Lady Gaga @ Gelredome, Arnhem
Last weekend I attended Lady Gaga's concert at the Gelredome in Arnhem, The Netherlands. I didn't have any trouble getting tickets two weeks before the date of the concert, and I didn't see people selling tickets outside the Gelredome, so I'm assuming it did not sell out. In any case, the Gelredome is huge: Gaga herself quoted an audience of 25.000 people. At €71.50 for main area (standing) tickets, the price was around the average for this kind of event. The audience was rather young on average, most people being around the 20-30 age group. A few mothers with extremely young and dressed-up girls were also to be seen.
The opening act was Semi Precious Weapons, a somewhat punkish-alternative rock band from New York (as their lead singer kept repeating). The act is not much about musical quality but more about performance, with the lead singer continuously repeating to the audience:
- The band's name
- How gorgeous he (the lead singer) is
- How the audience must be "wet for Lady Gaga", and how it's his task to do it
Not extremely interesting.
Lady Gaga's act started shortly after that, with a long intro followed by "Dance in the Dark", aptly sang behind a curtain for the first part. The visuals were stunning, with some kind of fractal/Rorschach colorful patterns reappearing throughout the act. The stage itself had a small catwalk ending on a circle towards the audience, which allowed for a closer contact with the fans (and those in the first row spent hours queuing outside). Above this circle, a structure with two circular panels doubled as light source and additional screens. Unfortunately, for as stunning as the visuals were, Gelredome failed to provide video streams with an acceptable size for the people watching the show far from the stage, as there were only two projections at the top left and right of the stage, but of a manifestly small size. The setlist was the usual one, with perhaps an interesting exception: at the piano, Gaga told how she had flown to New York the day before, and how she sung "Stand By Me". She proceeded to play the song on the piano, after a while inviting the band to join by saying "tag along, guys, it's in A". And so a new song is added to the show. As was my impression, Lady Gaga is a talented musician who does not sing out of tune and can play her own songs, improvise melodies and still impress with visuals. I also liked it that she does the remix version of LoveGame with Marilyn Manson singing in the background live, instead of just the standard version. She also manages to build a complex relationship with her fans, by crying upon seeing them with "Love Gaga" printer on paper hearts, and telling them they should love themselves, and not her. She also mentioned the Afriqiyah Airways Flight 771 disaster during "Speechless", which got some people impressed. Probably all just good PR, but still, it works.
After the show, Gaga went for a walk in the Red Light District in Amsterdam. She will be back in the Netherlands with her never-ending tour in November.
David Fonseca @ Coliseu do Porto (Portugal)
Those who have seen David Fonseca's live performances know that the stakes are always higher than the usual pop/rock show, and the constant massive amount of fans is proof of it. I had seen David before, and even though I'm not a hardcore lover of his albums, I honestly think he's the best Portugal has to offer in terms of showmanship and musical energy. When live, it's a fact: David rocks hard. And this night, in one of the best stages in the country, expectations were high.
It's not easy to describe how he operates on stage. First of all: if you know the albums, imagine those irrigated with an opulent bottle of Red Bull. And now add lights, lots of them; add the 80's, blend well and that's it. Well, almost.
Apart from the seamless band - an enjoyable bunch, never missing a note and having noticeable fun while keeping track of things - you never knew what to expect. During the show, covers were entangled with David's original songs, in a way that not only helps those less fans (as in, boyfriends of which girlfriends are) but added that extra spice to the whole thing. The Roof Is On Fire, Girls Just Want To Have Fun, a cover from the singer's super-awarded extinct band Silence 4's Angel Song, among others, there was no telling what would come next, and looking around and watching the audience trying to figure which song was which was pretty beautiful. The LED based visual setup was also very fitting of the old retro-joy theme - much of the hyped moments were triggered by colorful blasts of lights, sparkles and other party elements. And then, there was David being David - running off stage to appear only in the middle of the crowd playing, coming back crowdsurfing style, and most impressively, in what was the night peaking moment, when the band showed up in hooded vests after the first encore, playing some sort of Doom Metal along with a fire siren (yes, it's true!), leaving everyone wondering if that was the real band or some guest appearance, only to become jaw-dropping amazed when David emerged from the middle of Coliseu. Handling two red vinyl, the music stopped, and the words "Tonight ... I am your DJ!" triggered a sudden music change to what would be some sort of fast-paced, lowbeat commercial house, coupling with yet another song. (Obviously, everyone went crazy).
Sean Riley, the lead man from Sean Riley And The Slowriders, showed up by surprise, playing two songs along - another pleasant moment no-one was expecting. And did I mention the three Mariachi-dressed musicians on the balcony of Coliseu?
All things considered, the pole position keeps standing: David Fonseca is, hands down, the biggest stage magician around. And I'd say, one of the best of the world in its genre. If you disagree, chances are you've never seen him live, and you definitely should, liking the studio songs or not.
Nouvelle Vague at S. Mamede (Guimaraes, Portugal)
All of a sudden, Gerald Toto was on stage, with just a guitar and himself. The rasta style, relaxed and cool, was a surprise for many, who didn't actually know the french singer, composer and interpreter.
The impressive and barely flawless voice of Gerald was the perfect opener for Marc Collin, Olivier Libaux, Helena Noguerra and Nadeh Miranda, who managed to easily take over the crowd. In a very intimate show, with frenetic rampants once in a while and the amusing mood of the band, namely Nadeh (jumping down the stage to dance with the audience never fails to set a good message), there was little to none negative aspects to point out: the sound was very balanced, Marc and Olivier - the masterminds behind Nouvelle Vague's concept - did their part very well, and Helena and Nadeh kept the flirty, dancing-cabaret vibe going on. Besides merging with the crowd, Nadeh even non-aggressively kicked my camera! Good thing she was just wearing those red socks.
On a general note, all the expected songs were played, peaking with Heart of Glass, Too Drunk to Fuck and I Melt With You, surprisingly well-known to the relatively young audience. The constant toggling between singers - Gerald Toto joined the band a couple of times - added yet even more to the performance, and even though the Vague is meant to be a sort of chill out / bossa-nova project, it felt like no-one, even the fast-paced music lovers, left S. Mamede without a smile on their faces.
