I've been trying to write a proper review of Watchmen for quite some time now, but I can't seem to wrap around my feelings towards the film. I just can't. So, I'm gonna summarise the whole film in just a few sentences (and couple of images).
The good: The visual is just spot on. It's like putting the whole page into the film. The feeling when you read the book is there when you watch the film. The opening montage is superbly done. It effectively pave and visualize the world of Watchmen. It got even better with the decision to play Dylan’s The Times They Are A-Changing (which coincidentally one of my favorite songs ever) in the background. Not only has it blended well with the montage, but the lyrics itself represented what happened in Watchmen’s world. Jackie Earle Haley's Rorschach is the best of the cast. He IS Rorschach. Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Comedian and Crudup's Dr Manhattan are also great.
The Bad: The whole scenes on Mars is a waste. When you summarise an important part of the story which takes about a chapter in a book into a 4 minute scene, you just couldn't see its importance. The conclusion is also felt rushed. The whole conclusion is a 2 chapter long that explain Veidt's vision and attempts to get his plan in progress. Snyder spent too much time doing the first half of the book (which he copied directly panel to panel), and somehow neglects the important second half of the book. Malin Akerman's casting is disastrous. She's not capable of pulling off a troubled Laurie/Silk Spectre II.
The Ending: The ending is being altered from an alien invasion, into a godlike fury of Dr. Manhattan. Both has the same effect. However, i found it very hard to accept that people would just live in peace with each other without blaming the United States. It was the US that used Dr. Manhattan as a walking H-bomb, and importantly, it was also the US who angered Dr. Manhattan, which leads him to exile to Mars. So when Veidt orchestrated the plan to make Dr Manhattan as the scapegoat, aren't other countries going to blame the US for making Dr. Manhattan angry? That's the hole that is bothering me.
So given all those things, I still don't know what to think of the film. I thought the book is a freakin' masterpiece, hence the films should also be. The only explanation of why I couldn't love it as much as the book is that it couldn't be translated into a 3-hour film. It will only work if they make a 12 episodes miniseries, that explain each and every chapter of the book thoroughly. I'm gonna have to watch this over again. On blu-ray, preferably. I'll probably write a proper review about it then. That is, if I feel like it.
Thursday, March 19, 2009
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
What a Week Part II: Living in Technicolor
So, Coldplay decided to go to Australia promoting their latest album, Viva la Vida or Death and all his friends. Wasn’t that excited at first. I thought their album was kinda okay, nothing special or anything. However, people are praising it everywhere. They got nominated, and subsequently won many Grammys, their album also made numerous critics’ top ten album of 2008. Many of them also dubbed it as their finest record to date. I tried to listen to the album again several times. My opinion improved, slightly at least. I thought it was a great record. Lots of great songs, but I felt the entire record was boring if you listen to it at once. Anyhow, they’re planning not to do one, but three shows here at Melbourne. When the ticket opened, the general admission tickets sold out in less than 3 hours. I was left unconvinced whether to give it all up or try to search for it on Ebay. I waited until a week before the concert on the 5th of March before I began searching for tickets via ebay. Luckily I found someone who sell it only $4 more than the actual ticket price, and at last I found myself going to my second concert of the week.
Let me explain my expectation towards the concert; it was low. I wasn’t all pumped up like when I was going to see Sigur Ros, or Death Cab for Cutie. The idea of a big band, with many followers kinda turned it off for me. They’re a great band, sure. But I think they sometime tried too hard to follow Radiohead’s footsteps.
Come the 5th of March, my friends were all excited towards it. We were planning to go early as possible to get a good view of the show. However, since we were going together in great numbers it was hard to be on time. We ended up going in when the opening band, Decoder Ring, already opened their show. We still managed to get a decent view though. The stage was obviously bigger than other concerts that I’ve been to. It was U-shaped, the back drop is covered in black layer, which kept us figuring out what it was. Three big screens on both sides of the stage and there’s this big balloon like decoration above our heads.
