Friday, the day of arrival was long and exhausting. By train to Hamburg, then a long wait at the airport, the delayed flight to London, and again subways and train to Deptford, where we (my good friend Stephan and me) have rented a nice apartment through Air'n'b. Travel time 11 hours. When I finally arrived, I had a little chat with Stephan, who was already waiting for me there. And then off to bed. Tomorrow would demand a lot of energy from us.
Saturday - Jamiroquai-Day!
My mate Stephan, who has no experience with Jamily habits so far, inevitably had to join the drill and had to go to the festival grounds with me right after breakfast. In fact, we were the first when we arrived at 10.30 am. It was not long before Janluka joined us. The head of the security team made jokes about Janluka, while she prepared her team for the pocket control. She explained them: "Watch out for crazy fans who are impatient and want to get going quickly, just like „Orangeman“ and pointed to Janluka (in orange Adidas jacket.) He will be like this: "I want to be the first, I want to be the first“, she predicted with a wink... sooo funny! In the end, of course, she was completely right. Janluka and I were the first to reach the frontrow of the main stage. More Jamily members followed. It was never easier to reach the first row. Totally easy. However, it was only 12 o'clock and it was still almost 9 hours to defend this place.
Luckily Jamily meetings and some nice bands have sweetened the long waiting time.
I made the decision to keep my excellent place and not to move to the second stage. That was not an easy decision, because that way I missed MF Robots, Incognito and Soul II Soul. Too bad, but in the end it was for me the right decision, because I would have lost my frontrow place for Jamiroquai for sure. In the beginning of the day I was not so sure, if I would do it that way, but as soon as I was standing there, I knew, there was no other option. Everything else would have been unacceptable. You have to make sacrifices.
Stephan, on the other hand, chose stage two and was able to see all that funk and fun that I have missed. The lucky guy. Later he had to enjoy Jamiroquai from further back. So everyone sets their priorities differently. In the end we were both happy.
The trouble was that I did not eat anything except breakfast. The queues for food and drinks were way too long. I just dared to leave my seat for a short while to go to the toilet. Better not take any risks.
Thus, the following bands remained for the main stage:
SG Lewis
To be honest, I can’t really remember… it was ok, but didn’t knock my socks of.
Jacob Collier
I noticed that some of you don’t like him. Also at the risk that you might lose respect for me, I admit that I think he was really entertaining. Very active, a bit hectic, but funny, thrilled and in fact he seems to be really musically talented. I don’t know… during the first two songs he played at least 5 different instruments, and each of them really good… and the songs had crazy rhythm changes and weird harmonies, weird in a positive way. He played with the audience and the people around me liked it. I think he was really interesting and I feel like checking out his music a bit more in the future. So, there you have it!
James Morrison
Compared to Jacob Collier James was more mainstream and… well…. more ordinary and therefore a bit boring. Just my opinion. He has nice songs but for me too straight and simple. Not my cup of tea, but still nice to watch.
The Roots
Cool band, groovy, funky and that guy with the big tuba… wow. But they had sound problems. At least in front of the stage we could not hear the singer's voice. I assume the speakers on the front were not working. You could rarely hear his voice from the monitors on stage, but that was not very loud compared to the other instruments. Too bad. A lot of us made signs and tried to communicate that they should turn up his volume and that we couldn’t hear him properly. But they just didn’t get it. Just at the end of the gig they fixed it.
Finally, the time of waiting was over and the well-known faces came on stage. This time with a squad of 14 musicians. Is this a record? It was packed on the relatively small stage. In front of the three backing girls the three brass player. Right next to Howard. I was full of expectation. Jamiroquai with horns is just another experience and very rare. I wondered what songs they would play.
