A cinema in Wrexham has been chosen as the only North Wales venue for the global premiere of a documentary film about international hit music duo The Chemical Brothers.
For one night only at the Odeon Cinema in Eagles Meadow, music fans across the world will be treated to a heady mix of big beat tunes and a dazzling visual light show by one of the UK’s most successful electronic music acts.
The documentary film, which will be screened across the world on Friday (February 3), charts the headline set played in front of 50,000 fans at the iconic Fuji Rock Festival held on a Japanese mountainside last year.
For two decades, The Chemical Brothers have played live to sell out audiences across the world but it has never been recorded or shown on film until now and the only place to see the concert experience in North Wales is at the Odeon Cinema at the busy shopping centre.
Odeon manager, Andy Elvis, said: “It is a tremendous coup for us to be staging such a unique and exclusive film and it is brilliant to bring it to Wrexham.
“Wrexham people are a trendy bunch who love their music so I have no doubt this will appeal to a lot of people but with only one showing, I would urge people to book their tickets as soon as they can.
“The film looks set to be a mesmorising mix of light, sound and film and the transforming effect this can have on an audience. The idea is that you feel like you are immersed in it, just as if you were watching it live.
“It combines the band’s famously ferocious modern electronic sounds and hardcore dance beats with striking, eye catching visuals. It is a feast for the senses.”
Tom Rowlands and Ed Simons formed The Chemical Brothers in Manchester in 1991 and are credited with bringing the electronic music genre to the forefront of pop culture.
Known for massive hits such as Hey Girl, Hey Boy and Block Rockin’ Beats, the Grammy award winning artists have released seven albums, five of which debuted at number one in the UK. They also wrote the soundtrack to the 2011 action thriller film Hanna and the track Don’t Think from their latest album Further featured heavily in the dark psychological thriller, Black Swan, starring Natalie Portman.
The film is directed by Adam Smith who is also known for his Emmy Award winning period BBC drama Little Dorritt, the first Dr Who episodes with Matt Smith and some of the first series of the much talked about Channel Four drama, Skins.
He has worked with The Chemical Brothers for close to 20 years designing the visionary video elements of the duo’s live shows. He has also directed music videos for The Streets, Goldie Lookin Chain and Lady Sovereign.
He said: “Tom and Ed are great to work with because they are very open to stuff which is empowering in a way because they let me just get on with it. Their music takes you on a journey of emotions and I simply try to reflect that.
“I filmed it as raw and emotional as possible. I wanted the camera to make people feel like they are really at a Chemical Brothers gig, like they are in the crowd being jostled around.”
Kevin Critchley, Eagles Meadow manager, said the showing of Don’t Think underpinned the shopping centre’s value as a leisure destination for its visitors as well as a place to shop.
He said: “We really do have the best of both worlds at Eagles Meadow. Not only do we offer a terrific range of good quality retailers but we also have the facility to bring the people of Wrexham a great cinematic opportunity.
“Without the Odeon, we obviously wouldn’t be able to make Wrexham the only place to see this exciting film performance in North Wales. The leisure facilities we have here – cinema, bowling and great restaurants – are integral to the shopping experience we are able to offer.”
