So… here I am back on one
Imagine Dragons’ concert. To be honest, all day long, I couldn’t decide if I’d
write a review or not. Writing live shows reviews – at least the way I do it -
sometimes prevents you from enjoying the show at its fullest. So this time and
considering I had already done a review of their show back in November, I was
thinking I could just put my hand at rest and just enjoy the moment. Basically
just like a music fan and not as a blog owner/journalist/mad writer (pick your
favorite). And to be honest once again, I had decided I’d do so once we entered
the venue…
Thing is… you guess now that I’ve changed my mind and I’ll let you know why later. Just know already that this review won’t be as accurate on details as I usually do.
The boys were back in town, in a larger venue this time. The tickets were put on sale months ago and gone pretty quickly so tonight was a long-time sold-out show. There’s one funny thing that happened between the moment the tickets were available and the fortnight before the show though: Imagine Dragons’ music had spread through Belgian radio airwaves since January and Belgian people had eventually realized how good for the mood their music was. By then, all tickets were gone, leaving many people quite disappointed, not to say distraught for some of them. It was pretty obvious by looking on many FB groups, music forum or the AB website where people were desperately looking for tickets.
Thing is… you guess now that I’ve changed my mind and I’ll let you know why later. Just know already that this review won’t be as accurate on details as I usually do.
The boys were back in town, in a larger venue this time. The tickets were put on sale months ago and gone pretty quickly so tonight was a long-time sold-out show. There’s one funny thing that happened between the moment the tickets were available and the fortnight before the show though: Imagine Dragons’ music had spread through Belgian radio airwaves since January and Belgian people had eventually realized how good for the mood their music was. By then, all tickets were gone, leaving many people quite disappointed, not to say distraught for some of them. It was pretty obvious by looking on many FB groups, music forum or the AB website where people were desperately looking for tickets.
.jpg)
Were there any differences
between those two shows? You bet there were… but there were also things that
didn’t change. Only for the best.
The first thing that didn’t change is the quality of their songs. Some could argue by saying “well sure but they have one full album only so the set list didn’t change much since the last time”. To which I’d reply: “True but those songs don’t grow old and I still enjoy listening to ‘Night Visions’ and the EPs they released so far”. I like Imagine Dragons’ sound, it has emotions in it and isn’t what music is a lot about? I still consider “On Top of the World” as the finest song to bring a smile on my face and help me forget about all bad events in a day. “Demons” still triggers my emotional side almost every time it starts on my music player. Just try to imagine how it is once you actually got these songs played for real in front of your eyes…
Second thing that didn’t change: they’re damn good musicians! It’s always nice to see these five guys interacting and playing together. They improved the arrangements of a few songs: for example, the “Radioactive” introduction was different… All members also played impressive solos, much more noticeable than in November: Wayne Sermon’s guitar skills are awesome, Ben McKee showed us what it’s like to REALLY play bass before “Bleeding Out” but I must admit that Daniel Platzman is the one who really blew me away when he played his drum solo before “On Top of the World”. One of my friends grabbed my arm to tell me how a “hell of a drummer” he is. With a dumb look on my face and without being able take my eyes off him, all I could answer was “Oooh yes, he sure damn is”.
The first thing that didn’t change is the quality of their songs. Some could argue by saying “well sure but they have one full album only so the set list didn’t change much since the last time”. To which I’d reply: “True but those songs don’t grow old and I still enjoy listening to ‘Night Visions’ and the EPs they released so far”. I like Imagine Dragons’ sound, it has emotions in it and isn’t what music is a lot about? I still consider “On Top of the World” as the finest song to bring a smile on my face and help me forget about all bad events in a day. “Demons” still triggers my emotional side almost every time it starts on my music player. Just try to imagine how it is once you actually got these songs played for real in front of your eyes…
Second thing that didn’t change: they’re damn good musicians! It’s always nice to see these five guys interacting and playing together. They improved the arrangements of a few songs: for example, the “Radioactive” introduction was different… All members also played impressive solos, much more noticeable than in November: Wayne Sermon’s guitar skills are awesome, Ben McKee showed us what it’s like to REALLY play bass before “Bleeding Out” but I must admit that Daniel Platzman is the one who really blew me away when he played his drum solo before “On Top of the World”. One of my friends grabbed my arm to tell me how a “hell of a drummer” he is. With a dumb look on my face and without being able take my eyes off him, all I could answer was “Oooh yes, he sure damn is”.
