That being said, I went into last night's show with excitement but a slight cautious optimism. This morning I am STILL shaking my head. Did we really just see and hear that? Was it REALLY that good? AB-so-FREAKIN'-LUTELY! The Boys pulled off a performance that was as good as ANY Utopia tour I have seen. And I saw all of them from 1976-1986 and the Redux '92 show in Santa Clara.
When the house lights went down and the band appeared in front of the curtains, I was more than ready. They started in and that's when we realized, NO background video screen for this show! They couldn't fit it into the venue. After watching clips on YouTube since the start of the tour, I was let down. Let me tell you, THAT did not last long at all! It's all about the music and the performance. And no visual enhancement was needed, not in the least. Todd even apologized for that. The house mix from the very beginning was excellent and never failed all night long.
I have to admit as they plowed through the first set, it was pretty emotional for me. Every number hit me hard but some stand-outs were Freedom Fighters, Something's Coming, Monument and Communion With The Sun. I could have walked out of the theater then and there and been more than satisfied...."but there's ALWAYS more!"
2nd set picked up right off where they left. Sounding fresh and tight .
I have not heard Todd's voice sound that good live SINCE the early '90s. This show was a serious feat to present and every single song was near flawless. Kaz, Willie and Gil were tightly jelled. In some respects, this show surpassed any other Utopia concert I've attended. They could have easily made this a rehash of their best known and expected setlists. As much as I would have liked seeing Caravan, Abandon City, Zen Machine, Libertine, Lysistrata...and on and on...they chose numbers I have NEVER seen them perform, songs THEY have never performed and intermixed the two sets to really work amazingly well. After hearing last night's show, I would not change a thing! Even Rock Love, which is not one of my favs, did just that. It ROCKED! It was evident through their smiles and on-stage banter between them that they were sincerely having a wonderful time. And as it came time for "Just One Victory", I knew our time together was winding down. I was filled with love and joy, and was thanking the universe that we all were able to share this special evening together once agan. Wishing something more may come of this. Willie, you need to retire and come back to the fold.
Thank you, Utopia for "giving just one more chance".
