- shame // 29.09. // Regent Theater, Los Angeles
At the risk of appearing a little obsessed with this band, but my „AOTY“-Nr. 1 is also my „Live experience of the year“-Nr. 1. How could they not, though?
Their live shows are something else and everyone who has seen them live can testify to that.
I’ve seen them 5 times in the span of 9 months and it quickly started to feel like coming home. The familiarity, because some aspects of the shows were always the same; Steen’s crowdsurfing, Josh‘ bass moves, the setlist, their very british humour and (kind of John-Lennon-esque-) wit .
The novelty, because it was special and different every time and I felt really alive after each show and kept thinking that almost nothing makes me feel as alive as live music does, especially if it’s being delivered like this. At every show they started off the set with „Fingers of Steel“ of their new album, which isn’t only a good album opener, it is a perfect set opener as well. The drums kick in, the moshpit starts and everyone is going wild.
I hope they’ll achieve the great success they deserve, but a part of me hopes that they will never get so big that they will play big arenas instead of club shows – because the latter are the ones in which their music blooms best.
(I really loved their support act Disq too btw)
2. OSees // 14.08 // Arena, Wien
Everytime I see them live they deliver and this was one of my favourite shows ever of them. There was an ecstatic, hypnotic, even orgasmic feeling in the air and everyone in the crowd was so into it and in such a good mood. One of my favourite gigs of all time!
3. The Murder Capital // 06.08. // Chelsea, Wien
I don’t know if the crowd enjoyed it (the people seemed a little reserved and there was only a lukewarm reaction after every song) or if the band did (the singer mumbled something about „sunday nights, eh?“ during the show), but I definitely did.
I wasn’t feeling so good that day (and the days before that) and dreaded leaving my flat, but two or three songs into the set I bounced back. I kept closing my eyes and was really feeling the songs, like reeeaallly feeling them . This is a theme that runs through my whole life. Having things coming up in my life that really drag me down and then something seemingly simple like a concert, or a walk outside or the right line in a book turn everything around. That night with The Murder Capital was a gig that brought me back to life.
4. Fontaines D.C. // 03.10. // The Wiltern, Los Angeles
It is a little miracle that I made it to this gig. The show was announced after I had already booked my flight back home from the states and it was exactly the day and time where I was supposed to board the plane. Then my flight back home got cancelled, but the gig had already sold out by then. So I bought an extremely overpriced ticket on a slightly scammy reseller website, but it was absolutely worth it. Fontaines DC are one of my favourite bands and while this was not my favourite show of theirs it was still worth every dollar.
Bad: The band didn’t seem too into it that night and the venue charged a lot more for „front-of-stage“-tickets than for „normal“ tickets, which I find infuriating for huge stadium and arena gigs already, but for a venue this size I thought it to be even more of a stupid and capitalist move and also it didn’t make sense. There was a huge, almost-empty gap in the front with people barely moving and then behind, at the cheap seats, people were going wild.
Good: the setlist, the songs, the atmosphere. And the rest of the venue. Above the concert hall there was a beautiful, jazzy bar with leather chairs, the sweetest barkeeper and a gallery with a photo collection of bands and artist who played here before.
5. shame // 12.11 // Fuchs2, Praha
My review for this night would basically be the same as what I’ve written for the gig at Nr. 1, though spoiled a little by a group of three annoying out-of-their-mind-drunk blokes in the crowd who would push everyone in the moshpit, grope every girl in a 2-metre radius of them, try to snatch at the singer’s mic and insult the band on stage. The singer told them off („If you keep being an arsehole I’ll break your fucking neck“), it didn’t help, but at least neither the band nor the crowd let those guys ruin the night and everyone still had a good time. It was such a great gig that I almost bursted from adrenaline afterwards and kept dancing and vibing to the songs in my head for days.
6. shame // 17. 11 // WUK, Wien
7. shame // 15.03. // Cabaret Sauvage, Paris
8. Monsterwatch // 12.05. // Sneaky Pete’s, Edinburgh
+ support act Snash
9. Arctic Monkeys // 24.04 // Tips Arena, Linz
10. Melody’s Echo Chamber // 16.03. // Alhambra, Paris