The first opening band, Decoder Ring, was actually good. I was pretty impressed, to say the least. They sounded like Explosions in the Sky, and Mogwai. They even got this video on the screen that they played during their performance. It was beautiful. The video fits well with their music and it kinda feel like we’re watching a beautiful silent film. Half an hour in, they played their last song before bidding good bye to the audience. That’s a great way to opened up the concert, I guess.
The lights were turned on again as the second opening band prepared to perform. I began to feel curious what the second band will sound like, given the first opening was a great one. Little did I know that the second band were awful, at least for my taste. I didn’t remember and didn’t bother to look for the name of the band, but neither their song nor their performance was worth mentioning. Their vocalist was like this middle aged guy who acted so peculiar on stage. I’m not talking about Thom Yorke peculiar here, I was gunning for shitty peculiar. He acted like a body builder, showing his muscles while singing his song. Wow, that was just…… wrong. His lead guitarist was more or less the same. He wore this red outfit, spikey hair, a scarf, and sunglasses (in a stadium? Come on!). My friends look disgusted, and so did other people on the venue. Their performance felt very, very, very long. I even shouted “You Suck” at some point during their performance. It was a joy watching them stepping off the stage. Seriously, they were that bad.
So we proceed to the main concert. The stage was cleared, the soundcheck was finished, and we’re in for the main show. The stage was now layered with a curtain, indicating that Coldplay was gonna play behind those. Not long after that, the sound of Life in Technicolor echoed through the stadium. Everybody roared, as one by one the members of Coldplay entered the stage. The curtain is then lifted and they played Violet Hill as the second track. During this performance, I was suddenly pumped up. I don’t know if it’s the crowd or it’s the energy of the song but I got really excited. The backdrop was revealed to be the gigantic picture of the cover album. Chris Martin, despite his third time playing at Melbourne, still showed his best. The crowd also helped him with screaming the lyrics out loud.
From there, I felt ashamed that I only had low expectations towards the concert. It was superb. The sound was perfect, the stage was great, the lighting was marvelous, and their performance was a joy. The lights and effects really played a big part in the concert. It always sets up the song perfectly. Whether the yellowish flashing light with balloons when they performed Yellow, or the dim blueish ambient when they played Fix You, it was all perfect. The orbs above the stage also provided a unique tone to the show. It was used to project the video and images of the band. Also, when they performed Lovers in Japan, they showered the concert hall with paper butterflies of various colors. Very cool indeed
As for the performance, the evidence of fatigue is there. Chris Martin sometimes slipped when he began to sing, especially in Viva La Vida. However, this was not a big deal because the crowd helped him singing. The crowd was wild. They were enjoying it so much. Now the band also has a great control of the stage. Chris Martin ran around the stage. The band even played two songs on the left side of the U shaped stage. That’s not all, on the middle of the concert they went through the exit door and proceed to the upper stage opposite the stage and performed all the way up there. The people who sat back there was so excited. They performed Speed of sound and Beatles’ I’m a believer acoustically. Wow, this is the first time I saw a concert in which the band give a damn about the audience sitting far up from the stage.
I was happy with the setlist. It seems that they balanced the old and new songs really well. Most of the songs in Viva la Vida album were sung. The others are equally proportioned from their earlier album. After performing Death and All his Friends, they said their thank yous and goodbyes and left the stage. It was at this moment, my roommate initiated the howling of Viva la vida. Me and the others helped him did that and clapped our hands in the air. It was short after that the audience started to follow us and sang. We kept doing that for a couple of minutes, and then the awaited encore arrived. Chris Martin walked back on stage and reached for his piano. He sang The Scientist, one of my favorite songs. They proceed to played their last song of the night which was Life in Techicolor II. After that, they wrapped the concert for good. I didn’t know what else to think. Coldplay is a great band. They played one hell of a show and that night was the proof of it.
