Concert Reviews, Photos, Videos and Rock and Roll Stories from fans who love live music

Come on….“Them Crooked Vultures” …even with the name they are off to a good start . The short videos on YouTube had me interested and well being a concertaholic I knew reputation was enough for me to get a ticket and experience these guys live. I’ve listened to more Zeppelin than Foo’s or Queens of The Stone Age… so I will not be detailing the guys careers here or have a big say in who they sound like most. Just the show as I saw it.

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…..I take my hobby serious and jumped into the rainy line-up around 4pm. Only 20 people in line so far…so the front row was going to happen for me and it did. After a few hours of swapping concert stories with various music lovers including two fathers with their teenage kids… we headed in and I locked myself onto the rail directly in front of where one of the world’s most talented bassist’s would stand for 90 minutes.

With no CD out yet and very little information about the band… the rumours were no opening band and no encore. Fine I’ll take what I can get. Only moments away we are about to witness…Josh Homme on guitar and lead vocals, Dave Grohl on drums and John Paul Jones teaching bass. Plus, there was a fourth Crooked Vulture Alain Johannes on rhythm guitar.

The house music stops, the vultures walk out…say hello and explode into “Elephants”. The groove was on, the roll was heavy and goosbumps happened at 30 seconds into a song I’ve only heard twice on YouTube. Grohl gang banged his drum kit and I learned quickly that Homme knew what to do with a guitar… and John Paul Jones…. well it hadn’t really hit me that it was him 12 feet in front of me.

After the first song the crowd erupted and moved in closer as Josh started to introduce his Crooked band mates. He saved Jones for last and rather than say his name, he simply pointed over to him….and the entire crowd started chanting “JOHN PAUL JONES, JOHN PAUL JONES, JOHN PAUL JONES”  a slight smile from the man himself and that was just one of those moments you talk about for the next 10 years a parties!

The following 80+ minutes was a thunderous music demonstration from multiple genres along with creating one in the middle of it all. The direction changed too many times to remember with layer upon layer it seemed like a tennis match at times… for myself trying to decide who to zero in on as the boomerang of rock, blues and psychedelica bounced around in between flashes of light. For chemistry I noticed Josh really connecting with JPJ a few times…along with numerous vocal fills from each of the guys including John Paul Jones.

Here is Scumbag Blues to give you a feel…

As far as musicians from different bands hooking up… I saw Chickenfoot and for the money in a small venue it was fun although the music didn’t make much sense to me. This evening’s performance and this band made sensek. There is thought behind all Them Crooked Vultures… from the Bonham pounding Grohl to John Paul Jones playing that piano outro on Daffodils…straight on over to Homme who stood tall, proud and confident of what he and bandmate Alain Johannes were delivering.

In short…Elephants as a first song took me to a place many encores never have and the pace throughout was amazing right up to the last couple of  songs…… here is “Nobody Love Me” just deadly…..

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….and then… the closing tune  “Warsaw” . This was so killer  I couldn’t lift my arm to video and the insane jam for the final few minutes..was paralyzing….. they drew us in… playing harder and harder and then it ENDED. Done Right there. No Encore.

I got it…they had me… I wanted more. 90 minutes of songs I’ve never heard and I wanted another “set”

If you are following this band, were at this show or any shows this tour please leave us a comment or quick review of what you are digging about Them Crooked Vultures.

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It isn’t just a rock show!! U2′s 360 Tour is a massive spectacle!!  This band is at the absolute pinnacle of their success in many ways!! Heading into this show if you want to be close to the stage you have to go the full GA immersion. You have to get down early and stay alert and get ready to run when you can. Jeff got down to the Rogers Centre somewhere around 8:30AM and I arrived just after. There was a fan list being done that never really helped much but none the less we were numbers 236 and 237. The first few barricades held tents, chairs, newspapers and lots of sleeping bags.  There were people who started camping out before the first show was even over and others who attended show #1 on the 16^th & walked out of the venue and right back into line.

Understanding there is an circular area that holds some 2000 we were going to be in there no problem… it is the barrier spot in between Bono and the Edge that is in very high demand and this was our predetermined ideal location for watching U2 360 unfold.

This would be my 8^th U2 show and of the last to 2 tours I was inside the ellipse twice and the heart twice. The location of the Rogers and the many store in close proximity made life a lot easier. The day was spent people watching and meeting new fans. The line up began to tighten up around 2PM. Security had people get rid of their chairs and begin to bunch up. Close to 4PM security began to stamp tickets and hands with a green stamp indicating these were general admission bodies and tickets.  At 5PM security made a weak announcement letting people know there were 5 shoots to move down and we needed to remain orderly. This is where security was the most lax.

