Saturday night's Radiohead show at the Berkeley Greek Theatre was, hands down, the best Radiohead show I've ever seen. It easily made the Friday night show look mediocre. And the best thing amongst best things: Radiohead played an entirely different setlist (sans a couple of songs).
Unlike Friday's slow start with "You and Whose Army?', Radiohead started off with "Airbag", a thunderous and boisterous start to their set. This was a foreshadow of great things to come. Thom, complete with a "Thank You" baseball-ringer tee and accompanying black vest, was not only happy to be in Berkeley, but he was also in much better spirits compared to last night. During the rockin' part of the next song, "2+2=5," me and my friends jumped around like crazy. Unheard of in a Radiohead concert, let alone having genuine Radiohead fanatics doing such a thing.
"Where I End and You Begin," followed by new song, "15 Step" came on next. Then a rather peculiar choice in playing "Kid A." I don't think I ever heard Radiohead play this song live.
Thom had some technical difficulties during "Nude". He stopped the song mid-verse and told the crowd to "stay where you are" and that to forget what just happened.
Boisterous applause during "Paranoid Android" with the crowd jumping like crazy in the pit area. Which was good for me because I was able to push a bunch of drunken girls away from my friends and I.
One of my favourite songs from OK Computer, "No Surprises" was played much to my surprise. But then they played "The Gloaming," which weirded me out a bit.
New song "All I Need" returned to the Radiohead set. I don't have this song in my collection, and it was amazing live! Thom on piano with Jonny behind him was a classic moment. Thom crooning "You're all I need" just made me grip my parka in giddiness.
"Climbing Up The Walls," followed by a new song called "Go Slowly" came on next. Then two songs I don't really care for, "Myxomatosis" and "Bangers 'N Mash" came on. The only consolation with "Myxomatosis" is Thom's crazy dancing. That alone makes that song worthwhile. Otherwise...
Two so-so songs were followed by two heartwrenching and beautiful ones. "How To Disappear Completely" is a Radiohead classic that I first heard back in the OK Computer tour. It was gripping then, it's even more gripping now. Then, a surprise! "Fake Plastic Trees" was played. My friend Jason called the song once Thom put on the acoustic guitar. I told him, "No way!" And then Thom played the first words and I was just dumbfounded. In utter disbelief.
But my disbelief didn't end there. "Black Star" was played two songs later. At this point, I was like a teenage boy in the 1960's when the Beatles came to America: both hands covering mouth, jumping for joy, and just yelling out "OH MY GOD!!!" There is a huge significance to this song, and people who know me know why. When I heard this song, I was soooo happy yet soooo sad. This song isn't my favourite, but the favourite of someone else. And I was so happy that she finally got to hear this song live again after all these years. It was played so well, so tight, it was as if I was listening to The Bends. My only qualm about this song is that Thom looked bored singing it. Or was he just being cocky? Or was he just doing a pseudo-Liam Gallagher with his hands inside his vest pocket? I don't know...
I think it was also at this point where some idiot went on stage and boasted his "accomplishment." He was properly tackled by security.
"True Love Waits," another Radiohead classic that they barely play, was done with Thom on the keyboards while the rest of the band was in their "Everything In Its Right Place" position. Although "True Love Waits" was played with guitar in the Live EP, it's prettier with keys. The song then transitioned into "Everything In Its Right Place" and that was the bands first encore. I thought that it would end there, but it didn't.
"Bodysnatchers" followed by "The Tourist" were the last two songs. "The Tourist" is such a fitting song to end with, and it broke the monotony of having "Everything..." be the last song.
After the show, my friends and I agreed that this was Radiohead at their finest. Armed with a whole catalogue of fantastic songs, Radiohead did the right thing by completely altering the setlist, unlike some bands (ahem Oasis!) that just play the same setlist over and over again. It truly made the Saturday experience very, very different from the Friday one.
Cheers Radiohead!
Beer Rating: 0 Beers
2 comments:
damn it. oh well
yeah, damn it! Wish I had been at that show instead of friday's.
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