Here is the setlist:
Shake it on
Little L
Use The Force
Space Cowboy
Main Vein
You Are My Love
Don't Give Hate A Chance
Runaway
Cosmic Girl
Canned Heat / Scam / Lovefoolosophy
Virtual Insanity
Travelling Without Moving
No huge surprises, but many songs spiced up with the wind instruments. The best happening this evening was "You are me Love". I had a guess this might happen, when Jay said: "We're playing a song that we have not played live for over 20 years. (And considering there were some hints on social media). It was terrific. I knew you would love it, so I recorded the performance completely for the Jamily. The horns were also excellent in the other songs. They bring so much more depth into the songs and I no longer had to sing the brass parts myself, as I usually do.
I really hope that Jay will get the horns back for the next tour. It really enriches the show so much. And I know that I am not the only one who thinks that.
I was so excited about the three brass players that I filmed them a lot, and only these. Jay must have thought: „What the hell is she doing? She is always filming the right stage side although I am on the left!!"
Anyway ... so you have the pleasure to listen to some brass pieces. I hope you enjoy!
The concert was great, Jay in a good mood, the band always smiling and having fun and they also seemed to be happy about the musical enrichment. The sunset put the right ambience for the climax at the end, the Canned Heat / Scam / Lovefool sequence. Virtual Insanity seemed to be the encore (YES, no Deeper Underground, thank you!) The audience very grateful, I expected everything to be over because of the time schedule... the band put the instruments aside waving and ready to leave the stage, but then Jay ordered the musicians back and spontaneously decided to play yet another song: Traveling Without Moving. What a great ending. I waited for the horns and they seemed to be waiting for the mission,always looking to Jay and waiting for a sign... but it did not happen .. I'm not sure why ... maybe Jay forgot it. Or he shortened the song, because the time was already over. So I had to sing that brass part myself again. Never mind.
All in all, a worthy end and I would like to take this opportunity to thank all who made this day so great. It was very nice to see many familiar faces again, unfortunately I missed a few, due to the two stages situation. We will certainly make up for that next time.
Thanks Stephan, thank you Jamily (I won't list all names because I am sure I would forget some, but you know who you are!!), thanks Jamiroquai, thanks OnBlackHeath. That was a great day. When I fell into bed, everything hurt and I was exhausted, but my heart was still leaping with happiness.
Sunday. Second day, second luck.
Stephan and I fortified ourselves with a great vegan breakfast in Deptford in the "Dirty Apron". We had tofu crumble and very good cafe with oat milk. Delicious!
The day was chilling and relaxed. This time we did not have the frontrow stress and looked forward to lots of good music, good food and a great time.
The main attraction for us today were The Brand New Heavies. This was Stephen's day because he loved this band for over 25 years and would finally see them live for the first time ever.
But until then we saw good other bands, for example
Newton Faulkner, who impressed us with his amazing one-man show.
We also liked Yakul and Laville very much. Very talented musicians. Morcheeba and UB40 were ok but did not blow us away. We made some disrespectful jokes about UB40’s songs, always sounding the same and like „Red Red Wine“. Aswad, another reggae band on the second stage entertained us more. Although we are both not into reggae that much, we danced and had fun. It was a more rocky reggae and we liked it.
When they were finished, we rushed forward and secured the middle of the first row. Ready for The Brand New Heavies.
Stephan had the time of his life, but I also celebrated the great concert. Best performance of the day! They even brought a large group of children on stage and in the audience were fans from around the world, for example from Texas. That is dedication! And this felt familiar when I think of our community and the international fans meet ups for Jamiroquai in the past decades.
At the end, we joined the crowds in front of the main stage and looked at Grace Jones. Wow, what an appearance. That woman is over 70. And you do not notice it. She kept whirling the hulahoop around her hips for an entire song. Impressive. After each song there was a new outfit and overall the performance was very entertaining. A great ending, again with sunset in the background. Happy and our heads full of music and impressions we went back to our apartment.
