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Thursday, August 03, 2006
Fan review...Ogden Theatre, 31.07.06
Gig: 31.07.06 - Denver, Colorado - Ogden Theatre
Photo and review: Christian Allen
I had just gotten back from California the morning of the concert, and spent all day blasting any and all Bloc Party songs I had. It didn’t matter what, be it 'England', or 'Helicopter', or even my ultra-shoddy bootleg of 'Hunting For Witches'. I was basically on a cloud.
So we went. My brother and I, just the two of us. We arrived at the Ogden Theatre about an hour before door time and there were only two groups of people already there. Thank God. While it was the longest hour of my life, the feelings of anticipation easily destroyed any feelings of boredom. We could hear, through the huge set of doors, Bloc Party and the opening act Mew doing their sound check. And finally, the doors were opened. After a rather lengthy discussion with the theatre’s manager about me getting in (it was a 16+ show and I’m only 14), we got in. We ran up to the very front, and sure enough got front row.
Mew came on about an hour afterward. They were very solid, had a unique sound, captivated me and at the same time got me even more excited for Bloc Party. When they left the stage I was impressed yet still happy that Bloc Party was even closer. So after waiting for a little while, and noticing the temperature in the theatre rising to quite a generous one, the lights dimmed, and the amazing four came on.
I could only see their silhouettes through all the fog and the odd lighting, and the first thing that came to my mind was: “Wow, Kele’s hair looks even crazier in person!”. I had a good idea of what they were going to be playing, as I had been following their every move and been reading tons of reviews of the previous concerts on this tour. So I wasn’t really surprised when the opening song was 'Waiting For The 7:18'. It was an amazing song. As a drummer, I had a hell of a lot of fun just watching Matt Tong’s every move. It was surreal, the whole song. Bloc Party’s energy was undeniable. They're definitely the most danceable band I’ve ever seen. The crowd constantly shouting back the words, the sweat running down everyone’s faces...it was amazing. Just amazing.
The encore was even better. They played one of their more rarely-played new songs, 'Wet' (or, I should say, 'On'... blech). It was one of the more anthemy songs by Bloc Party, and it's beauty almost brought tears to my eyes. They closed with 'The Pioneers', in which Kele looked like he was going to collapse on stage. But despite his fatigue, he sang his heart out.
When they left, I felt hurt. But I knew that great things don’t last. And I was happy to know that I got to see my favourite band in concert, putting on the best show I’ve ever seen. And I’ve seen some big acts. Coldplay, U2, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers...I enjoyed Bloc Party more than all of those bands combined. In the end I couldn’t have been happier. It was a perfect show, and a perfect night.
God Bless Bloc Party.
Setlist: Waiting For The 7:18 / Positive Tension / Banquet / Blue Light / She's Hearing Voices / Uniform / This Modern Love / Like Eating Glass / Little Thoughts / Helicopter [encore] Wet / Price of Gasoline / So Here We Are / The Pioneers
Gig: 31.07.06 - Denver, Colorado - Ogden Theatre
Photo and review: Christian Allen
I had just gotten back from California the morning of the concert, and spent all day blasting any and all Bloc Party songs I had. It didn’t matter what, be it 'England', or 'Helicopter', or even my ultra-shoddy bootleg of 'Hunting For Witches'. I was basically on a cloud.
So we went. My brother and I, just the two of us. We arrived at the Ogden Theatre about an hour before door time and there were only two groups of people already there. Thank God. While it was the longest hour of my life, the feelings of anticipation easily destroyed any feelings of boredom. We could hear, through the huge set of doors, Bloc Party and the opening act Mew doing their sound check. And finally, the doors were opened. After a rather lengthy discussion with the theatre’s manager about me getting in (it was a 16+ show and I’m only 14), we got in. We ran up to the very front, and sure enough got front row.
Mew came on about an hour afterward. They were very solid, had a unique sound, captivated me and at the same time got me even more excited for Bloc Party. When they left the stage I was impressed yet still happy that Bloc Party was even closer. So after waiting for a little while, and noticing the temperature in the theatre rising to quite a generous one, the lights dimmed, and the amazing four came on.
I could only see their silhouettes through all the fog and the odd lighting, and the first thing that came to my mind was: “Wow, Kele’s hair looks even crazier in person!”. I had a good idea of what they were going to be playing, as I had been following their every move and been reading tons of reviews of the previous concerts on this tour. So I wasn’t really surprised when the opening song was 'Waiting For The 7:18'. It was an amazing song. As a drummer, I had a hell of a lot of fun just watching Matt Tong’s every move. It was surreal, the whole song. Bloc Party’s energy was undeniable. They're definitely the most danceable band I’ve ever seen. The crowd constantly shouting back the words, the sweat running down everyone’s faces...it was amazing. Just amazing.
The encore was even better. They played one of their more rarely-played new songs, 'Wet' (or, I should say, 'On'... blech). It was one of the more anthemy songs by Bloc Party, and it's beauty almost brought tears to my eyes. They closed with 'The Pioneers', in which Kele looked like he was going to collapse on stage. But despite his fatigue, he sang his heart out.When they left, I felt hurt. But I knew that great things don’t last. And I was happy to know that I got to see my favourite band in concert, putting on the best show I’ve ever seen. And I’ve seen some big acts. Coldplay, U2, Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers...I enjoyed Bloc Party more than all of those bands combined. In the end I couldn’t have been happier. It was a perfect show, and a perfect night.
God Bless Bloc Party.
Setlist: Waiting For The 7:18 / Positive Tension / Banquet / Blue Light / She's Hearing Voices / Uniform / This Modern Love / Like Eating Glass / Little Thoughts / Helicopter [encore] Wet / Price of Gasoline / So Here We Are / The Pioneers
Labels: Gig_reviews, Setlists
¶ 9:47 PM