 |
| "Radioactive" guys?? |
I can’t speak of Imagine
Dragons’ musicians without mentioning keyboardist/guitarist Ryan Walker. People
who bought the album know that Imagine Dragons is a four-piece band consisting
of singer Dan Reynolds, bassist Ben McKee, guitarist Wayne Sermon and drummer
Daniel Platzman. People who went to see them playing live know that there’s one
more guy on stage with them – Ryan – standing on the back, behind Wayne and near
Daniel. Whether he’s playing keyboards or guitar, he brings a little something
“more” to the band and seeing him as passionate as the four other guys is
always a good moment. It’s no surprise then that the ID fans consider him as
the fifth Dragon. To fans (as well as to me), it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if
the Dragon guys were to ask him to join the band permanently… Don’t know if
it’s on the “plan” but I’m sure fans would miss Ryan and his genuine kindness
if he had to leave Imagine Dragons’ entourage.
I'm almost done with the musicians… There still one instrument that is a full-part of Imagine Dragons: the drum bass. Originally the one in charge of the drum bass is… singer Dan Reynolds. It gives me the first opportunity to point a difference between the November show and this one. This time, poor Dan Reynolds had to restrain himself a bit as… he broke his wrist last week. I must admit that I feared they would postpone or – even worse - cancel the rest of the tour due to the painful event but… no. Despite this, Dan handled the situation by using his left hand. He mentioned that it wasn’t always easy for him but he did just fine considering the situation. Some artists wouldn’t have even tried, would have stopped the tour immediately and go back home. Dan Reynolds and his friends didn’t play by those rules and kept touring: that’s a huge sign of respect to all people who bought tickets to see them… Let them be thanked for that.
I'm almost done with the musicians… There still one instrument that is a full-part of Imagine Dragons: the drum bass. Originally the one in charge of the drum bass is… singer Dan Reynolds. It gives me the first opportunity to point a difference between the November show and this one. This time, poor Dan Reynolds had to restrain himself a bit as… he broke his wrist last week. I must admit that I feared they would postpone or – even worse - cancel the rest of the tour due to the painful event but… no. Despite this, Dan handled the situation by using his left hand. He mentioned that it wasn’t always easy for him but he did just fine considering the situation. Some artists wouldn’t have even tried, would have stopped the tour immediately and go back home. Dan Reynolds and his friends didn’t play by those rules and kept touring: that’s a huge sign of respect to all people who bought tickets to see them… Let them be thanked for that.
.jpg) |
| Hands up! |
For the anecdote and speaking
of injured people who decide that nobody and nothing can stop them from being
where they want/have to be, there was also one in the audience that night. At
one point, everyone in the place had hands above their head to clap and
suddenly, two crutches appeared out of nowhere and the guy (or girl?) started
to clap… with those crutches up in the air. Quite a funny moment. Even funnier,
this happened during… “Bleeding Out”.
Dan Reynolds had a broken wrist but… definitely not a broken voice! His voice is sooo great: it seems so easy for him to sing songs… No wrong notes, not a single sign of fatigue after 90 minutes of show. I also need to mention the tall guy’s high amount of energy: I don’t think there’s a single person on the front stage who can say he/she didn’t get a close view of him as he spent the entire show striding across the stage from left to right and the other way around.