Concert highlights: there are two songs that I viewed outstanding that night. It was Fix You and Politik. Fix You was a showcase of the greatness of the band. Chris Martin played his piano and sang flawlessly the entire song. His bandmates also provide great backup to him. Politik, on the other hand show cased the awesomeness of the whole concert. In this song the sound, the stage, and the lights blends together. When the lyric goes “open up your eyes” we were jumping up and down with our hands thrown in the air. The other interesting fact is the 5th of March is actually Chris Martin’s birthday. So during the break from one song the crowd sang happy birthday to Chris. He was so touch and thanks us all.
Final Judgement:
Performance: 4/5
Stage/Décor/lights: 4/5
Crowd: 4/5
Overall: 4/5
Let me explain my expectation towards the concert; it was low. I wasn’t all pumped up like when I was going to see Sigur Ros, or Death Cab for Cutie. The idea of a big band, with many followers kinda turned it off for me. They’re a great band, sure. But I think they sometime tried too hard to follow Radiohead’s footsteps.
Come the 5th of March, my friends were all excited towards it. We were planning to go early as possible to get a good view of the show. However, since we were going together in great numbers it was hard to be on time. We ended up going in when the opening band, Decoder Ring, already opened their show. We still managed to get a decent view though. The stage was obviously bigger than other concerts that I’ve been to. It was U-shaped, the back drop is covered in black layer, which kept us figuring out what it was. Three big screens on both sides of the stage and there’s this big balloon like decoration above our heads.
The first opening band, Decoder Ring, was actually good. I was pretty impressed, to say the least. They sounded like Explosions in the Sky, and Mogwai. They even got this video on the screen that they played during their performance. It was beautiful. The video fits well with their music and it kinda feel like we’re watching a beautiful silent film. Half an hour in, they played their last song before bidding good bye to the audience. That’s a great way to opened up the concert, I guess.
The lights were turned on again as the second opening band prepared to perform. I began to feel curious what the second band will sound like, given the first opening was a great one. Little did I know that the second band were awful, at least for my taste. I didn’t remember and didn’t bother to look for the name of the band, but neither their song nor their performance was worth mentioning. Their vocalist was like this middle aged guy who acted so peculiar on stage. I’m not talking about Thom Yorke peculiar here, I was gunning for shitty peculiar. He acted like a body builder, showing his muscles while singing his song. Wow, that was just…… wrong. His lead guitarist was more or less the same. He wore this red outfit, spikey hair, a scarf, and sunglasses (in a stadium? Come on!). My friends look disgusted, and so did other people on the venue. Their performance felt very, very, very long. I even shouted “You Suck” at some point during their performance. It was a joy watching them stepping off the stage. Seriously, they were that bad.
So we proceed to the main concert. The stage was cleared, the soundcheck was finished, and we’re in for the main show. The stage was now layered with a curtain, indicating that Coldplay was gonna play behind those. Not long after that, the sound of Life in Technicolor echoed through the stadium. Everybody roared, as one by one the members of Coldplay entered the stage. The curtain is then lifted and they played Violet Hill as the second track. During this performance, I was suddenly pumped up. I don’t know if it’s the crowd or it’s the energy of the song but I got really excited. The backdrop was revealed to be the gigantic picture of the cover album. Chris Martin, despite his third time playing at Melbourne, still showed his best. The crowd also helped him with screaming the lyrics out loud.
From there, I felt ashamed that I only had low expectations towards the concert. It was superb. The sound was perfect, the stage was great, the lighting was marvelous, and their performance was a joy. The lights and effects really played a big part in the concert. It always sets up the song perfectly. Whether the yellowish flashing light with balloons when they performed Yellow, or the dim blueish ambient when they played Fix You, it was all perfect. The orbs above the stage also provided a unique tone to the show. It was used to project the video and images of the band. Also, when they performed Lovers in Japan, they showered the concert hall with paper butterflies of various colors. Very cool indeed
As for the performance, the evidence of fatigue is there. Chris Martin sometimes slipped when he began to sing, especially in Viva La Vida. However, this was not a big deal because the crowd helped him singing. The crowd was wild. They were enjoying it so much. Now the band also has a great control of the stage. Chris Martin ran around the stage. The band even played two songs on the left side of the U shaped stage. That’s not all, on the middle of the concert they went through the exit door and proceed to the upper stage opposite the stage and performed all the way up there. The people who sat back there was so excited. They performed Speed of sound and Beatles’ I’m a believer acoustically. Wow, this is the first time I saw a concert in which the band give a damn about the audience sitting far up from the stage.
