Auto: Magna Centre,
Rotherham, December 14
Auto: Magna Centre,
Rotherham, December 14
For the Film Programme at Sheffield Showroom, click here
There's an interview with Steve and Jarvis about Auto on the BBC South Yorkshire site.
There seems to be a bit of confusion over this event, which we may inadvertently have been partly responsible for, but which I'd like to just clarify: AUTO was not a Pulp concert. Everyone appeared in their own right, not as a support to Pulp. The full line up is as follows: Pulp, Röyksopp, Lemon Jelly, LFO, Four Tet, The Bees, Baxter Dury, James Yorkston, The Kills, Zongamin, Jamie Lidell, Chris Coco, Piano Magic, Trevor Jackson, Capitol K & Leafcutter John, Optimo, Annie & Timo, Bjorn Torske, SchneiderTM, I-Monster, Erland Oye, Asleep At The Wheel, Tony Morley, John Peel, Quixote visuals and Warp Films & DJs.
To quote the press release:
"Steve Mackey has emerged as the brains behind one of the most
innovative and ambitious live projects to be staged in Britain this year.
Featuring an unrivalled selection of leftfield electronic and rock talent,
together in one of our greatest palaces of former industry, Auto will
exist in the same spirit as festivals like Barcelona’s Sonar, which has
in recent years have earned their
own awesome reputations for creative
booking and artistic invention.
Conceptualised and
realised by Mackey, Auto is also born out of frustration with the UK’s
stale festival scene, which the bassist equates to the football transfer
system, with big name players monopolising all the money and power,
leaving a raw deal for the paying punters. Auto will, he says, offer
something less hierarchical, and, in the process, reintroduce an element
of unpredictability and surprise to proceedings"
Auto will be split
into
four arenas of entertainment for the night, running from 7pm until 2am.
The areas will be linked by walkways and stairs, but are far enough away
from each other to seem like separate events. There will also be a Rough
Trade records stall.
There will also be a cinema tie-in with the Showroom Cinema in Sheffield, with four night's of programmes being planned by Warp and Jarvis Cocker, among others.
This is not the first time
Pulp have been involved at a hands-on level with forward-thinking festival
planning. It may, in fact, be remembered that what turned into the V
Festival was originally conceived by Pulp in 1996 as a means of getting
all their favourite bands onto one bill in a nice setting. And then
Richard Branson stepped in...
The Magna Centre is one of the country’s most imaginatively converted post-industrial spaces. As the Templeborough Steelworks the nine storey, 350-metre long structure was the largest in Europe, housing 10,000 workers at its peak. In the year 2000 a £46m renovation was completed and in 2001 the Magna Science & Adventure Park beat rivals such as the Eden Project for the prestigious RIBA Stirling Architecture Prize for the Best New Building in the UK.
OK,
so here's the set list from the brilliant set Pulp played at Auto last
night. As you can see, they intended playing Last Day of the Miner's
Strike but decided against it at the last minute - a wise decision I
think, it would have brought the mood down a bit. As it was the crowd were
in a frenzy, going totally crazy throughout - there really wasn't a point
when the excitement wasn't tangible. To hear Lipgloss, Do You Remember the
First Time, Lyndhurst Grove and Razzmatazz after so long was just amazing,
and Happy Endings, with the addition of Richard's slide guitar almost
shocked the audience into silence - until they realised what it was.
Ross from the Fat Truckers joined them on stage to add extra percussion during Weeds and...errr....can't remember which other ones, sorry Ross!
