Two 80s Legends at The O2
Had the pleasure of another couple of 80′s legends, Duran Duran at Brighton and Bryan Adams at the 02
The Duran Duran gig was at the Brighton Centre, as other have mentioned noticably smaller than most London Arena gigs (02, Wembley, Earls Court, Excel).
The staging and use of technology was great, with the giant heads which some have mentioned taking centre stage and the Twitter feed on the big screen.
Musically and vocally their live performance continues to be as good as when their were at their peak.
BUT
I have to say I find the new material substantially less enjoyable than the hits from the 80′s and 90′s – the quality of the material, in my view simply does not stack up. Nothing on the new album comes anywhere close to Hungry like the Wolf or Rio. Put simple, next time the tour comes home – just stick to the hits.
Talking of sticking to the hits takes us to the other recent gig – Bryan Adams who’s tour was focused on the classic 1991 album Waking up the Neighbours – unlike similar tours the album was not played in order or in full but there was definately tracks played which haven’t been played for some time before this tour. With the best part of nearly 30 years of output the set was long and very hit heavy. One of the highlights had to be a bloke who had won at a charity auction to sing the Mel C part of When You’re Gone – he possibly had a higher pitched voice then Janet Kay!
One small downside was the “Nostril Cam” which was clearly meant to give an up close and personal perspective…well it certainly did that (a bit too close for my liking!)
Overall
Duran Duran 7.5/10
Bryan Adams 8.5/10
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