There is a real danger at going crazy with the superlatives here.
The venue was beautiful. There were cup holders on the seats ahead of you. The staff was very friendly and pleasant. After seeing a list of upcoming performers, last night was probably as wild as it gets there. The crowd was very responsive and seemed very enthused.
The sound was excellent. It took a couple of songs to get it cranked up in volume. My wife and I both commented that it could have been a little louder. But the sub woofers (or whatever) gave everything a nice thump.
The set list was very similar to the lists posted previously. The band played Green Onions during Todd's costume change. There were snippets of The PInk Panther thrown in during one of Jesse's solo's. The songs from Liars sounded even better live, and I liked them a lot from the album.
The band was excellent, as mentioned in other reviews. I got goose bumps from the band solos. The various styles of music played during the night, from Mammon to Past to the jazz break during the Born To Synthesize showed and that they could play anything and sound natural playing it.
Todd's voice was having a few problems. It didn't really detract from any of the performances for me. With the intensity that he sings during Liar, I can't imagine his voice healing any time soon. I heard people around me saying 'Whoa' after his singing in Liar.
I could write a whole review just about the lighting. It is dazzling. It adds a whole extra dimension to the show. It really enhanced the whole show. There are some visual effects that approach what you only imagine being done with special effects on film.
The costumes were great and added to the drama of the show. The band all had fun with them. Todd wore these Mad Max-ish semi-platform boots. He was all in black under the brocade. He wore a yellow, red, and blue pin-striped suit with a black and white almost optical illusion tie during the second half. I don't think that I've seen any pictures of that from the tour yet.
Todd was very active during the whole show. He looks better in person than any of the pictures or tv that I've seen from the tour so far.
There was a lot of emotions projected during the concert. It doesn't really matter how old you are. I saw a wide variety of people from 6 - 60+. I think the age group (teens - 20's) that would be the most impressed, was largely absent. I feel a little sorry for them. Our 16 year old son, who only has a casual interest in Todd, was blown away ('insane guitaring' in his words).
I couldn't recommend it more. Go and take yours or someone's kid with you. It would be hard for me to imagine a better show.