All in all it was a very moving but ultimately happy and positive performance. Let us know what you thought...I'll be posting reviews all week. PICS
Well what should I write about Pulp at
Magna? First of all, Pulp in Sheffield, I had never seen that
before. This was just an amazing concert that showed once again, but for
the last time (but we still have not given up hope), the show quality of
Jarvis, and the musical 
performance of Candida, Mark, Steve, Nick plus
guests Richard Hawley and Ross. The gestures, the deadpan remarks, the
songs telling dysfunctional stories, and yet so full of life. Gosh was it
worth to travel by coach to Sheffield to see this. I love life is full of
fiery energy, a song about the will to live one's life the way one wants
and it was rendered in an incredible way, as Jarvis ended up lying on the
stage when the coda came and then Sunrise followed which to me evoked a
fresh start "Because you come sunrise". The song "Happy
Endings" was performed against a film backdrop showing a meadow with
daisies. I am a person who wants happy endings to a story, hence I say
that here. The chapter of Pulp the band closed with a rendition of Common
People which got cheers from the audience. Ta-ra Pulp. Cheers to Steve who organised this
festival. Whoever chose this location was spot on. Magna was the strangest
place I have ever been and I shall sure come back one day to this former
steel plant and muse about the day Pulp played their last concert. (Dominique
Hoffman)
Magna magnificat - let pulp's glory be magnified... great space, all that razzmatazz to die for, an oh so cool Lyndhurst and - after all - perhaps there are happy endings. time for new phases in life... (Milena & James)
It was one of the best nights of my life
and I hope it isn't too long before Pulp are back! (Trish, Leeds)
Fantastic, euphoric, spellbinding. All
the apprehension I had about the
significance of this event melted away in the magic of the first few
moments. The venue was amazing and it was unbelievable to hear Lipgloss
and Razzmatazz (especially when I'd only told my boyfriend that afternoon
how much I'd love to hear Lipgloss again.) The vibe was pure electric from
start to finish - there really is nothing in the world like being at a
Pulp concert. Thanks for giving us the time of our lives - once again!
(Debbie Hodson)
Have now seen Pulp for the first time, feel really lucky to have taken part in such a great night. (Helen)
Only just calming down, Saturday was
soooooo amazing Jarvis rocked he was fantastic as were all the guys and
gal. (Sue Murphy)
What an amazing night in an amazing venue. Great to hear a different set from Pulp from the one we've heard this year. Lemon Jelly rocked and Chris Coco was a good chill out end. Thanks Steve for organising it. Don't forget to have more than 6 people serving beer next time! (Ben Dessau)
After
the various moans from some quarters about having to pay £30 to see Pulp
- I thought I'd let those doubting Thomases know just what they missed. A:
The best performance I have seen Pulp do in eight years of going to their
gigs. Most of this stems from the fact that the set list was brilliant.
Good as it is I have lost count of the times I have seen FEELINGCALLEDLOVE
so it was nice to hear 
59 Lyndhurst Grove, Razzmatazz and Happy Endings
for a change. Although I haven't missed Common People before when it
hasn't been played I thought it was rather appropriate on Saturday. The
performance itself was excellent. Jarvis sang Common People like it was
for the first time and Sunrise was electric. Jarvis's little in-between
bits were better than ever, especially his ragga version of Razzmatazz.
The crowd was one of the best too. All the songs especially the oldies
went down really well and there was loads of pogo-ing during the hi-temp
bits. Despite reports that it would be cold things did get rather sweaty.
B: A great festival with a great line up. Those of you who stayed to the
end would agree that Röyksopp were awesome and Baxter Dury and The Bees
were a revelation to me. Auto Three was an amazing venue as was the
in-between bits and Auto 2. Didn't get to go in Auto Four. The atmosphere
was very relaxed - some of Pulp were mingling with the audience during the
other bands. We were watching Erland Oye and Anna took a picture of the
stage over this bloke's shoulder and when he turned round we saw it was
Steve. I think he thought we were trying to snap him and not Erland Oye!
It was quite touching at the end how appreciative Pulp were. My enduring
image of Auto was at the end of Common People watching Jarvis between a
sea of swaying hands bathed in light waving to the crowds. It was
beautiful and a good way to go if this has to be the end. (Rosie Niven)
Just
thought I would e-mail you to pass on my thanks for a brilliant night on
Saturday. Pulp were amazing, fantastic and even better than I imagined.
Steve pulled off a blinder. Thanks (Trish)
Auto was fantastic!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :):):):):):) Lipgloss, 1st Time, Lyndhurst, Razz, Babies, Happy Endings omg HEAVEN! Me and Ian Clark bypassed all the security and walked into the soundcheck when they were rehearsing Last Day Of Miners Strike!!!!!!!! We heard Happy Endings too so we knew it was gonna be a shit hot concert !!!!!!!! AMAZING TO SAY THE LEAST !!!!!!! (Scotty Frazer)
Fantastic venue.... But that place was cold! Not that I noticed during pulp, mind. I noticed Candida's slanty keyboard and thought 'this looks like it will be a bit of a His n hers set' - and it was! Just what I was hoping for! They came onto First Time and the place went mad... and when they did Happy Endings it just seemed like such a perfect song to bring the night to a conclusion. I didn't get any Haribo, but I did see one of pulp's best ever performances. Thanks for the memories! (Sharon Leach)
Was
very much looking forward to seeing Pulp playing back at their roots in
Sheffield, especially as I had anticipated that this might be the last
time I would get to see them for a long while. Travelled from London with
my boyfriend and friends to a very bleak, foggy day in Sheffield.
