by DirtyMartini on 28 May 2007 09:51
I've come to the realization that I don't know what constitutes a spoiler in this situation, so please be warned that THERE MAY BE SPOILERS AHEAD. So if you don't want to know, best go.
Get comfy. DMartini can talk. And she knows some of you live for the piddling details. (*cough*Dive*cough*)
First, yes, I managed to win the autographed copy of Message in a Box. Very sweet. Looks like SC couldn't get the silver Sharpie to work cuz it seems to have been autographed twice (one on top of the other). So whoo-hoo! Plus, the 200 raised almost $4000 for Water Aid in about one hour.
Second, the stuff that you really want to know about: The Show!
Stage: The ovoid set that you guys saw the other day at the Dry Docks, only 360. The floor ramps up and around to make a pitched circuit (higher in the back), which gave SC a nice moment of being able to run a big circle around the stage (and smack Sting on the ass along the way).
Clothes:
Sting: white muscle shirt with v-neck; later for encores, no shirt but a jackety thing (green).
Andy: not sure how to describe the shirt -- kinda militarish? It had blocks of color on the shoulders and probably has an actual name, but I can't for the life of me remember it. Fun guitar strap with "Why God Killed Kenny" (and pics of Kenny) on it.
SC: black under-armor with red details, black headband, black pants, and black belt with silver studs. Quite flash.
Set:
I'll try not to repeat other folks. Here are some of the highlights I managed to jot down afterward:
Overall:
Pacing: some songs were slowed down a bit from the originals (usually not by much), but they usually picked up the pace after the bridge -- and more interestingly, some stuff got faster.
Sting: Lots of folks have the "Jazz Fear" when it comes to Sting, and while no doubt some folks will still say he's too jazzy, I think he did a great job. He did some of his jazzy phrasings, but he did that 20 years ago as well -- and throughout he had a great deal of energy and punch.
Was. Not. Lounge.
Background vocals: with so many people in the audience singing, they were sometimes hard to hear. But I *think* they were a mix of samples and live? Can anyone confirm? Some were definitely samples, but other times it seemed we might have been getting SC right there in the moment. Whichever, they sounded really good. The only one that was an obvious sample was "Roxanne."
(SEE, STEWART! We told you you could sing!)
Andy: Some amazing guitar work.
Stewart: Dear. Lord. Ubique omnia. Worked like a demon, had incredible power even when bringing the volume and tone of the songs down to small and quiet fills and flourishes. Plus, not just one wall of percussion but two AND the big-ass gong. Incredible to behold.
Can't remember which song now, but there was one point where he was bringing up the volume/tone and was just beating the crap out of his toms. The sound was enormous.
Also threw a gorgeous rimshot during a quiet moment in "EBYT." Just one little rimshot really, but wonderful for being something that no other person would have thought to do in that moment. It totally worked.
Opening Moment: The Gong, leading into "Message in a Bottle"
"Don't Stand": Definitely a hybrid as Conroy pointed out. I agree with Blueboy that pushing it back in the line-up a bit would suit the pacing better.
"When the World": Rocked. Unbelievably great jam. SC looked like he was having a blast. Also a really nice moment where Sting was (up on the drum riser? or right next to it) where Sting and SC just looked at each other and smiled, then Sting laughed. Cool.
"Walking on the Moon": Sting sang, "I hope my leg won't break," and SC smiled. Which was either really funny or really bad timing.
"Every/Magic": Really lively, reggae/calypso feel.
"Truth Hits": really good. Slower than LP version, but NOT the slow version.
"Wrapped Around Your Finger": More gong! More percussion!
Also notable cuz this is when SC tripped. He started out at the percussion nirvana (behind and slightly higher than his kit), then literally threw his sticks and RAN the few steps back to his kit to keep the song going. Awesome. Only problem was that when he went to go back from the kit to the rack, he tripped. He totally recovered quickly, but it reminded me of the Gizmo/trip video that's posted on the site somewhere.
(Damn -- or was the trip during "Footsteps"? I'm so tired I'm starting to forget!)
"Bed's Too Big": SO excited to hear this song live!
"Murder": Either SC threw a stick into the air or (more likely) one broke and went flying.
"DDDD": This is the only song that I just don't think worked. The pace seemed odd and inconsistent. Something just seemed off.
"Walking in Your Footsteps": INCREDIBLE. A whole different song. I want this version on record. It had a real rock/blues/funk groove going during the bridge. I can't believe I'm about to say this, but "Footsteps" absolutely rocked. This is the one song that completely surprised me.
Also during the song a mesh screen came down, onto which animated dinosaur bones were projected.
"CSLY"/"Regatta": "Welcome to this one-man show" section sang twice, both times with a lyric change. (First time was "Welcome to Andy Summer's show"; second time "Welcome to Stewart Copeland's show.") Regatta was BRILLIANT. Seriously a highlight of energy.
Also fun is that they ended "CSLY" twice. Seems that the first ending just didn't do it for them?
"Roxanne": Sting sang the lower-note version of the chorus pre-jam/bridge, then kicked into the high notes after. Nicely done. Nice jam and call-and-response with the audience (that included lots more high notes).
"So Lonely"/"EBYT": "So Lonely" was GREAT. I only wish that they had "ended" with "So Lonely" rather than "EBYT." "EBYT" was a good version that really got rocking toward the end, but "So Lonely" has just such a HUGE impact that it seems like a better way to exit.
Ending: After they took their bows, Sting hugged Stewart, then Andy.
Other than some small criticisms, my only two major notes would be
1. Can't hear SC's banter! As I noted on the other thread, SC's witty remarks mostly got drowned out because people were still screaming from the previous song. Wait for us, Stewart -- we want to hear you!
2. One of the earlier songs ("Spirits"?) had some GitM-logo animation going on on the screens -- which is cute for a few seconds, but some of us were relying on those screens to actually see detail of the band. But the GitM animation played through the entire song. The film clips for "Invisible Sun" were understandable (and even had bits of live images fading in and out), but for that one song, you got nothing on the screens but what amounted to a GitM screensaver. Not good for the folks in the back.
Random but noteworthy, some of the Big Names in the audience:
Eddie Veder
Eddie Van Halen
Lawrence Fishburne
R.E.M.
Man, I am so exhausted. Had an unbelievable time.
THANK YOU, STEWART!
Last edited by
DirtyMartini on 28 May 2007 11:52, edited 1 time in total.
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