He’s also taking time to chat with the audience: he told us about his broken wrist, the beauty of the venue and is never short of thank you’s. He also told us that story about how he used to go to live shows to escape from school and stress of life and how it made him feel completely free… So quite naturally and to return the favor now that he’s on the other hand, he told us: “My only hope is just for tonight to take you away from everything outside these walls”. Well, I can’t speak for the others but it definitely worked for me…
The little addition to “Underdog” was one fine moment planned by Imagine Dragons to help us escape that reality and have a good time. In the corner of my eye, I saw Wayne and Dan throwing some huge things at us without being able to identify straight away what it was: just had to time to think “what the…” before realizing it was balloons! During most of the song, those balloons filled the room, travelling from left to right, from the front to the back of the venue…
Two people who were not on the stage have also contributed to make this evening a perfect one: Scott Eisenberg, in charge of sound and Justin Shaw, in charge of lighting.
Most live shows are now played very loud and my ears can’t stand a high level of decibels: I want to be able to listen to music until the day I die and in order to do so, I have to wear earplugs during most concerts. I had therefore some of those in my ears when Imagine Dragons started to play but, at the end of “Round and Round”, their first song, I took them away and was gladly surprised that… the decibel level was perfect! Even more perfect, it remained that way for the whole show!
Dan Reynolds had a broken wrist but… definitely not a broken voice! His voice is sooo great: it seems so easy for him to sing songs… No wrong notes, not a single sign of fatigue after 90 minutes of show. I also need to mention the tall guy’s high amount of energy: I don’t think there’s a single person on the front stage who can say he/she didn’t get a close view of him as he spent the entire show striding across the stage from left to right and the other way around.
He’s also taking time to chat with the audience: he told us about his broken wrist, the beauty of the venue and is never short of thank you’s. He also told us that story about how he used to go to live shows to escape from school and stress of life and how it made him feel completely free… So quite naturally and to return the favor now that he’s on the other hand, he told us: “My only hope is just for tonight to take you away from everything outside these walls”. Well, I can’t speak for the others but it definitely worked for me…
The little addition to “Underdog” was one fine moment planned by Imagine Dragons to help us escape that reality and have a good time. In the corner of my eye, I saw Wayne and Dan throwing some huge things at us without being able to identify straight away what it was: just had to time to think “what the…” before realizing it was balloons! During most of the song, those balloons filled the room, travelling from left to right, from the front to the back of the venue…
Two people who were not on the stage have also contributed to make this evening a perfect one: Scott Eisenberg, in charge of sound and Justin Shaw, in charge of lighting.
Most live shows are now played very loud and my ears can’t stand a high level of decibels: I want to be able to listen to music until the day I die and in order to do so, I have to wear earplugs during most concerts. I had therefore some of those in my ears when Imagine Dragons started to play but, at the end of “Round and Round”, their first song, I took them away and was gladly surprised that… the decibel level was perfect! Even more perfect, it remained that way for the whole show!
Lighting is more important than
people usually think: it’s not “just” lights; it gives the show a tone or a
mood to a song… Green, electric blue, red, white… all these colors were
perfectly used during the show. My personal favorite remains that combination
of green, red and turquoise used on “On Top of the World”. Colorful lights for
a colorful song. From my spot (aka on his left side), I’d have been stupid not
to congratulate him for his work once the show was over… which I did. Nice guy!
.jpg) |
| ♫♪ True Colors ♫♪ |
I wasn’t able to remember all
the words I used while reviewing the “Continued Silence” EP a year ago… Out of curiosity, I
opened the file and read it again last night. Funny how words can sometimes
never look the same again after a few months…
Back then I wished for more than 20 minutes of music, wish granted twice when they released “Night Visions” afterwards (and, later on, re-released it with three new songs) and came to the Botanique in November.
Back then I wrote that we had found each other and that it was a beautiful encounter. And it sure was… it still is.
Back then I wished for more than 20 minutes of music, wish granted twice when they released “Night Visions” afterwards (and, later on, re-released it with three new songs) and came to the Botanique in November.
Back then I wrote that we had found each other and that it was a beautiful encounter. And it sure was… it still is.
