Depeche Mode Tour Of The Universe Blog

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Blog #46 Barcelona (1) - November 20th

Barcelona (1) - November 20th
author: big_pete
date posted: November 23rd, 2009

Arrived in Barcelona day before the show and dropped by the venue, things were happening, food was arriving, a few fans were milling about, and a few familiar faces from the DM crew walking around the venue.

The Venue is a huge place, and set in Beautiful surroundings, the fans waiting outside had some fantastic views of Barcelona from way up high at the Palau St Jordi, which is absolutely massive for an in-door venue. The DM tour machine kicked into life at around 8am, and by early afternoon the stage was all set up, and looking amazing, there's something very beautiful when you see the lights and projections in full effect, but without any crowd.

The soundcheck yielded a few suprises, A dave-less band ran through a few dm classics, and a fantastic version of "one caress" - which was just pure perfection, Martins Blue and white stripey mohair jumper and big wooly white hat kept him warm in the cold empty arena.

After the soundcheck PeterToo kept us all much amused by falling down stairs, twisting ankles and spraining wrists. He spent half the afternoon packing his ankle with ice, only to complain the ice was giving him frostbite, but at least the swelling had now gone down.

Anyway, several cameras were spotted around the venue, so the location of the Tour Of The Universe DVD became known to the fans today, to say that the show was being filmed it didn't appear too different from the other shows, apparently they are using different camera set ups for each day - so tomorrow night the cameras might be more noticeable. The main noticeable difference today was a lighting rig towards the back of the venue, to light up the fans - it made the waving hands on never let me down again look very impressive.

The show was great, the crowd took a few songs to really get going - but when they did it was amazing, it was pure DM magic - the show was well worthy of being used for the Tour DVD.

The after show was rammed with friends and family, a real celebratory atmosphere - the after show music was provided by the Legendary Daryl Bamonte - and his trusted Ipod, it was all fine until Daryl's Ipod randomly picked and old a-ha track, and it was quickly changed to some more suitable dance music, at which point my good lady taught Daryl the "hand in pocket" dance.

I took some great pictures of the show, some of which were from the rear of the stage, looking down - the view was quite stunning.

I am exhausted, but am more than a little excited at tomorrow's show, and am sure I am not the only one ......

 

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Blog #47 Barcelona (2) - November 21st

Barcelona (2) - November 21st
author: peter
date posted: November 24th, 2009

After last nights twitterfest (and amazing show) I enjoyed a relatively quiet day in wonderful Barcelona. Slept in, late breakfast, a stroll on the beach with mr. and mrs. Big Pete, bit of lunch, some shopping, then back to the venue.

For some reason something's just always got in the way of me watching all of Soulsavers' set, but tonight I finally got to. Really really good, and extremely well received by the spanish audience. I loved it. A couple of photos attached here.

Depeche Mode's show was a cracker - from start to finish the band rocked very hard. Dave was on fire, like I have never seen him - his trips down the catwalk made the place explode - the audience were feeding off him and vice versa. Martin sang his socks off (not literally - both socks and shoes stayed on throughout the show), and Fletch was busy twiddling knobs and getting the crowd going.

The "I Feel You" head banging session was a highlight for me, but then again I am a sucker for those heavy beats. "Policy Of Truth" got a bit of a re-vamping with Christian playing it differently than normal - it was a subtle change, but it really beefed up the track, making it another highlight for me. The "Home" chant ended up being conducted by Dave with his pretend baton, and he really got the crowd going. It kept getting faster and faster until he was just stood there laughing and the crowd had to give up trying to keep the pace. Very funny!

In general, they gave the setlist a bit of a shuffle tonight, leaving "World In My Eyes" out, moving "It's No Good" to a different spot, including "Sister Of Night", doing "Dressed In Black" instead of "One Caress", and "Come Back" instead of "Miles Away" and bringing back "Waiting For The Night" for one night only. Quite interesting seeing two such different setlists back to back.

During "Fly..." I snuck out to the mobile recording studio and had a sneak peak at what was being recorded - it looked and sounded stunning already, and that was "just" the live mix. It was good seeing some of the familiar faces from LiveHereNow again - I've missed them being at the recent shows. They'd brought with them quite a different setup to I've seen before. I'll put up a picture or two from the mobile studio with this blog entry.

After the show we headed up to the backstage hospitality area for a night cap. When Fletch walked in to the room he received a round of applause, something I have never seen before. It was quite clear tonights show had been extraordinary, and thankfully there was a camera crew there to capture it. At the aftershow iPod battle, Bamonte was once more the fastest man on the proverbial trigger, hooking up his Apple gadget to the stereo, kicking things off with another set filled to the rim with electro beats. His efforts, however, were thwarted by one mr. Gore, who's iPod proved to contain more reggae music than even the most hardcore rastafari would ever dare shake a stick at.

Till next time!

