The Mission - Lighting The Candles

Unfairly branded as relics of the 80s goth scene in some quarters, The Mission have gone full circle in this DVD which brings together the band in concert, documentaries, bootleg footage, interviews and much more. With 2 DVDs and a live CD this is a must for fans of the band.

Disc One has a full length concert recorded in Koln in April last year for a television show. "Evangeline" has amateurish footage, more akin to an above average bootleg than a professionally recorded film. A trim Wayne Hussey with a severe haircut is joined by the youthful looking musicians who make up the Mission. The crowd are excitable, the light show isn't too ostentatious and the backdrop is suitably gothic. "Garden Of Delight" has plenty of close ups of Rob Holiday's tattoos and guitar playing and of course the other members of the band. Hussey's vocal is a bit world weary on this song. This track is more straight up rock than goth with Wayne displaying his skill as an axe man with ease.

"Like A Child Again" sees Wayne out on his own on this wondrous and quite beautiful song. By this stage of the gig Mr Hussey's voice is a little strained but it's still a spirited performance. Also on this disc are a few vintage music videos/ Time hasn't been kind to these visual delights. They're like period pieces more suitable for a museum of goth memorabilia, but they do entertain if in an unintentional, amusing manner. Take "Wasteland" for example, typically 80s fare, all pomp and circumstance with the Mission's frontman looking moody and frankly ridiculous with his long black hair, hat and white overcoat, stood on the moors interspersed with shots of the band performing.

Disc 2 comes accurately under the banner of special features. There's a biography used with photos (many unseen) chronicling the bands career and narrated by Wayne Hussey which gives a real insight into what truly makes the Mission tick. The discography is a real revelation and it's very easy to forget how successful the Mission were in the mid to late Eighties. Also featured are the rehearsal clips which aren't terribly exciting as you'd expect.

"A Day In The Life" is a short film which takes you backstage with The Mission with yet more film of the band rehearsing, hanging around and drinking beer. Hussey is interviewed in an English pub in America, an interesting revelation is the fact that Wayne originally intended to be a footballer but that all changed when he witnessed a performance by Marc Bolan and T Rex and his career as a  rock star was firmly implanted.

There are eleven bootlegs compiled over the last fifteen years or so which are obviously quite grainy in black and white. WIth a commentary from Wayne Hussey which is refreshingly articulate. Finishing off this lovingly assembled box set is a live CD from their Breathen tour of April 2004. Each track is recorded at a different venue on their European jaunt.

"Lighting The Candles" has everything a fan of The Mission could want and it's an exhaustive document of a band who are still very much with us today

Nicholas Paul Godkin
 

*****************
Click here to leave your The Mission comments on the Message Board
(NB: The message board opens in a new window so please disable your pop-up blocker to view)
*****************