I was happy with the setlist. It seems that they balanced the old and new songs really well. Most of the songs in Viva la Vida album were sung. The others are equally proportioned from their earlier album. After performing Death and All his Friends, they said their thank yous and goodbyes and left the stage. It was at this moment, my roommate initiated the howling of Viva la vida. Me and the others helped him did that and clapped our hands in the air. It was short after that the audience started to follow us and sang. We kept doing that for a couple of minutes, and then the awaited encore arrived. Chris Martin walked back on stage and reached for his piano. He sang The Scientist, one of my favorite songs. They proceed to played their last song of the night which was Life in Techicolor II. After that, they wrapped the concert for good. I didn’t know what else to think. Coldplay is a great band. They played one hell of a show and that night was the proof of it.
Concert highlights: there are two songs that I viewed outstanding that night. It was Fix You and Politik. Fix You was a showcase of the greatness of the band. Chris Martin played his piano and sang flawlessly the entire song. His bandmates also provide great backup to him. Politik, on the other hand show cased the awesomeness of the whole concert. In this song the sound, the stage, and the lights blends together. When the lyric goes “open up your eyes” we were jumping up and down with our hands thrown in the air. The other interesting fact is the 5th of March is actually Chris Martin’s birthday. So during the break from one song the crowd sang happy birthday to Chris. He was so touch and thanks us all.
Final Judgement:
Performance: 4/5
Stage/Décor/lights: 4/5
Crowd: 4/5
Overall: 4/5
Monday, March 9, 2009
What a Week Part I: Narrow Stairs
What a week. That’s all I could say to sum up this past week. I’m gonna break this topic into three parts. The first two will cover the two concerts I’ve attended this week, and the third one will cover the full review of one of the most anticipated movies of 2009, Watchmen.
Welcome to the first part.
Wednesday, February 24th 2009.
I’ve been waiting too long for this. Being a big fan since their Transatlanticism days, I’ve been waiting for Death Cab for Cutie’s concert for a long time. Ben Gibbard is my favorite singer of all time along with the late Elliott Smith. He’s got the kind of voice that blends perfectly with the sound of acoustic guitar. While many singers tried too hard to channel John Mayer’s raspy voice, Gibbard’s voice was the opposite of Mayer’s, but sounded equally great. That being said, I missed last year’s Death Cab for Cutie concert due to the lack of funds at that time (damn you, new apartment!). I didn’t expect them to go back this soon to Melbourne, but when the opportunity presents, I didn’t hesitate to buy the ticket. This time I was accompanied by my other 3 friends.
We tried going to the venue as soon as we can. That was about 3 hours before the initial concert. We got to the venue, Forum theatre, at approximately 2 hours before the door open. We searched for the gate and only found a couple of people lining up before the door. It’s a bit too early, and the weather was quite windy so we decided to look for a coffee shop nearby. About two blocks away we stopped at Starbucks. What a coincidence, drinking Seattle’s coffee before seeing an actual Seattle-based band, I thought. I took a seat with a friend while my other friend queued for coffee. Two minute later, someone walked in on the door behind me. My friend, who sat opposite me, looked up and wrinkled his chin as if someone familiar has walked in. He then called me and said, “hey, is that Ben Gibbard?”
I took a glance toward the man walking to the counter. His hair was at the length of his shoulder. It was a brown-ish colored checkered shirt. Beside him is a tall almost-bald fella. My heart started to pound. “No way, man.” I said dismissing his remarks, even though I know that this guy fits the description of Ben Gibbard, at least from behind. My friend insisted,”That’s him. That must be him. Look at his shirt. That’s Ben Gibbard’s kind of shirt! And that guy next to him must be the drummer. DCFC’s drummers is kinda bald”.