I stood in my approximate location and watched as easily 50 to 100 people began to filter into the line. This is when I made my decision to move directly to a shoot bypassing the barriers all together!! Being basically a loner concert goer I move quickly and hit a hard run as I clear the turnstiles. Security told people not to run. I just kept running. I ran down 3 ramps and then the stairs to floor of the stadium and to the security manned barrier at the entrance to the pit!! Bang! I am in the pit and dash for the rail stage in the space between the microphone stand for will Bono and where Edge will spend most of his time during the show!! Out of breathe but very happy I check number of the people beside me just for curiosity sake and they are in the low teens!! Not bad and right where I want to be.

Right away the stage is massive and very impressive. In size maybe the Stones last couple of tours would compare but by design this beast is in a league of its own. As I understand that there are 3 of these babies playing leap- frog around North America. A show on this scale has to stay on the road for a couple of years to really make it worth while. AS an added bonus the roof is fully retracted. This is the first show the roof has been opened since one of Bruce Springsteen’s shows in 2003 a the Rogers Centre.

After everything is said and done this tour will likely be the highest grossing tour of all time. Were not here to count beans we are here to see rock and roll in all its glory!! Snow Patrol, open the show and they are very well received.  Nice gig for these guys!! Fellow Dubliners getting to open up for what is right now the biggest band going!! Snow Patrol play an inspired set given the task and really come across as having a lot of fun!!

The anticipation is thick!! As 9PM nears and with the end of each song being blasted over the PA it grows… everyone know what signifies the beginning from following YOUTUBE videos or reading or talking to someone who went last night…. delirium reins down as the opening chords of Bowies Space Oddity unfolds for us….as Bowies tunes concludes Larry’s drums kick in and out of know where the new tune Breathe hits as the Biggest band in the world is pretty ballsy to come out and play 4 new songs one after another.

No LINE ON THE HORIZON then a nice Bono Hello with an intro into Get On Your Boots which has some awesome bass and drum kicking…and then into the killer of these 4 tunes Magnificent … this is a great song !! We are pumped   and the euro-rockers keep hitting us Mysterious Ways followed by Beautiful Day come F***IN  on! The Explorer Edge uses in the intro to Beautiful Day offers us a slightly longer version…. a nice change from the album track !! Larry gets a ride during this song as his drum platform move around in a circle for some reason and then ELEVATION!

Just look at these songs played already!! We are in a deadly spot as the Edge is playing a lot directly in front of where we are posted!! The camera attached the stage and sliding around the stage perimeter is annoying but it still so nice to be this close. There is some momentary thought of maybe it would be nice to back it the stands to get the full effect of the stage design but this quickly fades when Still haven’t Found What I’m Looking For get unleashed followed by Unknown Caller!!

Edge does really nice guitar work on this tune just understated enough to really send that trade- mark ethereal sound wafting out to the masses!!  The keyboards are magic here as well. Got to Love it!!!  New Years Day still carries the same passion it had for when I saw the first time!! This band still plays this with conviction and it is good!!

I have been listening to the bootleg from Barcelona shows of this tour and NYD isn’t played so I guess they are doing some deviating from a standard setlist. This stage & show is so large that deviating from a standard list would be pretty difficult as it has to pretty heavily choreographed, all the way through. I guess you could say this would be the only down side that the show is almost “bigger” than you can take in, like on the edge of being too much!!

During one of the many “participation moments”  Bono yells to the condo towers that peer into the Rogers Centre to offer a signal that they were listening …turn your lights on & off if your listening he said ….. there were some responders and it was classic!! Anyway we wind down near here with some acoustic ……Stuck in a Moment.

The second serious sing along is the City of Blinding Lights. I loved this tune from the first moment I heard it was the first song to jump from HTDAB for me and it still sounds gorgeous.  At the end of Unforgettable Fire…Bono pulled a young kid up onto the ramp. See it happen here Then he kicked off CITY by walking hand in hand with him. Lucas was his name and Bono seemed to be singing & teaching him something using the songs lyrics.  When lyric regarding purple irises the camera can’t see, Bono took off his shaded glasses and had his young partner put them on… it was cool to see the kid looking around with the shades as cameras flashed..  It was marvelous… the interplay and symbolic nature of the song and the child in relation to what was going on in the song. It seemed to fit well!!

