Landing on the mat with a somewhat shady and convoluted provenance, We Love The World sees the Bradford balladeers’ 2003 Astoria set (already released on DVD in 2004 as 161203) repackaged as a CD/DVD combo seemingly without the band’s blessing.
Opportunistic chicanery aside, it’s a typically strident and impassioned performance, both well filmed and recorded, coming within at least spitting distance of capturing the crux of the NMA live experience. An even spread of tracks from all corners of the catalogue – including the tonally atypical, Shipping Forecast-sampling Ocean Rising from Sullivan’s solo album – illustrates the depth of the songwriting well from which they can draw.
The snarling energy of Stupid Questions and Get Me Out nicely balances the religious reflection of No Pain and rousing melodic anthems Purity and Poison Street, the latter proving the gig’s high spot with a show-stealing harmonica solo.