.jpg)
Why did I change my mind and
decided to finally write some lines about Thursday’s show in Brussels? Two
reasons…
First, I knew I’d have been a complete idiot for not writing about what happened there. The five guys on the stage completely seduced the crowd and brought down the whole Ancienne Belgique thanks to their performance. It was totally crazy and can’t be compared to the November show: people singing along to most of the songs, calling them back for an encore as if it was one single person with a strong and powerful “voice” asking them to stay, people jumping, dancing around and clapping in their hands (or crutches)…
Second and more importantly, I have to point out another thing that hasn’t changed: these guys’ generosity.
On stage, they give it all and you can “feel” that they love performing and singing for their audience. They always seem – particularly Dan Reynolds – happy to be there and constantly surprised by the love of their audience. When Reynolds said that night that they’re just “regular guys”, that is something I truly believe in.
I also know for a fact – and by experience as well – that this generosity remains once out of the stage. Many fans can testify on that fact after being able to meet them after the show for a chat, a picture, a signature on a paper or a hug… In my opinion, that kind of attitude is a big part of what makes an artist so beautiful and worth of interest.
First, I knew I’d have been a complete idiot for not writing about what happened there. The five guys on the stage completely seduced the crowd and brought down the whole Ancienne Belgique thanks to their performance. It was totally crazy and can’t be compared to the November show: people singing along to most of the songs, calling them back for an encore as if it was one single person with a strong and powerful “voice” asking them to stay, people jumping, dancing around and clapping in their hands (or crutches)…
Second and more importantly, I have to point out another thing that hasn’t changed: these guys’ generosity.
On stage, they give it all and you can “feel” that they love performing and singing for their audience. They always seem – particularly Dan Reynolds – happy to be there and constantly surprised by the love of their audience. When Reynolds said that night that they’re just “regular guys”, that is something I truly believe in.
I also know for a fact – and by experience as well – that this generosity remains once out of the stage. Many fans can testify on that fact after being able to meet them after the show for a chat, a picture, a signature on a paper or a hug… In my opinion, that kind of attitude is a big part of what makes an artist so beautiful and worth of interest.
“Be who you wanna be, nobody’s
judging you, we’re all family here” said Dan. And that single sentence pretty
much says a lot about who they are.
I was so happy to witness that moment and see with my own eyes that huuuge evolution between last November and last Thursday. I was standing at the back of the place and all eyes were looking at the stage so no-one noticed that totally unexpected tear that came out of my eye. I wasn’t sad though. ‘Cos there was a smile as well, you know. Physical responses to a moment of simple happiness. Just because it made me happy to watch these guys receiving what they truly deserve.
I was so happy to witness that moment and see with my own eyes that huuuge evolution between last November and last Thursday. I was standing at the back of the place and all eyes were looking at the stage so no-one noticed that totally unexpected tear that came out of my eye. I wasn’t sad though. ‘Cos there was a smile as well, you know. Physical responses to a moment of simple happiness. Just because it made me happy to watch these guys receiving what they truly deserve.
‘Cos music is made of a moments
like these too… Don’t blame me for feeling music too much, please. Don’t blame
me for caring a little about people who bring happiness in other people’s lives
as well… People like that are so… SO worth it.
ID official
website: http://www.imaginedragonsmusic.com/
ID Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/ImagineDragons
ID Twitter: http://twitter.com/Imaginedragons
Setlist :
-
Intro
-
Round & Round
-
Amsterdam
-
Tip Toe
-
Hear Me
-
Cha-Ching
-
Rocks
-
Radioactive
-
30 Lives
-
Bleeding Out
-
Demons
-
Underdog
-
On Top Of The World
-
It’s Time
Encore
-
Nothing Left To Say
I'm really happy you mentioned Ryan Walker! Too bad in 2015... Ryan left the band. But he did say it wasn't the end of working with them and wasn't a goodbye. Hopefully he will join them again!
RépondreSupprimer