Being filled with excitement and curiousity, I decided to get up and take a closer look at these guys. I went to the counter pretending to go to my other friend who’s waiting for his order at the pick-up counter. I got a good look at them from there. Holy shit, It WAS Ben Gibbard! I was jumping up and down (on the inside, at least). There he was my favorite singer, only three feet away from me. Two of the members of my favorite band. Getting coffee in the same coffee shop as I was, at the same time too. What are the odds? I told my friend, Kevin, who’s at the counter and pointed at him that Ben Gibbard is there at the counter. He confirmed it. He was also 100% positive that it was indeed Ben Gibbard. I called up my friend who’s sitting at the table to join us at the counter. And then Kevin gather his courage and approached Ben.
The rest of us were waiting, with a camera ready at our hands.
“excuse me, are you Ben Gibbard?”
“Yes, I am.”
Kevin replied once again, “THE Ben Gibbard?”
“I think so, yeah”
“We’re a big fan. We actually are going to your concert tonight.”
“Oh. Cool.”
“Wow. (Long awkward pause) Mmmm… Do you mind taking picture with us?”
“Not at all. But can we do it outside?”
“Okay”
Kevin walked back toward us, looking as excited as ever. I knew that, like me, he LOVED Death Cab for Cutie. Like me, He loved Postal Service. And like me, He loved Ben Gibbard (as a singer, I mean). We patiently waited outside while peeking at Ben and the drummer, Jason McGerr. They came out and we were ready. We asked a random guy to take a photo of us with Ben and Jason. And snap! Just like that we got our very own photo with half of Death Cab for Cutie. We said thanks to them for the photo op, and wished them a good show tonight. They walked off right after that, presumably to the concert hall, and we were left standing there outside Starbucks, in disbelief of what just happened.
Now, we proceed to the venue, with big smile on our faces. I pitied those who waited with us at the door, because they didn’t know what we just experienced. The doors were opened on time. We managed to buy the merchandise before entering the hall. The four of us bought the same t-shirt, and wore it instantly. We were like one of those crazy fanboys. At 7.45 pm the lights were dimmed, and Youth Group opened up the concert. Didn’t really care that much about them because I saw them opening for Interpol last year. However, they were not bad. Some of the songs managed to make me feel dancy. They‘re on for about 30 minutes, and we’re on for the real show.
Death Cab took the stage. Under the cheering crowd, Ben Gibbard took the right side of the stage, Walla on the left, Nick Harmer on the center, and McGerr sat on his drum set right behind Harmer. Interesting facts, Gibbard and Harmer wore the exact same shirt when they met us earlier that day. That means they just ran for a quick coffee, by themselves, and went straight back to prep whatever it is they were preparing. The stage wasn’t all that big. No decoration or backdrops were visible. A bit disappointing.
The opening track was Marching Bands of Manhattan, a song which I always viewed as the perfect opening for their concert, along with Bixby Canyon Bridge. There were some sing along in the song, and Gibbard’s voice was just great. After they finished the song, Gibbard greeted the crowds with “We’re Death Cab for Cutie! Dig it!”. And just like that, the crowds roared. Cheerings are heard all over. It was going to be a great show. Of course it was.
From what I saw, they performed better when they’re live. Chris Walla, the guitarist, may look like (and surely dressed like) a dork, but it was clear that he was the driving force behind the band. His guitar fills and riffs really gave the extra edge to each and every song they make. Hammer is a great performer. With his new beard, which gave him the Leonidas vibe, he rocked the hardest. Swinging his bass, pounding hard on those strings and even jumped once on stage just to show us how excited he was. McGerr, on the other hand, is very cool and precise. Never let emotion took over, and never made a mistake either. Ben Gibbard showed me why I loved his voice in the first place. Everything is just as I imagined. Gibbard and Walla traded some occasion to play the piano on some songs.
