Brighton - Review of the September 5th concert

[Bigmanpigman]

Another observation for what it's worth, inspired by crazy emerald's comment about gaps between songs. It was great to see a hard-working band delivering the goods on-stage, and, I think, thoroughly enjoying themselves performing Floyd classics, in stark contrast to the slick production of a Floyd gig in the '90s (though I also loved those!). Dave has got himself a great band together there.

[raisemyrent]

Good to hear kjek1. It was me who suggested that was a tough song, so glad to hear from you and also to hear in the bootlegs I found on fb that he's same old DG, able to hit the notes and pull himself together when necessary, and as always, the underrated ability to sound raspy instead of flat when going high.

Any comments on Shine On? As in the arrangement. Pulse style, meltdown style, or a combination as per remember that night?

[kjek1]

Good to hear kjek1. It was me who suggested that was a tough song, so glad to hear from you and also to hear in the bootlegs I found on fb that he's same old DG, able to hit the notes and pull himself together when necessary, and as always, the underrated ability to sound raspy instead of flat when going high.

Any comments on Shine On? As in the arrangement. Pulse style, meltdown style, or a combination as per remember that night?

Absolutely mate. I had my concerns on certain songs too, just at 69 you wonder how long he can keep his voice in such good nick, but he's done a brilliant job.

Shine on was more a Pulse arrangement, full band playing at all times. It was great though I did like the slower more intimate version from recent years

[MrAnderson]

He played all nine parts of Shine On right? When's the last time he did that, out of interest?

[Follix]

He played all nine parts of Shine On right? When's the last time he did that, out of interest?

According to Setlist.com it's in 2002: http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/david-gil ... 6151b.html

[Bigmanpigman]

'Brain Damage' Review of the gig -

David Gilmour - Brighton Centre, September 5th 2015


Capacity: 4,500

Concert starts: 7:30pm

Address of venue: Kings Road, Brighton, BN1 2GR. MAP

Website: brightoncentre.co.uk



COMMENTS

With the 'proper' start to David's 2015 tour of Europe taking place in the historic Arena Pula in Croatia one week later, he kicks off the tour with a 'preview' show being held in this much more contemporary venue. Built in 1977, it is typical of multi-use venues in that it is designed to cater for basketball games, concerts, ice skating events, toy and model fairs, and much more. It is therefore relatively square in layout but with its 4,500 capacity, no seat tends to be too far from the wide stage area, and sight lines are generally very good. It is also a handy concert for a couple of the band, who live locally...

The concert also comes around two weeks before the album, Rattle That Lock, is released, giving fans an early taste of the music to come on September 18th.

Tickets were available on a limited presale before going on general sale at 10am UK time Monday, July 27th through this direct link. As with the London Royal Albert Hall shows, there are some ticketing considerations. Under 14s must be accompanied by an adult, and tickets are limited to four per person, per household. The ticketholder's name will be printed on the ticket, and photo ID checks will be in place on arrival to confirm customer identity, in order to limit re-sale of tickets on the secondary market. To gain entrance to the venue, the ticketholder HAS to be present.

SET LIST -

FIRST HALF: 5am, Rattle That Lock, Faces Of Stone, Wish You Were Here, A Boat Lies Waiting, The Blue, Money, Us And Them, In Any Tongue, High Hopes.
SECOND HALF: Astronomy Domine, Shine On You Crazy Diamond, Fat Old Sun, On An Island, The Girl In The Yellow Dress, Today, Sorrow, Run Like Hell ENCORE: Time / Breathe (reprise), Comfortably Numb.


Saturday night in the south coast city of Brighton featured a show that will long remain in the memories of those fortunate enough to be in attendance. David Gilmour kicked off his 2015 tour to support the release of Rattle That Lock, the new album due in a couple of weeks time, with a Preview Show at the Brighton Centre.


The venue isn't normally noted as one of the better places acoustically (and I talk with experience of many shows there over the years) but David and his technical wizards absolutely nailed it this evening with flawless sound, and a lightshow which seemed perfect. It has been some 43 years since David last performed in front of an audience in Brighton, and with the reaction from the fans to material old and new, hopefully it won't be too long before we see him back in what could be considered his hometown now.

Without further ado, here's our review. Did you go? Let us know what YOU thought!

CONCERT REVIEW, by BD's Matt:
Well, what a show to kick things off with - not content with the arrangement of a Preview Show at a relatively small venue in his (now) hometown, David and his band proceeded to almost blow the roof off a venue which is destined for closure at some point fairly soon. One expects preview shows to be glorified dress rehearsals, with a band almost up-to-speed, with rough corners and last minute changes. David's Brighton show gave none of that, instead, offering the 4,500 very lucky fans there one of the finest performances we've seen from him and the band for many years.

The band - old and new members alike - seemed finely rehearsed but not to the level of boredom or complacency, and gave such a vivid sense that they were all having such an enjoyable time. If the rest of the tour, which starts with the first 'proper' show in a week's time in Pula, Croatia, is anything like the Brighton show, fans across the world are in for such a treat.

