In the thick, soupy summer twilight of Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen, Terminal 5 brimmed with electricity as Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark summoned their playful synth-pop spirit for their final, triumphant stop of a rigourous 30-date tour. Despite oppressive heat, the audience radiated excitement, matching every ounce of the band’s seemingly boundless energy. After a spirited performance from opening act Walt Disco, OMD took the stage with jubilant cheers. After all, the audience had waited months for this one.
In February 2024, as the band started gearing up for this tour, frontman Andy McCluskey voiced his excitement at incorporating material from their latest album into the sets. “It’s been six years since we learned new songs for live performances,” he said. “The songs from Bauhaus Staircase will fit beautifully into our setlist – we just have to choose which five to play, as we have to treat people to the hits as well!”
But last August, the tour got waylaid as OMD announced that the band would have to postpone due to health issues – the first time they ever had to do so in their 45-year career. OMD picked things right up again this May with a tour spanning seven weeks and thirty performances, making stops at key cities such as Washington, DC; Atlanta; Austin; Denver; Seattle; Los Angeles; Chicago; and Boston, before its thrilling finale in New York City.
This week, McCluskey, proudly flaunting his state-of-the-art bionic knee, danced with infectious exuberance and great humour, igniting cheers and joyful sing-alongs to classics like Tesla Girls and Locomotion. “This knee’s good for another 66 years!” he proudly proclaimed, doing high kicks as he clutched his guitar.
Co-founder Paul Humphreys wove subtle harmonies with precise elegance, revealing the enduring magic of their creative partnership. Martin Cooper, handling keyboards and saxophone, provided an emotional centerpiece, particularly with his soulful solo during So in Love, bringing tears to many eyes. Drummer Stuart Kershaw drove the pulse of the evening with sharp rhythms, whilst injecting fresh life into beloved tracks. The ensemble, cohesive and inspired, sounded as compelling and elegant as in their earliest days.
Messages and History of Modern (Part I) melded effortlessly, their synth-driven melodies balanced by thoughtful lyricism. A delicate, emotional journey followed as Souvenir eased gracefully into the tender longing of Joan of Arc, culminating dramatically in the sweeping power of Maid of Orleans, leaving the audience momentarily breathless. McCluskey couldn’t resist teasing Humphreys a few times, mentioning a home in France at one point (much to Humphreys’ embarrassment). It was delightful to see such affectionate camaraderie between them, after five decades.
While the band could’ve coasted on their greatest hits alone, true to their word, they peppered in newer offerings such as Kleptocracy and The Rock Drill, each song illuminating the band’s confident evolution, and received equally as enthusiastically. Veruschka added exotic rhythms, as OMD cast a hypnotic spell across the venue…and security tossed out water bottles to the parched onlookers in the pit.
Visuals amplified the night’s impact: striking montages of Louise Brooks from the film Pandora’s Box heightened the atmosphere during its namesake song, while poignant scenes from Pretty in Pink accompanied the heartfelt If You Leave. The buoyancy of Dreaming and the infectious energy of Sailing on the Seven Seas drove the evening toward a powerful conclusion, reaching a dramatic crescendo with the profound immediacy of Enola Gay, underscored by chilling imagery of atomic devastation. One couldn’t help thinking, “here we are again.”
As pioneers who inspired generations, from Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure, and Pet Shop Boys to LCD Soundsystem and CHVRCHES, OMD’s Terminal 5 performance celebrated both their storied past and present vitality.
“We’ll be back soon,” they assured the crowd, concluding the encore with a timely and powerful rendition of their 1980 masterpiece, Electricity, a song still urgently calling for cleaner energy after 45 years.
The chance to change has nearly gone
The alternative is only one
The final source of energy
Solar electricity
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