44 replies to this topic

[marktea]

Saw Blur at Hyde Park last night having seen them at Glastonbury at the weekend.  They were good last night but just not a patch on the epic performance on Sunday.  Obviously the two events are very different but some thoughts occurred that were linked to some of the discussions on here this week:

The sound / stage / screens / lighting at Hyde Park were nowhere near as good as the Pyramid.

I was starting to get pi**ed off at the number of flags at Glasto this year at the Pyramid. Last night I  missed them. So as a a flag sceptic I do have to agree that flags add something - not those massive banners though (such as the Sausage one!).

There were no chairs at Hyde Park. This was a definite improvement on Glasto (and I took chairs to Glasto as I had kids with me). However, the general restrictiveness in the park in terms of what you could take in (drink chairs flags etc) was definitely not a good thing.

Overall I think the main point is that the Glasto policy of letting everone do what they want is the only way. Some will get annoyed with flags, some will get annoyed with chairs but the overall freedom of the mix is a magic combination and to mess with that would be a mistake.

Spoke to someone in the crowed and got blanked. Didn't happen once in four days at Glasto where everyone seemed to be up for a chat.

The very wide mix of ages at Glasto is a fantastic thing. Much tighter age range last night on the whole.

Shorter sets are not necessarily a bad thing. Blur were on stage for longer last night but this reduced some of the intensity and impact compared with the Glasto set.

Er that's it.....  Overall a brilliant return from Blur this week though.

[russycarps]

what time were they on stage? I am going tonight

[sashabella]

I'm going tonight too.

This is the line up:

4.00 -  4.30 DEERHOOF
4.50 -  5.20 FLORENCE & THE MACHINE
5.40 - 6.20 AMADOU & MARIAM
6.50 - 7.40VAMPIRE WEEKEND
8.15 - 10.15        BLUR

Have fun

xx

[Monkismo]

Saw the set list on NME. Did they only do Death as a Party as an extra? Can't see much more change. Also what was the atmos like during Tender? As good as Glasto?

[radioshed]

Everyone of todays supporting acts are better than yesterdays imo, quite strange.

[budvar]

I thought the most telling thing was how the crowd didn't spontaneously carry on singing Tender. Daman even looked a little disappointed to me. A good gig again but not as good as Sunday.

[johnmcga]

Just on that actually, what's Hyde Park like as a venue? I've never been, but for some reason I've always pictured it as being a bit, well, ropey really.

For some reason I'm imagining too many people, poor sightlines, dodgy sound and not enough facilities. But I have absolutely no evidence at all to back this up!

One good thing about the Blur gigs is there's no golden circle rubbish is there? I remember the Foos there a couple of years back had a set up where you could pay extra to get close to the front. I think that's dead cheeky!

I'm wandering well off topic now, so I reckon I'd better stop here. I thought Blur were immense at Glasto by the way - was listening to highlights on a 6Music show yesterday and getting all goose-bumpy!

[alibear]

I'd love to see Blur again - glad ou had a good time. But instead I'm going to revert back to my 13-year-old self and see Take That instead! Waaaaaaaa!

[Wooderson]

Only "Death of a Party" as an extra to the Glastonbury performance?

Fair play to Blur, they gave us more than our money's worth on Sunday. And although i wasnt there I can understand where the OP is coming from, without a massive increase in the setlist there would be no question that the Glasto show would be the superior when compared to Hyde Park. The Pyramid has never looked or sounded better to me than Sunday.

[marktea]

johnmcga, on Jul 3 2009, 12:10 PM, said:

Just on that actually, what's Hyde Park like as a venue? I've never been, but for some reason I've always pictured it as being a bit, well, ropey really.

For some reason I'm imagining too many people, poor sightlines, dodgy sound and not enough facilities. But I have absolutely no evidence at all to back this up!

One good thing about the Blur gigs is there's no golden circle rubbish is there? I remember the Foos there a couple of years back had a set up where you could pay extra to get close to the front. I think that's dead cheeky!

I'm wandering well off topic now, so I reckon I'd better stop here. I thought Blur were immense at Glasto by the way - was listening to highlights on a 6Music show yesterday and getting all goose-bumpy!

Not too bad really. Sound just about ok, screens ok, can get served the usual rip off limited selection of drink at the bar, not overcrowded.

It just all feels a bit average coming so soon after glastonbury. Blur will be great, just don't expect it to repeat the feeling of Sunday as it didn't get there for me.

Edited by marktea, 03 July 2009 - 11:20 AM.