Compliments to the organization of OnBlackHeath. They responded very quickly to the visitors' complaints and organized more staff for the next day. The second day went much better. You could buy drinks and food without queuing up. The mood was great. A neat family event with an outstanding line up. I am glad that I was able to experience this great weekend. Full of gratitude.
Credits for photographs:
Most of the pics made by Meike Melansek
Frontrow pictures, pics from James Morris, Grace Jones, taken from onblackheath.com
Crowd pictures from the stage: Nate Williams, Matt Johnson
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
VIDEOS FROM SATURDAY:
JACOB COLLIER:
JAMES MORRISON:
THE ROOTS:
JAMIROQUAI:
Use The Force (full)
Space Cowboy (clip)
Main Vein (clip)
You Are My Love (full)
Scam (clip)
LoveFoolosophy (clip)
Virtual Insanity (clip)
Travelling Without Moving (clip)
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUNDAY VIDEOS:
MORECHEEBA:
LAVILLE:
ASWAD:
THE BRAND NEW HEAVIES:
#v#8#v#
GRACE JONES:
THE JAMIROTALK INTERVIEW WITH HOWARD WHIDDETT - MADE BY FANS
Hi Howard! Great to have you here for another fan-made interview! We can’t wait to get to know you better.
We've been watching this band playing live for almost 25 years and we've never had someone in your position on stage. What kind of contribution and improvement do you bring to Jamiroquai's live sound?
To summarise, my role offers a few new things:
It gives us the chance to tackle performances of songs from the new album ‘Automaton’ which has strong electronic musical elements throughout a lot of the album. You can hear this clearly in ‘Automaton’ where there is a lot of processed 'robot' vocals and sound fx integral to the song's character.
We can also look back to some previous album tracks where we've lifted material from original multi-track recordings, which I've sampled or used as loops if they have a particular groove. It then also opens up the chance to explore further manipulations and processing during performance.
Thirdly there are some songs, sections and many segways we have reinvented or created from scratch for the Automaton Tour. These moments give me the chance to really get creative and contribute ideas to the show. A good example of this is the down tempo version of 'Emergency On Planet Earth’.
In terms of describing performance, it can vary from sampling, running loops, sound fx and fx manipulation, playing synths to running and manipulating tempo. It's sort of like using electronics to play the parts that conventional instruments can’t.
Can you show us (maybe even in a video clip) what you are doing during a gig? Please describe your tools and your set.
Which sounds do you use and what is the difference between sounds that are played with instruments (by Matt or Nate on keys or synthesizer) and those that you play on the Ableton live?
I’ve uploaded a few video clips to Instagram recently using some of the tools I use on stage, although I am yet to run through the Jamiroquai setup specifically.
The set up primarily consists of the computing software Ableton Live, with an array of midi controllers to play, control and manipulate the sound. Here’s an equipment list:
Hardware:
MacBook Pro
Ableton Push 2
Midi Fighter 3D - dj tech tools
Midi twister - dj tech tools
Alesis Q25 keyboard
Apogee Quartet audio interface
Senneheiser HD 25 headphones
UHE custom in ears
Software:
Ableton live
Arturia synths
Valhalla reverbs
Soundtoys plugins
There’s a pic up on my Instagram.
Generally, the keyboard and synth parts would be handled by Matt and Nate. Sometimes if there are additional lines I might pick up something but Matt is a pretty serious multitasker so it’s more sound FX or sequenced synths that I would handle (for example the sequencer synth you hear at the start of 'Shake It On’). These are either sampled from the original multitrack or recreated patches using the Arturia soft synths and played via the 'Push 2'. Generally speaking, my parts are more of a digital, processed or ‘electronic music' nature.
Can you be creative to a point? Or is every sound fixed?
Yeah, there’s always a degree of flexibility in my parts, some more than others. With Ableton Live, you can be creative on the fly while on stage. Even in moments where you haven’t been creative before, if you have the idea, you can usually achieve it with a little bit of quick programming.
Do you see yourself more as a musician or as a technician?
