CONCERT COMMENTS AND PICTURES – by BD contributer, Nikhil Atreyesh
The gig was awesome! The only thing different was that the pig had stuff written on it, such as “KAFKA rules”,and “Get Rid of the Caste System”. It had one in hindi too (hindi is India’s national language) ,”sab jaati ek hai”(all religions/caste are the same).
It had ‘FREE AT LAST ‘ on its belly which we could see when it was left to float into free space…
CONCERT REVIEW – by BD contributer, Prakash
Thanks to Aruj Padbidri
I live in Bangalore and so had to travel one and a half hours by air to reach Mumbai to see the show. Maybe the organizers wanted to give a chance to Mumbaites as they missed out during the last visit. I had to really spend a bomb to make the visit to Mumbai but my god…it was worth every penny!!!!! It was an awesome show and I’ve been to many, but this beats the shit out of everything that I’ve seen so far.
As usual it started with “In the Flesh” and it was the usual set list. Seeing some people from Bangladesh, Roger mentioned about India being a big country. He may not have realized that Bangladesh is a different country.
There were many families with young kids and even some people in wheelchairs had come to the show. The arrangements were good and there were no mess ups. I feel bad about the kids as they may have got stoned as so much weed was in the air….
Two funny instances I could remember were, firstly, during the opening beats of “Time” song, Graham lost one of his sticks and the crowd had a laugh seeing him struggle in getting the other stick. Next was before the start of ABITW, there were many hands raised for the “stand still laddy” and even Roger laughed before he continued with the song. He seems to be mighty pleased as the whole crowd was singing all the songs along with him.
All in all it was the best show I have seen and hope they will regroup and make a world tour. It should happen in the next 1-2 years, otherwise it will never happen. Roger is getting old and it shows. All the Indian floydians must have felt proud seeing him live and I consider this as one of the best moments in my life….
CONCERT REVIEW – by BD contributer, Simon Denton
Thanks to Aruj Padbidri
We have been lucky enough to see Roger’s current tour on 4 separate occasions now, the most recent in Mumbai last night. Of all the times I’ve seen Floyd and Roger, this was I think one of the most emotionally charged shows. The papers here in Mumbai are full of reviews and photos this morning.
The set list was the same, although some re-ordering on the first half of the show helped keep it fresh for those of us who had seen the show before.
At first there was none of the usual clapping and chanting before the start and I was expecting a reserved audience. Come the magical moment when the stadium was plunged into darkness to signal the start of the show, the crowd erupted. The band took their places and were ready to go as Roger walked on to the stage and the crowd were even more ecstatic. Clearly moved by this welcome, Roger walked back and forth across the stage grinning from ear to ear acknowledging the crowd.
Some people next to use made a banner saying “we’ve come all the way from Bangladesh for you” (Dave Kilminster took a photo of them before the show started). Roger noticed it and said to the crowd “these guys at the front have come from Bangladesh and I know many of you have made long journeys to be here and that is really very special to me”. The crowd of course loved it.
One of the most emotional bits was “Leaving Beirut” when this crowd of mixed religious groups (and nationalities) cheered loudly and the lyrics and messages in the song. That must have been very moving for Roger.
The crowd loved all the theatricals, the prism colours that we all associate with DSotM getting a particularly loud cheer. The pig made an appearance during Sheep but broke free and floated high into the sky.
All in all, a magical, highly emotional night that demonstrated that somehow Roger communicates with his audience in ways no other artist can.
Thanks to Aruj Padbidri
They then launched into In The Flesh and being at the front, near the stage, it was totally amazing to hear EVERYONE in that capacity crowd singing EVERY lyric to EVERY single song. Again Roger was clearly moved by this and made a point of saying so at the end of the night, going way “off script” in a way I’ve not seen before.
Some people next to use made a banner saying “we’ve come all the way from Bangladesh for you” (Dave Kilminster took a photo of them before the show started). Roger noticed it and said to the crowd “these guys at the front have come from Bangladesh and I know many of you have made long journeys to be here and that is really very special to me”. The crowd of course loved it.
One of the most emotional bits was “Leaving Beirut” when this crowd of mixed religious groups (and nationalities) cheered loudly and the lyrics and messages in the song. That must have been very moving for Roger.
The crowd loved all the theatricals, the prism colours that we all associate with DSotM getting a particularly loud cheer. The pig made an appearance during Sheep but broke free and floated high into the sky.
All in all, a magical, highly emotional night that demonstrated that somehow Roger communicates with his audience in ways no other artist can.
We are indebted to our sister site Brain Damage for the use of the above material.
https://youtu.be/W8bC3uJWKHI