[krisskross]

i had to read this thread just as i was about to leave... damn

[TimS]

johnmcga, on Jul 3 2009, 12:10 PM, said:

Just on that actually, what's Hyde Park like as a venue? I've never been, but for some reason I've always pictured it as being a bit, well, ropey really.

Location-wise I think it's cool - you can stand there and see trees in the park and skyscrapers in the background...  The problem is the restrictions on noise - the stages can be quieter than other venues and the curfew is usually around 10.30pm - which means all-is-done before it's even properly dark.

Still, good bands can overcome these limitations (imho)

Edited by TimS, 03 July 2009 - 11:24 AM.

[marktea]

krisskross, on Jul 3 2009, 12:22 PM, said:

i had to read this thread just as i was about to leave... damn

Hey hope you don't get the wrong impression, I loved it last night. It was probably a bit harsh trying to compare it to the closing headline slot at Glasto which will always be something special. You will have a great time.  

[arteet]

marktea, on Jul 3 2009, 12:00 PM, said:

The sound / stage / screens / lighting at Hyde Park were nowhere near as good as the Pyramid.

I was starting to get pi**ed off at the number of flags at Glasto this year at the Pyramid. Last night I  missed them. So as a a flag sceptic I do have to agree that flags add something - not those massive banners though (such as the Sausage one!).

I missed the flags too!!! I wasnt annoyed with them at Glasto though.

I actually thought the sound was pretty good last night. That stage is massive too, it reminded me of the building from Back to the Future a little bit....

...no, just me then

Overall, a really good effort from Blur. Just thought the crowd was abit too flat. Nevermind eh, I enjoyed myself  

[mr cambo]

marktea, on Jul 3 2009, 12:00 PM, said:

Saw Blur at Hyde Park last night having seen them at Glastonbury at the weekend.  They were good last night but just not a patch on the epic performance on Sunday.

To be fair to you, last night was essentially a repeat, and so I'd expect you to have preferred the first version.

I chose not to see Specials at Glasto as I'd seen them a few weeks before at Brixton. My mate went again though, but left after 20 minutes saying "they were great, but I'd seen it before".

[austrian_zeppelin]

johnmcga, on Jul 3 2009, 12:10 PM, said:

Just on that actually, what's Hyde Park like as a venue? I've never been, but for some reason I've always pictured it as being a bit, well, ropey really.

For some reason I'm imagining too many people, poor sightlines, dodgy sound and not enough facilities. But I have absolutely no evidence at all to back this up!

One good thing about the Blur gigs is there's no golden circle rubbish is there? I remember the Foos there a couple of years back had a set up where you could pay extra to get close to the front. I think that's dead cheeky!

I'm wandering well off topic now, so I reckon I'd better stop here. I thought Blur were immense at Glasto by the way - was listening to highlights on a 6Music show yesterday and getting all goose-bumpy!

it's probably changed quite a bit since the stones played there in the 70's but it's still a lovely setting for gigs with good "corporate festival" type facilities. Sightlines are good, crowds are not too big for the space so from that point it's pretty good. Sound is a major issue though IMHO as they can't crank it up because of all the posh residences around the park, and as they start so early because of the curfew, the athmosphere is somewhat spoiled.

i was in the golden circle for the Foo's but didn't have to pay anything for it. I seem to recall it was dependent on the time you booked your tickets ie first x thousands get golden circle, rest gets normal.

[rudebhoy]

thought on Sunday they started off pretty shakily but once they hit their stride 3 or 4 songs in, they were fantastic. Albarn looked as if he was on something throughout the show, particularly when he started crying. Only started to smile near the end of the show.

[jameshunt]

rudebhoy, on Jul 3 2009, 01:14 PM, said:

thought on Sunday they started off pretty shakily....

Seriously?  

I thought they started off in perfect form and incredibly even improved on that as the set went on.

[johnmcga]

Thanks everyone, good to hear some positive comments about the place. Next time someone's on there I want to see, I'll be sure to try it out for myself.

Also - on the Golden Circle thing - if it was for the first xxxx ticket holders then I guess that's more democratic.

[Roger Explosion]

I did enjoy last nights show, but not a patch on Glastonbury. Death of a Party was a very nice addition though! I imagine they will do something else tonight instead of DOAP.

I didn't like the fact that it was light for more than half the set. Takes away from the spectacle. The crowed were a bit shit and not totally getting into it except for Song 2 which is a bit of a given. London crowds are generally a bit reserved and pretentious.

The thicknecked twats posing as security at the bars was a bit unneccersay. "EVERYONE KEEP MOVING!!! KEEP MOVING!!!"... f**k off, why do you think were in the cue for the bar...

Apart from that, BLUR WERE MAGNIFICENT!!!!