I see myself as a musician and a producer, and yeah there’s a lot of tech in my set up so I have to be a technician too.
Please tell us where you are coming from, musically.
Do you play any other instruments?
I definitely consider Ableton Live an instrument (so it’s good to see “other” in the question). I started playing guitar as a teenager and I like to play bass too, which I used to play in my previous band QTIER alongside Ableton. I use them all when producing and writing. (Checkout Qtier on SOUNDCLOUD!)
What musical influences do you have?
What is your musical taste?
I’m not too specifically focused on genres. I think I could go on for days listing artist that influence me! But to briefly put it in perspective I’ve listed a few things that popped into my head.
- Favorite undiscovered track recently is Bootsy Collins - ‘I’d Rather Be With You’, had this one on repeat a lot in the last few months!
- Best live shows I went to this year were GoGo Penguin and Mount Kimbie.
- Some favourite electronic producers: Nicholas Jaar, Clams Casino, Arca, Burial.
- Who’s in my phone's iTunes currently: Young Fathers, Mac Demarco, D’Angelo, Khruangbin, Equiknoxx.
What is your favorite song to perform with Jamiroquai?
'Emergency on Planet Earth’, (the down tempo version).
How did you join Jamiroquai?
I was recommended by engineer/producer Jon Kelly to Matt. As the new album was releasing soon, they were looking for someone to handle this sort of ‘electronic music’ stuff live on stage and so was invited down to the manor for an audition with Jay and the rest of the band. I did a prepared performance for the song 'Shake It On’ and an impromptu improvisation remix of ‘Carla’ which at time I had never heard before so the pressure was on!
Please, describe a typical day on tour with Jamiroquai. What kind of standard procedure normally happens. Do you have any personal rituals to prepare for the show?
Hotel breakfast to start, poached eggs and coffee ideally! I’m no expert but I do benefit from a bit of meditation if stressed or dealing with some nerves. Just hanging out with the band really, which is generally relentless banter and laughs, with some geeky discussions of music gear.
Do you have any funny tour stories to share?
There could be an entire book written on this one!
Please describe every bandmember with just one word.
(Matt, Nate, Rob, Paul, Derrick, Sola, Valerie, Elle, Hazel and Jay…. And yourself?)
Sorry I couldn’t do this one without being overly cliche ...they’re all uniquely inspiring and now also like family.
Last but not least, could you give us a hint if the band is already working on new stuff?
I think with these guys' minds and talents, and Jay in particular who continually has new ideas …fingers are crossed for another album!
Thanks so much for taking the time to answer our questions!
Enjoy the upcoming tour dates in 2019!
You are welcome to join our community of course! Maybe see you there!
Much love and respect,
Meike (CosmicMouse)
P.S.: I heard that Howard is working on own new music, so follow him on INSTAGRAM and TWITTER in order to stay informed about releases, performances/djing and more.
Credits:
Thanks to Dye, Javis, MrMoon, JGrizz, Mojogonlopoto, Jazid46, Funkalero (and me) for submitting questions (and sorry if not every question made it to the final interview).
Thanks to Jo Geater for proofreading!
MY REVIEW
Jamiroquai @ JazzOpen Stuttgart, 18 July 2018Street fighter Intro
01. Shake it On
02. Little L
03. Use the Force
04. Alright
05. Light Years
06. All Good in the Hood
07. Space Cowboy
08. Something About You
09: Runaway
10: Smile
11: Cosmic Girl
12: Travelling without Moving
13: Canned Heat
14: Love Foolosophy
Those days were really exhausting… hot weather, sun, no shadows, long standing, dancing like mad… I think I have lost 2-3kg, I am tired as hell, little headache… but my heart is full of lovely memories, my soul is fully charged with music and good vibes… I am so happy! What music can do… unbelievable!
P.S.: This lovely artwork I got from my daughter Marja Leena (8years) as a welcome back gift when I arrived back home!
