The Wanderer

Arcade Fire: December 12, 2010: Glasgow Scotland

Arcade Fire

Main Act: Arcade Fire
Opening Act: Devendra Banhart & The Grogs
Date: Sunday, December 12, 2010
Location: Glasgow, Scotland
Venue: SECC (Scottish Exhibition and Conference Centre)

Today we’re off to Glasgow.  I got up early, showered, packed, and was raring to go as alarm clock after alarm clock failed to rouse my friend. He’s up in time to make the dash to the train station, get a chicken sandwich for breakfast and hop on the train. It’s a long train ride north, and we get into Glasgow in the afternoon.

Royal Mail has lost our tickets for the show, so our first stop is to find the guy we’ve arranged for new tickets with.  He meets us at city hall to buy the tickets.  The worst thing is we know the other set had arrived in Manchester, and had been misplaced.  So like it or not we’re out an extra 80 pounds to see the show.  On the way to pick up tickets we run into a friend of Rory’s out of the blue.

Tickets obtained, my priority is now lunch.  Wagamama.  Then check in.  A nap.  And ready for the gig.  Decide to leave the jackets at home, as we’re going for a front rail berth.  A quick cab to the SECC, and we find the line is inside.  Perfect.  We’re not far from the front, and with luck should find ourselves on the rail.  Doors open right on time, and we’re right in front of where Regine will spend most of her time and close to the center of the rail.  While sitting there, for the first time on the tour, a representative from Partners in Health stops by to talk about the cause, and we donate some money, and get fun little pins.

Devendra Banhart & The Grogs do mostly the same set we’ve seen every night of the tour.  These guys are tight.  They sound good together.  And I enjoy watching them live.  Seeing them from the front row tonight allows me to get even deeper into the music.  Really entertaining.

And then it’s time for Arcade Fire.

Ready to Start
Month of May
Keep the Car Running
Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
No Cars Go
Haiti
Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
Modern Man
Rococo
My Body is a Cage
The Suburbs
The Suburbs (Continued)
Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
We Used to Wait
Neighborhood #3 (Power’s Out)
Rebellion (Lies)
Intervention
Wake Up

After three shows from a distance away from the stage, getting up close and personal made this one special.  I love being able to see the intimate details of a performance.  The expressions on an artist’s face.  The little things like catching them looking down at a setlist, to the always heartwarming, catching a smile on their face as they see something in the audience.

The band is amazing tonight.  This might have been my favorite performance of the four I saw in December.  Ready to Start into Month of May, into Keep the Car Running, just starts the show with such energy and passion, that it’s hard to come down to earth.  I’m mindful of the pregnant lady next to me throughout the show, so hold in check some of my passion, and help ensure her boyfriend can fend off some of the craziness behind us.  But for the most part things aren’t bad.

Sprawl II leaves me with goosebumps as usual.  Regine performs right in front of us.  I risk taking a video and partway through security asks me to stop.  That’s fine, as I tune back into the beautiful performance in front of me.

Powers Out into Rebellion (Lies) is one of the most perfect concert duos ever.  These two songs were meant to be together.  My heart races everytime I hear them start.  Tonight the band is on fire.  They know it’s the end of the tour, and the last time they are playing for a while, so they go all out.  Win mentions that Glasgow is one of their favorite spots to perform in the world, right up there with Dublin, because the audience gets so into it.  I would have loved to see what things look like from the stage during this combo, as I’m sure it looks absolutely mad.

Summersault - August 16, 2000

Summersault Festival - Citadel Hill, Halifax NS

Finger 11 / Catherine Wheel / Eve 6 / Foo Fighters / Smashing Pumpkins / Our Lady Peace

Foo Fighters

Breakout / Learn to Fly / My Hero / Up in Arms /  I’ll Stick Around /  Big Me / Stacked Actors / Have a Cigar / Sweet Home Alabama / Lynyrd Skynyrd (Jam) / Bridge of Sighs (Jam) / This is a Call / Next Year / Monkey Wrench / Everlong

Smashing Pumpkins

Heavy Metal Machine / The Everlasting Gaze / The Sacred and Profane / Mayonaise / I Am One / Don’t You Want Me - Du Hast / I of the Mourning / To Shiela / This Time / Rock On / Bullet with Butterfly Wings / Stand Inside Your Love / Blue Skies Bring Tears / Cherub Rock / 1979

1997-06-15 U2 / Fun Lovin’ Criminals

Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton Alberta

Mofo / I Will Follow, Even Better Than The Real Thing, Gone, Pride, I Still Haven’t Found, Last Night On Earth, Until The End Of The World, If God Will Send His Angels, Slow Dancing, Staring At The Sun, Sweet Caroline, Miami, Bullet the Blue Sky, Please, Where the Streets Have No Name // Discotheque, If You Wear That Velvet Dress, With or Without You, Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me, One-Hallelujah

Edmonton 06-14-1997

My first U2 show. This is taken from my review which was posted at u2tours.com. Gathering some of my U2 reviews together here for now where I will edit and tweak them and comment about the shows from a later perspective.

—-

After years of listening to U2, starting with the album that hooked me, UABRS, I was totally intrigued by the live performances. Thus when it was announced Popmart was landing in Edmonton while I was working there I couldn’t believe my luck. The excitement levels were building as every month passed. I was hoping I wasn’t building the whole experience up as I entered Commonwealth Stadium for the first show. Looking back, I didn’t.

A sold out stadium, in a city which U2 had never played before made for a high energy level that night. As the strains of Pop Muzik started I knew they were on their way in. Two things became apparent as I turned to watch the screen as U2 made their entrance. One, it was still daylight, making the screen difficult to view with the sun still shining in my eyes. Two, up this close, I didn’t really need the screen. Thank you Propaganda.

The set list was exactly as expected. The local paper had printed a review of Winnipeg, and the set list was identical, with the exception of Unchained Melody closing the concert after One. I didn’t mind. Knowing the set helped me deal with some of the sensory overload from attending my first U2 concert.

If anything the concert did seem a little “stiff”, a little too rehearsed. It was widely rumored that the concert was being recorded for promotional use for the second Popmart leg, and this may have lead to it all. None of the problems that had been so widely reported in the early shows were evident. The band performed a tight set, with little problem.

One thing that stands out about the show was the crowd. At first I thought it was just because I had never been in a building with 50000 people before, but even Bono commented on how loud we were. His surprise at the strength of the crowd was evident as we stole Pride away from him before he expected and made it our own. A great show.

And as I left I knew I was going back for more the next night. This whole experience was only halfway finished.

1997-06-14 U2 / Fun Lovin’ Criminals

Commonwealth Stadium, Edmonton Alberta

Mofo / I Will Follow / Even Better Than The Real Thing / Gone / Pride / I Still Haven’t Found-Stand By Me / Last Night On Earth / Until The End Of The World / If God Will Send His Angels / Staring At The Sun / Daydream Believer / Miami / Bullet the Blue Sky / Please / Where the Streets Have No Name // Discotheque / If You Wear That Velvet Dress / With or Without You / Hold Me Thrill Me Kiss Me Kill Me / Mysterious Ways / One-Unchained Melody