Concert highlights: After finishing Soul Meets Body, Walla and Harmer sat tightly on the stage as Gibbard played I Will Follow You into The Dark acoustically. It was greeted with mass sing along among the crowd. For the whole song Walla, Harmer, and McGerr kinda mesh with the crowd and enjoyed Gibbard’s performance, which was flawless in my opinion. Transatlanticism, the last song they played, was also a joy to watch. It builds up slowly before reaching its peak when the song reached the “I need you so much closer” part. It was the perfect song the end the concert.
The bad part of the whole concert was the crowd. I thought the crowd was neither eager nor excited to watch them performed. Most of them just stand there and stare without moving their bodies or sing along to the songs. That was a major disappointment. The stage and decoration was very minimal. No evidence of great lighting or exquisite set decoration.
The concert lasts for about two hours. The words “I need you so much closer” still echoed afterwards, even when I was back at home. I went to sleep with a complete playlist of my favorite Death Cab songs running on my computer. It was a great night.
Final judgement:
Perfomance: 4/5
Stage/décor/lights: 3/5
Crowd: 2.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5
Welcome to the first part.
Wednesday, February 24th 2009.
I’ve been waiting too long for this. Being a big fan since their Transatlanticism days, I’ve been waiting for Death Cab for Cutie’s concert for a long time. Ben Gibbard is my favorite singer of all time along with the late Elliott Smith. He’s got the kind of voice that blends perfectly with the sound of acoustic guitar. While many singers tried too hard to channel John Mayer’s raspy voice, Gibbard’s voice was the opposite of Mayer’s, but sounded equally great. That being said, I missed last year’s Death Cab for Cutie concert due to the lack of funds at that time (damn you, new apartment!). I didn’t expect them to go back this soon to Melbourne, but when the opportunity presents, I didn’t hesitate to buy the ticket. This time I was accompanied by my other 3 friends.
We tried going to the venue as soon as we can. That was about 3 hours before the initial concert. We got to the venue, Forum theatre, at approximately 2 hours before the door open. We searched for the gate and only found a couple of people lining up before the door. It’s a bit too early, and the weather was quite windy so we decided to look for a coffee shop nearby. About two blocks away we stopped at Starbucks. What a coincidence, drinking Seattle’s coffee before seeing an actual Seattle-based band, I thought. I took a seat with a friend while my other friend queued for coffee. Two minute later, someone walked in on the door behind me. My friend, who sat opposite me, looked up and wrinkled his chin as if someone familiar has walked in. He then called me and said, “hey, is that Ben Gibbard?”
I took a glance toward the man walking to the counter. His hair was at the length of his shoulder. It was a brown-ish colored checkered shirt. Beside him is a tall almost-bald fella. My heart started to pound. “No way, man.” I said dismissing his remarks, even though I know that this guy fits the description of Ben Gibbard, at least from behind. My friend insisted,”That’s him. That must be him. Look at his shirt. That’s Ben Gibbard’s kind of shirt! And that guy next to him must be the drummer. DCFC’s drummers is kinda bald”.
Being filled with excitement and curiousity, I decided to get up and take a closer look at these guys. I went to the counter pretending to go to my other friend who’s waiting for his order at the pick-up counter. I got a good look at them from there. Holy shit, It WAS Ben Gibbard! I was jumping up and down (on the inside, at least). There he was my favorite singer, only three feet away from me. Two of the members of my favorite band. Getting coffee in the same coffee shop as I was, at the same time too. What are the odds? I told my friend, Kevin, who’s at the counter and pointed at him that Ben Gibbard is there at the counter. He confirmed it. He was also 100% positive that it was indeed Ben Gibbard. I called up my friend who’s sitting at the table to join us at the counter. And then Kevin gather his courage and approached Ben.
The rest of us were waiting, with a camera ready at our hands.
“excuse me, are you Ben Gibbard?”
“Yes, I am.”
Kevin replied once again, “THE Ben Gibbard?”