Which instrument is your favorite one to play and why?
Piano. No question. It's beautifully laid out, and it provides harmony, melody and rhythm, in a way no other instrument can. I could never give up the piano!
I'm a huge Stevie Wonder fan. I love Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, Jaco Pastorius, Michael Brecker and so many more!! Lately I've been loving PJ Morton's album 'Gumbo'. I saw him and his amazing band live in LA recently... AMAZING!
How did you join Jamiroquai? How did you get in contact, and how was the audition?
I did a random gig and Rob Harris was in the band. The gig went well, and we made each other laugh (which is always a good sign!). I sent him my first solo album 'Got To Let Go' and he seemed to like it. He called a few weeks later and mentioned the band were looking for a multi-instrumentalist for the Automaton tour. He asked if I'd be up for an audition... Obviously I said yes! The audition was great! Matt and the guys all made me feel very welcome. I had to learn a few tunes. Jay came in whilst I was doing a solo over one song and he seemed to like it... that definitely helped me relax! Haha!
Have you already been familiar with Jamiroquai’s songs or was it completely new to you to learn all the performances? How much time did it take?
I'd heard a lot of Jamiroquai songs over the years, so was familiar with some of the stuff. However... there are a LOT of songs, so I did have to spend time learning the ins and outs of everything. The process can belong because it's not just learning chords, parts etc... it's also programming sounds and trying to learn new equipment. I enjoyed the challenge though. I had a couple of weeks to prepare for the first rehearsal.
What is your favorite album and song of Jamiroquai?
I think my favourite album is Funk Odyssey. Favourite song... hmm... Maybe Deeper Underground? It just reminds me of a great time in my life!
How do you divide the work between you and Matt, and also Rob; who decides on who is doing which parts?
Well, Matt produced the Automaton album, so he knew exactly which parts I'd be playing. He had been playing some of the extra parts on the other material himself I think, so he was able to be a little more free on stage once I played some of those things. Same kind of thing with Rob really. We all worked together to try and both match the original recordings and bring a level of excitement and creativity for the live shows.
Which song is your favorite song to perform live?
I enjoy playing Little L. I'm on strings for that and it's a pretty important element of the song. I like knowing I'm adding such a big part!
Which song would you love to perform, that hasn’t made it on the setlist so far?
I think I've been quite lucky... We seem to have played pretty much everything I would have wanted! Can't complain about that!!
What was your favourite or most interesting moment during the tour so far?
I had a wonderful time in Batumi, Georgia. We watched Cory Henry and his band play live, then were taken for an incredible traditional meal whilst we watched Georgian dancing and heard some amazing folksingers. I learnt a lot about that beautiful part of the world!
What makes working with Jamiroquai special for you?
It's fantastic to be playing with such a great band, but for me, I think I get the most out of seeing how much it means to the fans. It means so much to people and I think I can speak for all of us when I say your support is very much appreciated!!
Can you imagine extending your job and maybe support the band on the next Jamiroquai album?
I'd love to be involved, of course!
You have a brand new solo album out! Tell us more about it!
I released a 5 track EP called 'Them + Us' in April. It's my second solo release. I'm very proud of it and it seems to have had a very positive response and even made it in to the UK charts! It's available on iTunes, Spotify etc etc. I hope you like it! My first album 'Got To Let Go' is also in the usual places online.
Is there anything else you want to share with the Jamily?
Just to say thank you for making me feel so welcome and for your continued support!! We all feel it and appreciate it.
Thanks so much for taking the time to answer our questions, dear Nate!
Enjoy the upcoming gigs and experiences! Good luck with your solo work as well!
Meike (CosmicMouse)
Credits:
Thanks to Dye, JohnDoggett, WoundedBuffaloman for submitting questions (and sorry if not every question made it to the final interview).
Thanks to Jo Geater and Frances Schiavone for proofreading!
