Radiohead review
May 7th, 2008 by Wade Tatangelo in News
Radiohead singer Thom Yorke (left) leading his British alternative rock band through a spellbinding performance Tue., May 6, at the Ford Amphitheatre in Tampa.
Photos by Phil Bardi.
Radiohead mesmerized a crowd of 17,000 with an edgy sonic and visual presentation unlike anything being offered on the current live music circuit. Long narrow light bulbs that changed colors with every song festooned the stage. Behind the band was a wall of giant screens that alternated between close-ups of the musicians and trippy visuals, which surely enhanced the experience of the kids I saw walking around with pupils the size of pancakes and waving glow sticks.
Liquid guitar ballads set underwater or somewhere in deep space had audience members swaying back and forth along with singer Thom Yorke. Beat-heavy rave explosions like “Idioteque” actually found the typically shy Yorke strutting along the front of the stage and raising his hand with the crowd members, who were bouncing up and down on the balls of their feet. Yeah, that was about as close as Yorke got to Mick Jagger-style showmanship. But the way Yorke gripped the mic, closed his eyes and then occasionally launched into spastic type moves was as amazing to watch as the mind-blowing light show. It also made you feel that Yorke truly felt every movement and facial expression he made on stage, a feeling I don’t get from too many arena rockers.
Yorke played acoustic guitar, numerous electric guitars, a drum kit, and upright piano during the two-hour performance. Bassist Colin Greenwood, guitarist Jonny Greenwood, guitarist Ed O’Brien and drummer Phil Selway also proved apt on not just their key instruments but various others, the dynamic that allows Radiohead to powerfully recreate songs from each distinctive era of their groundbreaking career.
Personal highlights were “Weird Fishes,” “Airbag” and “The Bends” but except for a couple bores towards the beginning of the show every number proved gripping, at least on a certain level, making for a progressive and wildly satisfying concert.
May 8th, 2008 at 3:53 pm
This show was absolutely amazing. “In Rainbows” is a great album, and was the focus of this concert. THey also played some great classics as well.
I was utterly impressed. This was my 3rd radiohead show.
May 9th, 2008 at 5:18 pm
This was my second one… I’m still recovering from Everything in Its Right Place, Where I End and You Begin, Myxomatosis, Lucky and There There, myself. They did do There There, correct? It was one big blur of beauty.
May 9th, 2008 at 5:20 pm
The Gloaming was stunning too, now that I think about it. “It should be raining…”
May 9th, 2008 at 5:21 pm
ringing. I meant it should be ringing. See, I’m still worked up about it.
May 11th, 2008 at 11:27 am
I had a totally different experience at the concert. Though the lights were very cool and, yes, Thom Yorke surprised us all with his spastic dancing, I left with a bad taste in my mouth.
For one thing, the concert was too quiet. Granted, the only seats available to me when I bought my tickets were seats towards the back, I should still be able to hear the concert well. I shouldn’t be able to whisper to my friend standing next to me saying “Isn’t this a bit quiet?” and have him hear it perfectly. I have never attended a concert where I couldn’t feel the bass in my chest, and where I could hear the quiet argument about beer two rows in front of me better than the songs I paid $60 to see.
Aside from that, I found the set list to be questionable. Prior to the show I remember talking with my friends about whether the concert would be a “sitter” or a “stander.” We guessed “stander” and we were right, though for the wrong reasons. There are many people who love Radiohead…some people love the more melodic ambient tunes, others like the guitar and lyric driven songs. The whole concert seemed unbalanced and absent of more mainstream fan favorites. Yes…go ahead…I know you want to call me “NOT A TRUE FAN!!!” for wanting to hear more of the mainstream hits, but honestly. The thing ran an hour and a half and they had time for maybe 2 upbeat, rock/techno hits? Come on. Next time, you real fans who love concerts like this, please at least sit down so I can dose off of my feet instead of on them.
May 12th, 2008 at 6:10 pm
Mike: Thanks for the feedback. I’m always hesitant to disclose where I sit for shows but let’s just say for Radiohead I was very close to the stage, so the sound issue wasn’t a factor for me. I’m sorry it dampened your experience. There’s nothing worse than a concert being undermined by low decibel output. As for the setlist, I dug it, although it did start a bit slow and before the second encore I did catch myself telling my buddy/photog Phil something along the lines of: “Wouldn’t it be something if they did ‘Creep.’”
March 6th, 2009 at 5:54 pm
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