Magna could have been a fantastic location but as forewarned was extremely
cold in places especially as we had to queue for an hour to get a beer!
However, despite this quite annoying setback all was forgotten when Jarvis
opened the set with a fantastic rendition of 'Do You Remember The First
Time', my absolute favourite which I had never actually heard them do live
before. This was followed by some of the very best of Pulp and even
surprisingly the pretty old, 'Lyndhurst Grove' and the sort of romantic
but with a cynical twist, 'Happy Endings'. All this punctuated with Jarvis'
clever wit, then what better way to end than with 'Babies' and 'Common
People', what else could it have possible been! My boyfriend actually put
me on his shoulders for 'Common People' as we were quite near the back so
I was able to see Jarvis in his full unique dancing glory. Thanks Pulp for
a wonderful set and I really hope to see you again one day in the future.
(Ruth Smith)
Hi there, just wanted to
congratulate the band on a great evening of music, I wish I could remember
the other bands names as they were of a much higher standard than then I
have come to expect of mini festivals i.e. Fun in the Sun 2000 @ Sheffield
which had some dodgy acts on! Anyways, cheers I enjoyed it. (Tim Smith)
i just came back from the rainy, foggy
Sheffield, we nearly crossed all England from Brighton but God, it worth
it! The venue was superb in itself, the darkness and the echo of the
excellent electro music played on the different stages was giving you the
impression to be in space. I forgot how sad I was during Pulp's show, as
the crowd was so enthusiastic with the old songs and we all just went mad!
I couldn't believed they played Razzmatazz and Happy Endings, I never
thought I would be able to see them live again. Pulp didn't play too long,
well, it would never have been long enough anyway, and after jumping and
singing so much I was too tired to dance to any of the other shows. I saw Röyksopp
and they were absolutely brilliant and full of energy. There was also this
strange white room with inflatable walls, which was quite bizarre. But
going back home today was quite depressing. So it's all over now.... best
wishes to all for this new start, and I still hope we'll be able to see
Pulp live again sometime...... (Anne-Sophie Pietrek)
I've
waited years to journey up north to Sheffield to have a look round and see
Pulp in their natural surroundings, so when Auto popped up, I was on my
way. After a short wait in the cold before entering the dark and massive
buildings into an even colder climate, which I wasn't prepared for. I gave
up queuing for any beer, so for a change remained sober at a gig / on a
Saturday night. Wandered around, saw The Bees, Lemon Jelly and then
scrambled to the front of Auto Three for Pulp where it was nice and
warm!! Great set, hearing some classic songs live for the first time was
magic. As the set closed, a tear came to my eye as I pondered over the
joy, entertainment and fun they've given me over the last 8 years,
and the daunting thought emerged in my mind that I might never see or hear
of them again. But I know they will return, they have to!! If they
don't, I'll save up and hire them for a private gig in my local Scout hut
or something! (James Cannon)
WOWWWW! What can I say? Jarvis was so on
form that it nearly blew my socks off. In all the years I've been going to
see pulp i can safely say this was the best I've ever seen them. They
played all my favourite songs and when they played 'do you remember the
first time' i must admit to shedding a tear or two. I took a non pulp
person and even he admitted it to be the best concert he's ever been too.