My Review, Jamiroquai 09 Jan 2018 Munich, Olympiahalle
It’s been five years ago that I saw Sandra the last time, when me and my family went to Austria and visited her. And our last Jamiroquai gig we enjoyed together was even 10 years ago!!! 10 years! It was the legendary Ahaus gig in 2008! So you can imagine that the most biggest highlight of this night was to meet and hug her again after such a long time!
After super-freshing us up in the hotel, we went to the Olympiahalle and were welcomed by familiar melodies…. It was the soundcheck: Too Young too Die, and we were hearing Jay singing. Yeah, His voice is working. Phew! That was a very important moment, as Sandra was still suffering from a Lost-voice-and-cancelled-gig-trauma. She had some dark déjà-vu-moments when she saw the venue and familiar faces from last time… but the more songs we were listening from the soundcheck the more she recovered and the confidence that we would have a fabulous night was growing again.
Soundcheck:
Too Young to Die
Hot Property
Shake it on
Travelling
Deeper Underground
Pablo from Spain arrived as well during the soundcheck.
It was getting colder and colder, but finally the time had come and the security guys were preparing for the check-in. That was the moment when Sandra and me got out our tickets, to be prepared.
Sandra was shocked because she noticed that we had different dates on our tickets.. but I could calm her down. She still had her old ticket from the canceled gig, and I had bought a new one. So I had the updated date on it. It was logical that the date was different.
Then I was joking around… „Oh let’s check if we printed the right ticket. Not that we printed tickets for Berlin or something like that.“ Actually that was a joke, but still a possibilitly when you are going to different gigs and buy your tickets at the same ticket seller. They all look the same.
Sandra checked her ticket again… where is the word „Munich“?? Where is it? … BERLIN?? Damn, what??? She INDEED had the Berlin ticket with her. WTF!!!!
She must have mixed up the prints in the hotel, where she was packing her stuff for the gig. We remembered that she had two tickets with her. She thought they were both the same, because she printed the Munich ticket two times at home. When she pursed one of the ticket she didn’t do a last check unfortunately.
Ok, but we are in 2018… the real ticket was still available in digital form on her ticket-seller account. The question was just, can they scan the ticket code from the mobile phone?
You front-row-runners know the problem: every little delay in the process of check-in can cost you your safe place in the front row! What a thrill.
In the end, it worked… but they had to double check Sandras digital ticket. Meanwhile I started to run, so that I could safe a good space… but I got lost. Sandra warned me before, not to take the stairs too early. She did that mistake last time. So I was running forward but the venue was really confusing… lots of stairs into the hall, not well signposted. If you got the wrong stairs you ended up in the seating area. I got a bit lost… was running too far. So me and Sandra reached the stage at the same time and only got a place at the right side. Damn. At least front row but considering that we were the first ones in the queue very disappointing.
But we were in at least. Could have been much worse with the ticket mess. So we decided to be happy anyways. And you know, as soon as the music starts, everything is alright.
By the way, Pablo had the same problem to find the right stairs to the standing area… he found a place in the front but very left-sided.
DJ Deetron was nice! I liked him way better that PDM. He warmed up the audience and he finally did what I actually expect from a DJ support act for Jamiroquai: he did a Jamiroquai Remix! The Automaton remix. I liked that! That was the moment I got completely in the mood. It reminded me to the Roundhouse gig in March 2017 where they used this remix for entering the show.
I am not that into remixes to be honest, but when it is tied to an experience or memory than it works for me.
Then the gig started! I noticed that the venue was not completely full. There were lots of free seats. But still, the audience was great. Most of them came a second time, after that disaster in November when Jay lost his voice. So the expectations were high and Jay and the band were welcomed with loud applause. Jay wearing a colorful poncho was a nice surprise. But this one didn’t last long… it was too hot. He put it off after a few songs.