The joy of a first night is that nothing is really known about what will unfold. Sense and detective work fills in some blanks of course. A tour supporting David's new album will see most if not all of that album performed, and glimpses of the stage in some of Polly Samson's shots from rehearsals hinted at certain possibilities (seeing lap steels or large bells, for example) but other than that, one could only guess beforehand.

Entering the venue, one was struck by the size of the staging. A wide stage was set up in the relative gloom of the pre-show seat filling period, and a deep one too, although seating for the front rows was extremely close to the front line of the performers - a nice touch for those fortunate enough to be there. Lighting was provided principally by side lights, follow spots, and an array of 24 (3x8) Vari-lites directly above the stage. Oh, and a large Mr Screen which must have been a good 20-25 foot tall, ringed of course with more Vari-lites. In a modern update to Mr Screen, this now seemed to feature a circular LED screen rather than the older projection technology to throw the images onto it. This will presumably make things much easier for some of the venues which could have proven a headache to get a suitable projector into position. As we were to see, these were all combined to dazzling effect thanks to the expert work of Production/Lighting Director Marc Brickman and Creative Director Aubrey Powell, both of which were in attendance.

So to the show...my expectations were that the first half would be the new album, and proceedings kicked off with some ambient sounds as an intro to 5AM, the first track of Rattle That Lock. The band were washed in blue, with David picked out in red, simple but effective. The opening sounds of the title track, up next, woke Mr Screen from his slumbers as he came to life, providing a suitable home for the animation created for the song, as the band were lit by the 24 downlights. Faces of Stone followed (as on the album) with a simply lit band ensuring attention on the song. And then, a break from the album, with David explaining that "due to various fuck-ups" the album wasn't ready in time for the initial shows. First surprise of the night - Wish You Were Here, so early in the set! Beautifully lit, with the downlights providing almost a rain effect, it was matched by the performance which was wonderful.

The set then returned to A Boat Lies Waiting - the fourth track on the album and a tribute to Richard Wright. This sounded lovely and there was some clear emotion displayed, especially when Richard's words were heard during the song. Suitably, this was followed by The Blue from David's previous album, On An Island, working perfectly in tandem with A Boat...

With a nod back through the 43 years since David had last played in Brighton, we then had a staggeringly fresh Money and Us And Them, both with original screen films and the former, in particular, sounded particularly strong and tight, but neither seemed to get as strong post-song reaction as what was to follow. In Any Tongue, another new song, featured some new animation which grabbed the attention, almost as much as the song, which is destined to be an in-concert favourite. The cheering and applause - and the crowd on its feet - at the end of the song was testament to its strength and quality.

High Hopes concluded the first half well, and left the crowd happy but eager to see what was still to come, in this show which at times felt more like a Floyd show than a Gilmour solo concert.

A dazzling start to the second half came with an unexpected Astronomy Domine, complete with suitably impactive lighting and oil slide bubbles on the screen. Shine On was to follow, using the 1994 screen film following the growth of a Syd-like figure from a boy to a man, ending up with him sweeping flowers from an empty swimming pool.

Next up, that concert staple of band introductions. Now, as there were a few new faces this was no bad thing. Phil Manzanera, Guy Pratt, Steve DiStanislao all got expected mentions; Jon Carin, as David pointed out, was unusually in this band playing guitars too - it was the first time that David was using him for his string work although many of us know him well for his guitar work (as well as keyboards) for Roger. The four new faces got deserved praise from the crowd for their excellent performances; local boy Bryan Chambers alongside Louise Marshall both delivered great backing vocals, Theo Travis excelled on sax and clarinet filling in the gap left by Dick Parry who, David explained, didn't feel up to the rigours of a tour, and Kevin McAlea very ably filled what David called "very large shoes" on keyboards throughout, with a touch and finesse easily good enough to carry that role comfortably freeing up Jon to provide more acoustic, electric and slide guitar work.

Back in time for an earlier Floyd track, and Fat Old Sun, which did see some outings on the previous tour. A fine performance, and followed by the title track of On An Island - both good selections leading to the next of the new tracks. The Girl In The Yellow Dress was - as David acknowledged - a bit of a departure, being a very jazzy number, accompanied by more new animation. Slightly more familiar to many was the new single, revealed at the end of last week; Today seemed to really come alive in the live setting for a number of people, based on post-show comments, and was to be the last of the new tracks (leaving three tracks from Rattle That Lock unplayed).

Rattling the very fabric within our very beings were the deep, deep and very loud bass notes heralding Sorrow - which came as a pleasant surprise addition to the set. Now 28 years old, the track was a welcome resurrection to proceedings and almost got people ready for what was to follow.