Hello Hello!! Vertigo and the crowd are in frenzy. I mean a real frenzy!! I think we are peaking here because the energy is just so high. In this moment we are all just jumping up and down in one big mass!!  I’ll Go Crazy gets a highly souped- up extended remix version that is nice! I liked it a lot better then the album. It is tough to say but Sunday Bloody Sunday sailed by way too fast. It wasn’t the most inspired version I have ever heard. The crowd started this song out strong…I am sure the first part of the song got a standard treatment with Edge’s guitar was ringing like a friggin bell… but it got mush more interesting when and we got a little Clash throwin’ in for good measure…with Rock The Casbah and the Irish lullaby that was to bridge to the portion of the show that honors  Aung San Suu.

We get out our masks on and volunteers wearing masks walk the catwalk that separates the inner GA section from the main GA section. This is a very poignant moment.  I know this deserves more explanation but this is a rock show review. I will leave the political explanation to someone who is more inclined. I could tell but really couldn’t really see the stage when it came completely alive during Walk On. The massive revolving screen dropped down and formed a huge cone. I’m not sure if it was at this point Bono mentioned Daniel Lanois and the fact it is his birthday pretty soon. He said “Happy Birthday Danny Boy”.

The band kind of disappeared for awhile around this point and came out to do One… Bono out to the microphone hold that beautiful green Gretsch guitar with The Goal is Soul pick guard…had the whole place pull out cell phone and called them “our stars”. I know this would have been a nice place for Daniel Lanois drop in for a guest appearance as he did in Toronto during a show at the Air Canada Centre!! For some reason Bono went on to sing Amazing Grace and I kind of recall at some point near Walk On …I scored a setlist from the camera guy that contains some details. Where the Streets Have No Name closes out the first encore and I know that the huge microphone I saw pulled up to the ceiling earlier hasn’t been used yet.

Out comes Bono wearing a jacket covers with red lighting and this awesome microphone drops down that completely lights up in hues of blues and reds that fit Ultraviolet (light my way) perfectly. It is quite a scene as the stage is darkened and we get this ultraviolet futuristic scene played out to a great not so hidden gem from Achtung Baby!! Then he blends right into With or Without You with this same microphone and jacket setup. Pretty intense!!

If that version didn’t move you …maybe this one will shot from a Condo Tower Looking in on the same song

I know the show ended with a new song Moment of Surrender but I may have given up the ghost because I just can’t seem to light that candle. I remember the band fading off the stage and this juggernaut coming to a slow crawl. The show seemed to fly by. It felt like the main set was done in a half hour. Sometime after the lights came up and people were milling about watching the techs begin the load out. A tech threw a bunch of guitar picks out. As the crowd reached high the concertaholic goes low and to the floor because he knows these thrown guitar picks are hard to catch and some always hit the floor…. Yes I got a pick!! It was a long day but well worth it!! The 360 spectacle is a must see!! All future tours will be measured against this new standard.  I don’t see anything on the horizon that will even come close!!

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We got down to the venue early and out back of Massey Hall is also the backside of a theatre showing a premiere of ONDINE. There was a small crowd waiting to see Colin Farrell & U2′s Bono and Edge. We snagged a brief video of their exit and then headed towards the front doors of Massey Hall for the presentation of the 1985 Album LOVE by THE CULT.

We arrive at our seats in row 2 on the right side and I begin to hear security telling the front row that they will not be allowed to go up and approach the stage.? So I asked the person what they said and she told me that security was told that we are not allowed to STAND UP ? Are you kidding me. This is THE CULT. This is rock and roll. The security guard went on to tell us that the new promoter doesn’t want the people behind us to get upset and ask for refunds. He also said it was up to the band.

Out walk the band and the entire place stands up and they begin with NIRVANA… the first song off of their album LOVE. As the crowd gently leans into this song and the next few Ian Astbury says ” We’ve got a few more of these songs for you while you get your work done, texting & cell phone bullsh*t… then we’re gonna have a ROCK SHOW!”  The crowd answers with a scream… the aisle beside us started to fill up with cell phone photographers and the first free spirit who dropped her purse and started her trance-dance close to the stage. Security moved her back…abit not much.

Now…during the last 30 seconds of Brother Wolf, Sister Moon…a handful of music lovers approach the stage and the same security guard appraoches them quickly with his arm to say no… Ian Astbury finishes the song and walk to the edge of the stage and puts his hand on the security guy pushing him aside and calls ALL OF US to the Stage. We bolted right up to the edge and hugged a mini monitor in front of Billy Duffy.