It took a while until we noticed that Sola was missing. Instead there was another guy behind Solas set and did a pretty good job. Later we heard from Derrick that Sola was touring with his theatre group and couldn’t attend the gig. The guy who replaced him is called Olli (?). He will be playing in Zurich as well.
Here is the setlist. It differs in some points to the printed version. Jay way improvising a lot, changed the order, left away songs, added others… and all in all this was a great set. I saw a few gigs of this tour by now and so there were no big surprises, but I noticed minor changes in arrangements, some different intros or endings. Jay gave the musicians the opportunity to shine in great solos. He even introduced the whole band. Nice!
My favorite song was TWM.
Shake it on
Little L
Automaton
Kids
Space Cowboy
Alright
Cloud9 (alternate)
Superfresh
Cosmic Girl
DGHAC
TWM
SDISJ
Runaway
Virtual Insanity
Revolution/Canned Heat
LF
..........................................
Deeper Underground
When they came back for DU the audience was welcoming them with loads of lights of their mobile phones. This looked beautiful.
Actually, I am not a DU fan, but we were jumping anyways and enjoyed it. I haven’t heard it in a while now, so it was great. It was even a slightly different version. Matt did some additional sounds which spiced it up.
Thanks Jamiroquai for another great show. And thank you Jay, that you had lost your voice… as bad this experience had been for you, this gave me the chance for another Jamiroquai journey and the long overdue meeting with my dear friend Sandra. Everything happens for a reason.
Jamiroquai @ Roundhouse, London/UK 31 March 2017 - My Review
The run on tickets.
Well, never had it been harder to get tickets for a regular Jamiroquai concert! At the pre-presale I failed badly. The run was huge, I made it somehow to put 2 tickets in the basket but couldn't get through the registration process fully because I wasn't able switch the country. What a mess. Then I lost them. Sold out.
3 days later I was better prepared. Registered on different ticketsale-sites, figured out before on which I could order from Germany and how to pay and so on. Then I had made this deal with Jeroen. We promised each other to offer the second ticket to the other one if one of us succeeded in getting the tickets. Chances were doubled this way.
The time arrived and as soon as the presale started, the sites were overloaded... you were immediately put into a virtual queue which seemed to be a dead-end-road.
I tried on different sites, refreshed sites, some said already: sold out. Damn!
Suddenly, after about 7 long minutes, I could choose 2 tickets.
I couldn't believe it. My hands were shaking while typing in my details... I pressed the send-button and got the message: congratulations, you will go to the Roundhouse to see Jamiroquai! YAY!
I later saw how lucky I was, when I realized that just a handful of the Jamily got tickets as well and how many were unhappy because they failed. What a shame.
So there we were: Jeroen and me in the queue in front of the Roundhouse. I was there since 3.40 pm or so, after meeting up with Victor, his girlfriend and Pablo. Jan, Erica, Jessica joined, and some more.... the front row again represented the international Jamily: Germany, Netherlands, UK, France, Chile, Spain, Portugal... I like this!
The venue
The Roundhouse is smaller than I imagined from pictures. A nice venue, better for standing in my opinion because if you had seats you might have had one of those pillars in front of your nose.
My position: front row, what else!? A bit on the right side, in front of Paul. Perfect! I love to watch Paul grooving, also Jay was standing in front of us a lot.
Support: DJ Fred Falke
Well, I prefer live bands as support. Fred had a hard time. He put some tunes on, nothing from Jamiroquai though, and all he seemed to do was pushing some buttons... for my amateurish view kind of boring. This wasn't really warming me up, but I don't blame him. He did his best. It's just that it doesn't worked for me.
At 8.40 pm the show started with the intro which was the Automaton Deetron Remix, or let's say instrumental elements of that remix, no vocals. It took me a while to regognize it. I had only been listening to that remix one time before.
Don't really like it as remix, but to start a show it is pretty well chosen! During those tunes, the musicans came on stage and took their positions!
