Depeche Mode: Review (More like unfiltered gushing)

All my peeps in Mountain View, CA, I mourn with you. (Confession: I don't have any peeps.) Sorry about the cancelled show. I guess what with Dave getting a tumor removed, injuring himself and Lollapalooza, this tour was just too eXXXtreme to handle. So you had to miss your evening of Dave, Martin, and Fletch. You'll always have amateur youtube videos of other people's shows. That and the concert DVD whenever that comes out.

But! I got to go! And so I refuse to let your sadness dim my enthusiasm for my first Depeche Mode live experience. It was everything I hoped for (and more?). Singing along with Martin (later dubbed Sir Sexy Sparklepants by Rachel) was so satisfying. I got to hear Enjoy the Silence and I couldn't decide between crying, smiling, or singing along to my favorite song everrrrrrr. I also saw the famed Dave Gahan mic stand spinning move during "A Question of Time". This was the best crowd I've ever been in. It beat even the Rush and the Stones crowds at the Idaho Center. It was so freaking LOUD, HOMG. Some guy a few rows ahead of me was into the same songs I was excited about. I got a kick out of noticing that.

This also marks my first show where I freaking knew ALL the words. I didn't even know all the words for Incubus back when I was a superfan. It was so much fun shout-singing along with Dave. I also took some shitty pictures, but if you want some vicarious fun, you can check out this fairly high quality YouTube playlist. These videos totally put my blurry Row 28 pictures to shame. (None of my Fletch photos turned out, sad.)

After this show, Dave was put on 48 hours rest for his voice, hence the cancelled show. Some people noted that they heard the roughness in the singer's voice but I didn't notice at all, probably because I was in musical heaven. I do remember being worried that he'd be tired after months of touring, but he moved around the stage and danced and sang well enough that I didn't think about it after the first number.

Anton's visuals were interesting. Umm, especially "Strangelove". I loved the screen globe and how it was used during "Policy of Truth"

GRIPES: "Stripped" was too short. Or at least if felt that way. Other forum posters said the same thing, so yeah, vindicated. There were also a few complaints about the "soft center" of the show, but I didn't care. I was also surprised that they didn't perform "Peace". After all, it is the second single off Songs of the Universe. (Check out the set lists here.) My last gripe - I wasn't close enough/I'm too short/I couldn't see their faces, waaaaaah.

Despite my slight disappointments, it was the best show I've ever been to and well worth the ticket price of $90 plus the cost of airfare. Now to see if I can tackle the rest of my must-see list. David Bowie, I'm looking at you. Come out of unofficial retirement, plz.

SotD: "Down" by Dave Gahan

Maybe I should save this song for January or February when the snow can really get to a body, but I only heard the lyrics "and the snow is falling" for the first time last night. The chorus really brings up a delightfully awful image. Just listen!

Side note: You may wonder why I always link to YouTube. The answer is simple. I don't really know where one can hear full tracks for free legally and on demand (by which I mean through a search). If there is a solution to that problem, let me know.

The YouTube video (or still photo) probably isn't legal either, but I'm not really promoting copyright violation. I'll leave that to mp3 blogs and all those torrent folks.