan favourite Jo The Waiter.
As people cry over the state of the music industry and how today’s standards are nothing like they used to be, it’s comforting to know that artists like Gary Numan are able to put your faith back into the world by being arguably more relevant today than he was 40 years ago.
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