The various performances of Run Like Hell over the years have always tended to have a visual (as well as musical impact) but never has it been as eye-popping or intense as this. Starting with Mr Screen's lights providing faux laser effects to coincide with the initial guitar work, the song proper had the band all wearing sunglasses. This was not in preparation for a Blues Brothers segment, but instead, to protect them from the incredible, almost potentially seizure-inducing stroboscopic multi-coloured lighting in this song. One man just by us had to cover his eyes but the rest of us loved it! As a side note, Guy managed to slip in a change to the vocal noting that they'll "send you back to Brighton in a cardboard box"!

Phew...the show was now getting to the conclusion of its two and a half hour running time, with the encores. First up, a slightly unexpected (in this segment) couplet of Time followed by the Breathe Reprise, both played superbly. What would conclude the show? Only one song could really be in contention.

If any aspect of the show had left parts of the roof unraised, Comfortably Numb blew those away, with the crowd on their feet throughout the song. A fitting end to one of the best shows I've seen. Feeling more like a Floyd show than a solo event, it gave the audience much more than any were expecting to see or hear, but with the principal focus being on the music - as it should be. Visually the show was stunning but unlike some performers it never overwhelmed the music. The perfect balance, as we expect from David and his team.

For those many thousands who are seeing the tour proper as it travels around the world, you are in for such a treat. My expectations are that the final set list will be quite different in terms of material and order. My feelings are that David will more likely perform the new album in the first half, and do a mix of Floyd and older solo material, in the second. With the aforementioned "fuck-ups" delaying the release of the album, I think he moved things around bringing in the other material from WYWH onwards early into the set so as not to "lose" the audience with too much unfamiliar material in one chunk. Having said that, the new album sounds very strong indeed, with at least one song (In Any Tongue) already feeling like it will be a modern day concert highlight from the incredible reaction it got.

As ever, we really want to know what you thought of the show too...

CONCERT REVIEW by BD CONTRIBUTOR, Heather Fenton
We were lucky enough to get front row seats for this show and it completely blew us away (along with the roof!). We agree with everything you said, it was absolutely brilliant, one of the best if not the best shows we have ever been to. The setlist was the work of a genius and the running order was fantastic.

The enthusiasm and vibrancy of David and the band soon rolled off into the audience and the blend of new, old and even older worked incredibly well. I never thought I would hear 'Sorrow' and 'Run Like Hell' performed live and these together with 'Money' and 'Us and Them' were wonderful surprises especially as the latter is my favourite song from Dark Side. The rendition of 'Fat Old Sun' was a show stopper, quite superb.

My husband had already mentioned on the way home the 'Blues Brothers' shades very wisely to protect eyes but did not slow Guy down at all and he was still running, jumping and bouncing just like the PULSE tour!

A wonderful performance. THEN just when you thought that there was no more left along came 'Comfortably Numb' with Jon Carin accentuating and clipping words just like the Roger Waters original vocals. This combined with David's vocals and excellent guitar playing it had to be one of the best versions (close to Gdansk version with Richard and the orchestra) we have ever heard. Thank you so much to David, the Band, Polly and all who worked so hard backstage to bring us a fantastic show. We still have RAH to look forward to (and the DVD!!!!!!!). What a great year it has been and still more to come! Incredible.

YOUR HELP NEEDED! We want to cover David's concerts the best we can, to share the experience with everyone, especially those who won't be able to attend the shows. We'd love to see ANY pictures, tickets scans, reviews, newspaper reports, and anything else you come across for this show - we look forward to hearing from you!

[UsNotThem]

Reading all these reviews are getting me so excited for the 25th!

I have a feeling that this just may top Roger doing The Wall!

[raisemyrent]

slowly running through the bootlegs. I'm the kind of person who enjoys something best when I know what I'm about to experience. different folks, different strokes. This applies in particular to the new album, as I will be travelling and will have seen a few shows by the time it shows up on my door. I suppose I could do iTunes on the road. I thought this was being done on purpose like with TDB, but I suppose Gilmour has made it clear it was not meant to be this way at the Brighton show.
The In Any Tongue song is really cool; it is reminiscing a bit of A Pocketful of Stones, A Great Day for Freedom, and low and behold, post-ATD Waters. chills-down-your-spine guitar solo. it's just the kind of track that sits well in one of his albums, just the right amount of Floyd in it, without being a re-hash of something PF has done, or something that "belonged" on a Floyd album. Gilmour seems to be riding a musical wave-high after doing TER and RTL. Perfect time to do a tour!

[moodyblue]

I have a feeling that this just may top Roger doing The Wall!

Very different kind of show.

[everton1690]

got some good photos , but cant post them as says file too big

great show, honestly thought louder than words would of been played, and don't think run like hell and sorrow will be on the main tour

great meeting chris eubank on the front , as im a big boxing fan

great that there were so many scousers there too

[ddebil]

got some good photos , but cant post them as says file too big

I put several up on the NPF Facebook page - wish I hadn't bothered.

Hope you had as good a time as I, and you got that extra ticket you needed.