A big part of my life will be missing with them gone, as the only thing
keeping me sane was the thought of the next pulp gig. Oh well, i suppose
its back to smoking and waiting for an early death. (Jo Hutton)
Because the Pulpy aspect of Auto was being played down so much, I wasn't expecting a great concert (just a good one). So the fact that it was brilliant, fantastic, amazing etc etc etc!!! made it all the more enjoyable. I've seen them lots & lots of times now & only the Garage tops it for me. I got off to a good start because I wandered into the soundcheck - just followed the sound of BCV & was very excited to hear Happy Endings, Lyndhurst & Miners. Miners didn't appear for real in the end but things got better with a little bit of Razzmatazz & Lipgloss. I'm so glad that I've actually heard Razzmatazz live, I never thought I would. It's probably the one track I'd pick if I could choose. After the soundcheck, I saw Jarvis on his own & I was brave enough to go up to him. He was very charming & it is very special that I finally got a few words with him on my own. It was worth standing in the freezing cold outside for 2 hours, (well actually it wasn't much colder than inside) to be at the front. Things finally got hot (very hot) when Pulp arrived. The concert was truly excellent - superb. I just enjoyed the whole performance so much, every second. To me, it was absolutely faultless & I couldn't have been happier, even though I knew it might be the last one. I really hope I'll see them again, but if not it was so important to me for it to have a 'Happy Ending'. Anything else would have been terrible. Thank you, Pulp, so much for the last few years & I really hope we do meet again one day.... (Toni Sutton)
As for the concert, was it worth the
very cold, very damp, very long wait? Any thoughts of 'Why am I doing
this?' were dispelled with volcanic might as Pulp worked the crowd into a
frenzy within the first minutes of the concert, with Do You Remember The
First Time and Razzmatazz making a welcome return to their live set- SHEER
BRILLIANCE. I could go on in the same FANTASTIC, SPELL-BINDING, SUPERB vein
but you were there and obviously had as great a time as me. The only one
little 'sad' moment was at the end, Jarvis confirming only that we might
"see you again sometime"- the diary appears sadly lacking
without any PULP event to look forward to, no matter the length and wait.
Consequently, hearing 'Happy Endings' was one of both delight and
deliberation- Is it really the...or No, I will dwell on the 'Happy'
instead. Many thanks must go to Steve for arranging such an enjoyable and
eclectic bunch of performers- Magna turned out to be an ideal spot for
such an event (once I found the place!). (Susan Scott)
Auto at Magna...the most exciting, innovative festival I have ever been to! The venue was unusual, atmospheric and very different from the conventional field or stadium experience. Magna is a defunct steelworks turned science museum, however when set up as a music venue it felt like the set of a futuristic industrial sci-fi film. The dilemma throughout the night was where best to be at any given moment – the range of music and film was intriguing, and I found myself wanting to be in several places at once. The only time I didn’t have to agonize over this choice was at 10.15, when the only place to be was Auto Three, to see Pulp. The performance was energetic exhilarating and wonderful. Pulp looked and sounded as fresh and relevant as ever. The size of the hall meant it was easy to see the band throughout. My personal highlight of the evening was ‘This is Hardcore’ – Pulp at their dark and brooding best. I felt Auto was a great event, the atmosphere was unique and I enjoyed it immensely – it was more interesting, inspiring and engaging than any of the typical ‘festivals’ which I feel have become increasingly commercialised and depressing. The style and presentation was unlike anything I have been to before and I really hope it is repeated next year. MORE AUTO! Thanks (Sonya Ward)
I
went to Auto purely as a Pulpy Person, feeling a bit short sighted for not
having a clue what on earth to expect from the rest of it. I needn't
have worried, the atmosphere enveloped us as soon as we got out of the car
to hear the haunting sounds seeping out into the drizzle from inside
Magna. And what a setting!! The whole thing felt surreal as we
wandered, wide eyed, taking in the eclectic and startling selection of
entertainment being presented in the stark, dark and eerie corners of the
old steel works. Soooo atmospheric - Well done Steve! Top night! Pulp
were undeniably GLORIOUS and seemed to revel quite unashamedly in belting
out a stunning set full of tear jerking treats and surprises to a
rapturous and adoring audience. The whole place JUMPED and IT
ROCKED from start to finish! (which came far too soon - of course!). It
was truly incredible, a night I shall treasure with my most precious
of memories! If it really was the ending we've all been dreading, it
couldn't have been happier. A celebration befitting such true
brilliance! So, was that really the end of Pulp? I still can't
bring myself to believe it for a second. So much energy
bursting through in their music...so much still to be said...
(Jarvis! Nothing to say!???) almost like they're only just beginning
to ripen fully. To Pulp I say I truly hope we'll all meet
again, when the time is right of course - we'll always be there
with open arms to embrace your return. Meanwhile, be happy, be true,
and as somebody famous once said "Keep believing and do what
you do" ! Thanks for sharing your music and for bringing so
much pleasure into my life and for giving me the courage to believe in
myself as just me! (Jill Fennell)
I went to Auto on
Saturday night and it was FANTASTIC. I got to meet Candida during the day,
she singed an Auto flyer for me and I also saw Steve but unfortunately, he
didn’t want to sign anything! I also got to hear some of the soundcheck.
Anyway, the bands in the run-up to Pulp were really good. As we were told
when the event was announced; they weren’t support, they were there in
their own right and they were fab! Of course,
nothing compares to Pulp who were at their finest since