The band performed on a circular stage in the middle of the pit, initially surrounded by projection screens. After two songs, the screens lifted above the stage to reveal the band, accompanied by an additional percussionist, Chris Vatalaro. I almost couldn’t tell that nine years had passed since the last time I saw them, and the setlist was fairly similar. In fact, they played the same set as two shows prior in Copenhagen, merely substituting “How to Disappear Completely” in place of “Like Spinning Plates”. They’ve made a pattern of alternating between two sets with minor variations as they go along. (Naturally, someone has made a spreadsheet.)
It’s hard to judge whether I got the better or worse variant. “Nude”, “Pyramid Song”, and “Exit Music” were great, even if Colin’s fuzz bass could’ve been more present on the lattermost, but I got the weaker Bends songs. (I would’ve loved “Planet Telex” or “Just”!) If I have a real complaint, it’s just that there was a certain predictability to the song selection. I suppose asking for b-sides or unreleased songs like I got in 2012 would be too much to ask, but, like, why’d they take “Subterranean Homesick Blues”, “Climbing Up the Walls”, and “Nice Dream” out of rotation? What about any of the songs unearthed for the OK Computer or Kid A Mnesia reissues? They didn’t even really play any songs with room for chance or improvisation, like “Everything in Its Right Place”. I was hoping for some curveballs, a little more risk.
That said, they have so many great songs that they can play two sets full of bangers and safely ignore the obscurities. I finally got to see “Let Down”, albeit in a tamer arrangement that somehow lacked some of its usual uplifting energy. “Airbag”, “You and Whose Army?”, and “No Surprises” are always welcome. “Sit Down. Stand Up.”, “Optimistic”, and “How to Disappear Completely” were slightly less obvious choices that I enjoyed, although Jonny screwing up the drum machine threw the first for a loop. “There There” was a strong closing number.
But the mix, at least where I was sitting, was surprisingly bad. The bass was terribly boomy, which turned the mids into mush. The higher-powered, heavier songs like “Ful Stop”, “The Bends”, and “Bodysnatchers” were a mess, and the vocals were rendered inaudible for those. For the quieter songs, the balance was better, and those songs tended to work better. Yorke’s voice was in great form despite the recent cancellations, and I always love Ed’s (and Phil’s!) backing vocals. I was hoping for more analog synth, but Jonny just used it to control a drum machine. Regardless, it’s still cool to watch him run between so many different instruments, particularly the lovely ondes Martenot.
My other complaint was even more situational: I was happy to have a seat, but my section unusually stayed seated for the most part, and for once I really wanted to dance. My position in the venue was such that I mostly just saw Colin’s back as he locked his gaze with the drummers, which also threw me out of the experience a bit. At least Thom came around to the back for some of the acoustic numbers.
Despite the distractions, I was still captivated and sang along with just about every song. The band kept up a brisk pace, blasting through 25 songs with hardly a pause. They hardly spoke to the crowd, but then again, they rarely do say much. Their songs tend to speak for themselves. It struck me during the show just how bitingly critical and politically powerful so many of their songs are. While one can criticize the finer points of the individual members’ politics, how could anyone doubt which side they stand on? Song after song harkened back to past outrages while presciently describing those of the present day.
Maybe I came into the show with too high of expectations. The first two times I saw them in St. Louis were some of the best concerts I’ve seen, and it’s hard to match that. The circumstances did not align to give me another transcendent experience. I wish I’d been able to see and hear the band in more ideal conditions, and I wish I could’ve moved my body more freely. Oh well. I still had a blast.
Here’s the setlist:
01. 2 + 2 = 5
02. Airbag
03. Jigsaw Falling into Place
04. All I Need
05. Ful Stop
06. Nude
07. Reckoner
08. The Bends
09. Separator
10. Pyramid Song
11. You and Whose Army?
12. Sit Down. Stand Up.
13. Myxomatosis
14. No Surprises
15. Optimistic
16. Bodysnatchers
17. Exit Music (for a Film)
18. Street Spirit (Fade Out)
Encore:
19. Let Down
20. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
21. Idioteque
22. Present Tense
23. How to Disappear Completely
24. Paranoid Android
25. There There
Score: B
P.S. Thanks to Mirah!
P.P.S. Kraftwerk played at the Music Hall next door on the same night!