I always love that moment... you know then it won't last long now until the rocket takes off!
With Shake it On Jay came on stage with his LED-hat. This one is really cool, we know that from the Automaton video. It was so funny to see what he can do with it and he did obviously enjoy to play with the effects.
Shake it on is a great opener I think. Every musician could show off. What a massive song!
During Automaton Jay presented all possible colours and moves which was a show on ist own. Inbetween songs he was standing in front of the crowd and let the "feathers" lift up and down one at a time. Amazing!
Sometimes he was checking the status of the LEDs by mirroring in Derricks cage.
I remember later during the gig someone was shouting: "Jay, switch the hat on"... indeed, he forgot sometimes to operate it when he was too busy with dancing.
Jay's voice was really good in my opinion. Just at Space Cowboy I noticed that he was quite out of tune at the beginning. But this got better then. Maybe he couldn't hear himself properly.
As I knew what they had been playing 3 days before in Paris, the setlist was not so much a surprise for me. But I had resisted the temptation to listen to any video from that gig, so there were still surprises in the arrangements for me which was cool.
Overall it was a very balanced setlist. 8 out of 12 new songs had been performed which is pretty decent. Lots of classics, some rarities which hadn't been played live a lot in the past, for example Mr.Moon, The Kids and Supersonic.
Mr.Moon was awesome. I remembered that I have been talking with Paul many years ago about this song and he told me he would have loved to play that one live. They did rehearse it before at previous tours but it never came on the setlist, if I remeber well. You could tell that he really enjoyed it and he obviously did very well!
I am so happy when they surprise us with old songs, performed in a new way. Little L had some new parts in the second half for example. And Emergency on Planet Earth was a completely different version, more relaxed and very nice.
Another great live feature is to mash up songs.
We were so happy when Revolution started. I typed in the word "Revolution" and sent it to Diego... suddenly they switched to Canned Heat. Oops! I had to correct my info. At the end they came back to Revolution again. Haha! Then Love Foolosophy flowed in.. what a trip!
Most of the new songs went very well live. Hot Property was hot! Automaton with the lasershow and LED-hat and Jay's robo-dancemoves made it perfect. Works well with live instruments! Superfresh as well. And Carla anyway. Dr.Buzz lacked something in a way. The sound was not very balanced in this one. Not sure what went wrong. Hope they can fix this in the future or they could skip it from the list maybe.
All in all, this was a great concert. It shouted: WE ARE BACK! There were lots of good vibes, the band seemed to be a bit nervous and concentrated but happy and thankful for the great welcome back of the fans. The crowd was awesome!
There were some tiny mistakes, COTE started a bit slowly, Jay gave signs to speed it up a bit. Some sound issues in some songs, but I'm sure they will fix this soon.
There were no big screens with background videos or effects, just those countdown numbers and laserlights but this was enough for me because Jay's hat is a little show on its own.
Not so good: I missed the horns. But the backing girls did sing some parts, so it was ok.
I want to welcome the new guys Nate and Howard. I couldn't always figure out who of them did which parts. I saw Nate playing the guitar sometimes and he was also singing. Multitalented guy!
One good thing at the end: No Deeper Underground as encore!! Yay! Finally!!
Supersonic was a great closer, but Jeroen suggested they should have better played Twenty Zero One. I agree. This would have fit perfectly to the concert. But I was happy with Supersonic as well. I won't complain! I had a blast. Dancing, singing, partying! Lots of fun!
Thanks to everyone who made this evening so unforgettable!!
Setlist:
Shake It On
Little L
Automaton
The Kids
Dr Buzz
Space Cowboy
Superfresh
White Knuckle Ride
Cosmic Girl
Corner of the Earth
Morning Glory > Feel So Good
Mr Moon
Cloud 9
Something About You
Emergency On Planet Earth
Runaway
Hot Property
Carla
Revolution > Canned Heat
Love Foolosophy
.............................
Supersonic