 

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Blog #48 Lyon - November 23rd

Lyon - November 23rd
author: mm
date posted: November 27th, 2009

Lyon - known to many as the culinary capital of France - is by far one of the most charming places I've ever visited. Interesting and mysterious alley ways. Surprising boutiques. Unique cultural history. Wonderfully entertaining people.

We played the Halle Tony Garnier, the 2nd biggest venue in France next to the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy, to a sold-out crowd of 16,500 Lyonnaise! This lovely region in the Rhone-Alpes welcome the Mode with open arms.

Check out the concert images and try to imagine a perfect concert in a more perfect location.

See you in Bologna!
MM

 

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Blog #49 Italy - November 25th and 26th

Italy - November 25th and 26th
author: mm
date posted: December 1st, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving to you American fans from this lovely country they call Italy south of the Olive line!

It's always a pleasure to come back here, especially in anticipation of 2 successfully sold-out gigs in Bologna and Torino. 13,000 and 11,500 people welcomed the Mode back to Italy for their 4th and 5th stop in the region of the Tour of the Universe. I'm sure the great food (white truffles, anyone) had little to do with the repeat visits...

The Futurestation Arena (Bologna) and the Palaolympico (Torino) were perfect environments for the boys' return. By the end of the first night, it was clear from the expressions on their faces that they had a successful run and were looking forward to another one in Torino. And they were right. Tonight was spectacular and the crowd even more-so.

Check out the images for some behind-the-scenes shots and concert images.

Until next time. See you in Erfurt! Back to Germany we go!
MM

 

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Blog #50 Erfurt - November 28th

Erfurt - November 28th
author: mm
date posted: December 4th, 2009

As the running joke in our camp goes, "we are back in the Fatherland."

The Messehalle was a great, compact venue that produced some of the best sounds I've ever heard. I managed to get on the mixing desk to take some great shots of our boys from a different perspective. At some point, our illustrious Head of Security brought out a young boy from the audience to join us on the side of the stage. Needless to say, he was thrilled!

Check out some new live shots of the Mode back in Germany, playing to some of their most devoted fans. It's a celebration..

See you in Nuremberg!

 

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Blog #51 Rotterdam - November 30th

Rotterdam - November 30th
author: big_pete
date posted: December 4th, 2009

I arrived in Rotterdam around midday, and the stage was already up and almost finished.

There's an imminent skiing holiday arranged for the crew - just before the Zurich shows, and most people were getting excited about that, so there was a little bit of a "groundhog day" feel to the crews daily tasks today.

The last shows I saw were in Barcelona, and they are for now staying unbeaten, Rotterdam was a very solid performance, and the little tweaks being added here and there are making the performances really special.

Christian is having fun with Policy Of Truth, and tonight Dave asked Martin "do you really want to ?" - then DM did Reggae, it was just for a few seconds, but it was hilarious.

The crowd weren't the most enthusiastic I have seen, but most in the standing section were dancing - some of the seated sections took a while to find their feet - but they got there in the end.

The band are on a roll now, the performance was faultless, the chemistry between them is creating some fantastic shows.

I got to see "Insight" tonight, fantastic piano, and beautiful backing vocals from Mr Gordeno, and Martin Vocals just breathtaking, sadly "Fly on the Windscreen" is being "rested" - I hope it comes back in the future it was a highlight for me.

In the attached photos you will see Video Chief Rob Wick aka "Wicksy" who felt his appearance would lighten up dull pictures of the Stage and Cameras being set up ready for the show, so he's appearing in 3 of the pictures today !!

The next time I see the band will be in Dublin - which by all accounts should be a belter of a show !!

 

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Blog #52 Nuremberg - December 1st

Nuremberg - December 1st
author: mm
date posted: December 4th, 2009

Nuremberg is in the German state of Bavaria, known to we Americans as that rockin' place with great beer. The truth is while that food and drink are important to the cultural fabrics of Bavarians, the city of Nuremberg stands on it's own history and legacy. As a political science buff, it's important to note that in 1945 and '46, German officials from the Nazi regime were tried in in Nuremberg, and that these trials had a significant influence on International Criminal Law. I could go on, but I know what you guys are here for...

Depeche Mode. Take a look at some concert shots and rock on (in social conscious, of course).

See you in Rotterdam!
MM

 

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Blog #53 Vienna - December 3rd

Vienna - December 3rd
author: mm
date posted: December 8th, 2009

One word: TAFELSPITZ! If I were still a vegetarian, I would have converted to a carnivorous diet right after tasting this traditional Viennese dish for the fist time. Delicious beef boiled in broth and served with all sorts of yummy garnishes and side dishes - apple horseradish and dumplings were my favorite. It was a wonderful way to kick off our first night in town and to prepare for the Mode's sold-out gig at the Stadhalle!

The concert in Vienna was more than another successful show - it was a hometown performance for our beloved Christian Eigner! With the support of fans, family and friends, he put on an incredible performance with our boys and the Viennese crowd welcome them with open arms.

Check out the photos for some backstage action and stage shots!

See YOU in Zurich.
MM

 

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