“I think so, yeah”
“We’re a big fan. We actually are going to your concert tonight.”
“Oh. Cool.”
“Wow. (Long awkward pause) Mmmm… Do you mind taking picture with us?”
“Not at all. But can we do it outside?”
“Okay”
Kevin walked back toward us, looking as excited as ever. I knew that, like me, he LOVED Death Cab for Cutie. Like me, He loved Postal Service. And like me, He loved Ben Gibbard (as a singer, I mean). We patiently waited outside while peeking at Ben and the drummer, Jason McGerr. They came out and we were ready. We asked a random guy to take a photo of us with Ben and Jason. And snap! Just like that we got our very own photo with half of Death Cab for Cutie. We said thanks to them for the photo op, and wished them a good show tonight. They walked off right after that, presumably to the concert hall, and we were left standing there outside Starbucks, in disbelief of what just happened.
Now, we proceed to the venue, with big smile on our faces. I pitied those who waited with us at the door, because they didn’t know what we just experienced. The doors were opened on time. We managed to buy the merchandise before entering the hall. The four of us bought the same t-shirt, and wore it instantly. We were like one of those crazy fanboys. At 7.45 pm the lights were dimmed, and Youth Group opened up the concert. Didn’t really care that much about them because I saw them opening for Interpol last year. However, they were not bad. Some of the songs managed to make me feel dancy. They‘re on for about 30 minutes, and we’re on for the real show.
Death Cab took the stage. Under the cheering crowd, Ben Gibbard took the right side of the stage, Walla on the left, Nick Harmer on the center, and McGerr sat on his drum set right behind Harmer. Interesting facts, Gibbard and Harmer wore the exact same shirt when they met us earlier that day. That means they just ran for a quick coffee, by themselves, and went straight back to prep whatever it is they were preparing. The stage wasn’t all that big. No decoration or backdrops were visible. A bit disappointing.
The opening track was Marching Bands of Manhattan, a song which I always viewed as the perfect opening for their concert, along with Bixby Canyon Bridge. There were some sing along in the song, and Gibbard’s voice was just great. After they finished the song, Gibbard greeted the crowds with “We’re Death Cab for Cutie! Dig it!”. And just like that, the crowds roared. Cheerings are heard all over. It was going to be a great show. Of course it was.
From what I saw, they performed better when they’re live. Chris Walla, the guitarist, may look like (and surely dressed like) a dork, but it was clear that he was the driving force behind the band. His guitar fills and riffs really gave the extra edge to each and every song they make. Hammer is a great performer. With his new beard, which gave him the Leonidas vibe, he rocked the hardest. Swinging his bass, pounding hard on those strings and even jumped once on stage just to show us how excited he was. McGerr, on the other hand, is very cool and precise. Never let emotion took over, and never made a mistake either. Ben Gibbard showed me why I loved his voice in the first place. Everything is just as I imagined. Gibbard and Walla traded some occasion to play the piano on some songs.
Concert highlights: After finishing Soul Meets Body, Walla and Harmer sat tightly on the stage as Gibbard played I Will Follow You into The Dark acoustically. It was greeted with mass sing along among the crowd. For the whole song Walla, Harmer, and McGerr kinda mesh with the crowd and enjoyed Gibbard’s performance, which was flawless in my opinion. Transatlanticism, the last song they played, was also a joy to watch. It builds up slowly before reaching its peak when the song reached the “I need you so much closer” part. It was the perfect song the end the concert.
The bad part of the whole concert was the crowd. I thought the crowd was neither eager nor excited to watch them performed. Most of them just stand there and stare without moving their bodies or sing along to the songs. That was a major disappointment. The stage and decoration was very minimal. No evidence of great lighting or exquisite set decoration.
The concert lasts for about two hours. The words “I need you so much closer” still echoed afterwards, even when I was back at home. I went to sleep with a complete playlist of my favorite Death Cab songs running on my computer. It was a great night.
Final judgement:
Perfomance: 4/5
Stage/décor/lights: 3/5
Crowd: 2.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5
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