Thursday, September 18, 2008

Heaven is a Place


(2006 Byrne photo by Fred von Lohmann)

It's late and I'm out of energy, so here's a quick mini-review of tonight's David Byrne show at the Ferguson Center in Newport News.
Overall, the show was very entertaining, although my enjoyment was diluted by the fact that the sound was brash, brittle and treble-heavy, lacking in clear, distinct bass.
That aside, Byrne was in a good mood and his singing was strong. His band was tight and capable and a team of three dancers were fun to watch and gave the show a nice visual boost. I could nitpick and say the choreography wasn't always as inventive as I might have hoped, but then I'd sound like a grumpy, middle-aged malcontent. I'd never want that.
The night's setlist was smart mix of new and old tunes, many of which showed the fingerprints of Brian Eno, who of course was the ghost hovering over the night's affair.
Highlights from the set -- which, as advertised, concentrated on Byrne-Eno material -- included "Heaven" from 1979's "Fear of Music" and "One Fine Day" from the new album "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today." Another peak came with the one-two punch of "Once In a Lifetime" and "Life During Wartime."
Good stuff. Not life changing, but good.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Sammy,

Sounds like a show I would have enjoyed, although I'm not a fan of trebly mixes. But I was playing dutiful parent and was at a PTA meeting/meet the teacher event at the kids' school.

By the way, saw the new DP commercial. Good thing I wasn't drinking anything at the time.

See you soon,
Doc

Misty Beethoven said...

I thought the show was great! The sound at the Ferguson Center is dookie because it seems to vary wildly depending on your location. The sound was pretty good from where we were.
We waited for you and Pattycakes after the show. We even stood by your car in the garage for a while. I tried calling the cell. What happened to you?
I had a dream last night that your car broke down and my mom had to go pick you up.