RAIN started and the place erupted into a Rock Show….”Hot sticky scenes you know what I mean…..” We’re singing it and I am pumping my fist like I’m 16 and at my first concert pressed against the stage… Duffy is 2 feet in front of me, there is clapping, screaming, dancing, guitar solos, energy and now the smell of a concert from the 80′s….the smoke rises past us and over the stage… There were no security guards to be seen now.

What a vibe taking place. The balcony dwellers were standing too and those who weren’t got challenged by Ian at one point….As the strong riff begins to the PHOENIX…the energy goes up another notch. The spotlight was on Billy Duffy for this song and most of the night while Ian seemed to be in darkness zone…

HOLLOW MAN continues the rock-train…. and up next is REVOLUTION. This is one of those tunes that you can go a decade without hearing because the other Cult songs get the radio play…but the beginning guitar riff has those 2 chords that put me on the bus going to grade 9 with my sony walkman on. We get some war scenes on the big screen and best of all we get everone singing Revolution, Revolution. Oh and Billy commanding that Gretsch White Falcon…. wow.

I can swear I hear Ian introduce this next song as “This is for Chris Sheppard“…which he may be referring to because alternative radio back in the mid 80′s was CFNY 102.1 and Chris was a DJ who would have given them airplay for sure. Thats’ a guess… and  during this song or one of them Ian frisbees a tambourine right up to balcony level. Here the video shakes  a little more cause I am jumping with the herd-of-rockers around me who some seem to be in another time zone… the anthem – She Sell Santuary

After that scream-along Ian Astbury introduces BLACK ANGEL as a softer number and we should “act accordingly”…This song has a creative groove and lets us all down softly from the 56 minute rock & roll balloon ride.

The band walks off and we catch our breath here with only the video screen showing us images that just won’t register because I’m thinking of the songs to come.

The after album set seem to follow the same as the previous nights on this tour…so I believe ELECTRIC OCEAN is first and then WILDFLOWER which features Billy taking his guitar over to the right of where I was to some other fans who had “picks” in their hand and he allowed them to attempt/stroke/play the popular riff for wildflower …which you can see 30 seconds into this iphone live video feed I was doing into my facebook. Poor quality but you get the idea.. and I was back to my kid-like fist pumps on this one too after I put the camera away.

Up next is SUN KING. I said I put the camera down…right but now The Cult’s Leader is looking at a young boy (maybe 8 or 9 ) on his fathers shoulders, arms pumping and he motions him to come on stage. So I flip the video back on so we can see Ian coax the little guy to join in singing “Sun King BABY”

DIRTY LITTLE ROCKSTAR (video) comes off real well live with some great bass & drums …being from their 2007 album it is the newest song we get to hear and the crowd loves it …how can’t they. Ian asked if they wanted a rock and roll show and his band was delivering… This song reminds me of the guitar riff in “Under Cover Of The Night” by the Stones.

Ian at one point is calling out @strombo ‘s name as in George Stroumboulopoulos  of  “the Hour”. he continue’s “where are you…you better be out there”…. Another tambourine is airborne in front of the stage, a Rose ends up on the stage and everyone is still on their feet and chanting FIRE WOMAN (video) – The train doesn’t want to slow down… but Ian now mentions that this old place has a curfew… and that this is their last song.

This was not the best concert I’ve been to….  where I was the lead singers vocals were low as was the lighting at times on the frontman… I am not compaining about all that great guitar I got thrown in my face….it was epic…. andconcerts are not just measured on the lighting, the sound and the venue… it’s a mix of the above and what happened tonight …and in this final song was one the finest “concert experiences” I’ve been part of. It was the attitude of the band, the rock and roll delivered and the connection with the audience right up until the end of the show.

Astbury says “this is for KC and Finnigen” and they Launch…LOVE REMOVAL MACHINE…  we all got our groove on one final time and near the end of the tune Astbury signaled a couple people up on stage and as I was video’ing 3-4 people dancing around I decided to join them and jumped up for the final 10 seconds….What a rush.. as I bee-lined for the drummer John Tempesta and said Great Show man… and then proceded to ask for a drumstick. Which you can see at :31 seconds of this video. Score! …all the while I kept the video rolling…. Gave Duffy the Nod as headed off and eventually we got down from the stage…people were helping themselves to guitar pics and setlists.  the setlist we got is from Boston.

To turn around and look up off this historic stage was quite a finale to this “real rock concert” . If you were at the show please leave us a comment…down front, onstage or balcony. Let us hear your take. Thanks.

Jeff