Reviewed by:
nmendies, on july 10, 2006
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Sound: Well the set up was spot on and all parts of the band played at the right levels (which is more than you could say for the 2nd support act). Anthony's voice, as always live, was amazing and you could almost understand every word he said, and it sounded just like the music from the album. Frusciante as usual used his two Fender Stratocasters (one white and one in Sunburst) and his beautiful Gretsch White Falcon, which he used for the song 'Otherside' but not 'Californication' funnily enough. He was also playing through a Marshall Amp as usual. Flea used a Bass which I couldnt see if it was a Fender or something completely different. Whatever it was it played well, especially when he did his slap bass solos. Chad Smith used this glow in the dark drum kit which added to the overall look of the band, and you could feel the bass drum throughout the gig. The skill he put into playing them was also amazing. My overall impression of the sound of the band is good, as every instrument was played at the right levels, and Frusciante's solos just made the audience freeze in a form of bliss. This gig was in a large stadium and the sound travelled well, without any reduction of quality. My friend's dad who was waiting in the car park of the Stadium said he could hear every song word for word. // 10
Perfomance: The audience loved the band. The mosh went mad as soon as they came on and they stayed that way throughout. The audience sung every song word for word so loud that at some times they were louder than the band. The band also improvised between songs, and at one point played the intro to 'London Calling' by the Clash (only to get the right tempo for the song they did afterwards). Flea also wore the all-in-one Funky suit he wears in the 'Tell Me Baby' music video, which looked great. He also walked off the stage at the end on his hands. At random intervals between songs he also made quick jokes and got the crowd going. Anthony only spoke to thank the audience halfway through the gig. The backing video on the stage was of the band while they were playing, but for some songs, such as 'californication', they had specailly made animations which wowed the crowds. The light show was amazing and on the strip lights around the stage they sometimes showed videos of them performing and some animations, such as an eye on either side of the stage for 'Under the Bridge'. As for songs, I cant remember in which order they were all played, except for the first, second, second to last and last songs. They started the gig off with Frusciante strumming as he strolled on stage, with Fle and Chad Smith soon following behind him. After a quick Improvisation, they broke into the first song where Anthony Kiedis came on stage.
Can't Stop - I was actually surprised they didn't start off with Dani California, but this song was played brilliantly, and had some serious energy in it.
Dani California - although this wasnt the starting song, it felt like it was. It got the crowd moving and Frusciante improvised some of the end solo, which added to the song.
Charlie - overall I would have to say that this was their least best song of the gig. I didn't think it had the energy in it making it slightly dull, and I could name some better songs of the new album that could have been performed instead of this. But then again, that might just be how I felt about it.
Scar Tissue - this is one of my favourite songs of theirs, and they delivered it brilliantly. The singing was spot on and Frusciante's improvised solo at the end of the song was nothing more than immense.
21st Century - before this gig I didnt think much of this song, but now I think its one of the best ones off the new album. It sounded just like it did on the album and the singing was once agin spot on.
Otherside - I have to say the solo's on this song were the best part of it. They felt like water flowing through you. Frusciante's fingerwork on the guitar and his amazing use of effects made this song amazing. For this song he used his famous Gretsch White Falcon, and it sounded brilliant.
Snow (Hey Oh) - this song sounded exactly like it did on the album (I mean 'Exactly'). The singing was great, the drumming was perfect and the rest of the instruments were played brilliantly.
Me And My Friends - this is a relatively unknown song off their album "The Uplift Mofo Party Plan", and it had some serious energy in it. Anthony and Flea were jumping all over the place, and Frusciante, who was working hard to replace their former guitarists sound, did it well. Chad's drumming also sounded exactly like off the song. If you haven't heard this song before then I suggest that you should.
Wet Sand - I have to say that this is probably one of my favourite songs off the new album, and they performed it really well. When they sung it I actually felt like I could just live forever in the stadium with this song playing all the time.
Parallel Universe - this song was actually quite cool being performed, and it felt like it was one fluid 'thing', not even a song in some ways. It was amazing in other words.
Don't Forget Me - this song is a personal favourite of mine, especially as it was what I listened to throughout a hard period of my life, and it just made it the best song they did out of the whole gig for me. The guitar tapping by Frusciante just ripped straight through me. It just topped off everything to hear the song that got me through so much live, and to see Anthony just exhaling serious emotion, making the song amazing. The best song they did.
Californication - for this song they had a special light show, which I didn't quite understand the video of to be honest. Nevertheless it sounded great. I was surprised though as Frusciante didnt use his Gretsch White Falcon for this song, which would have added to it greatly. The audience obviously loved it.
Tell Me Baby - this song had a spectacular light show and it felt great to be there when they performed it. Everyone was moving when this song was being performed.
By The Way - I'm pretty sure that this was the last song before the encore, and it was great. Nothing particularly special as the song cant really be bettered by a live performance of it. They didnt really do much to make it more special either. Just normal I suppose then.
Under The Bridge - this was the first song of the Encore, and when it started, Frusciante just strolled on stage playing the famous fiff, and walked across the far edge of the stage and sat on some boxes literally half a metre from the crowd. And he sat and played it perfectly, and there was a sense of calm during the entire song, which was performed perfectly. They even had two eyes either side of the stage on screens, which gradually became red and looked like they were on fire, and they really made the performance look spectacular.
This was, like in most of their live performances, the final song of the encore, and it was not even describable by words. The band was jumping all over the place by this time, and Chad Smith looked like he was having good fun playing the drums to it! The audience by now was jumping so much that they could have created an earthquake. The light show was amazing with different coloured lights shining over the heads of the entire audience, and it showed the huge amount of people in the huge audience (approx 7-10 thousand). They finished brilliantly. // 10
Impression: The concert was in Sheffield, UK in the Don Valley Stadium on 6th July 2006. The ticket cost £60, but was bought over ebay. The first support act, a band called "!!!", was absolutely amazing, and I will probably buy their album now. They went on stage to have fun and they did, and the crowd loved them. The second support act, "Ben Harper And The Innocent Criminals" is hard to judge, as nobody could hear anything above the guitarist, who appeared to be playing one note for about 30 minutes while constantly pressing and depressing his wah pedal. This ruined the perfomance as nobody could hear the singer, which for all I know could have been very good, but I couldn'å hear him. The crowd didnt like them as much. What I loved about the show was the sheer enormity of it. They were playing to an enormous audience and they produced a spectacular show. I would even go as far as saying that it would be hard to beat this show for quality, value for money and pure perfectionist brilliance. They really did this concert well, and the audience loved it. My favourite part of the show was the performance of 'Don't Forget Me', and the performance and light show of 'Give It Away'. I will definitley go to their future gigs as this one was amazing. And I'd advise you to go to them too. // 10
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