Best song seen live?

[Greatkudu]

Glasgow Apollo 1980, The Raven, with huge Raven backdrop and a white beam coming out of it’s eye.
Completely blew my mind.

Special shout out to Aural Sculpture tour, again at the Apollo, when they had portable mouth mics.
Peaches stopped due JJ going to sort out a bouncer, lots of chat from three of them on the mics, followed by a “right, where were we” and back into it. The glory days indeed.

Sir in that fantastic memory you have just encompassed why there will never ever be another band like the Stranglers,thanks for your fantastic memory.Major General Kudu.

[ThinkTank]

Glasgow Apollo 1980, The Raven, with huge Raven backdrop and a white beam coming out of it’s eye.
Completely blew my mind.

Special shout out to Aural Sculpture tour, again at the Apollo, when they had portable mouth mics.
Peaches stopped due JJ going to sort out a bouncer, lots of chat from three of them on the mics, followed by a “right, where were we” and back into it. The glory days indeed.

They got rid of those mics after the tour though because the sound quality was inferior. They did crackle a little and could lose connection at odd times as well.

[ThinkTank]

Some of tracks played at the Albert Hall were quite enjoyable with the string section. It doesn't come across so well though on the DVV though. Valley of the birds for example.

For me of what it was and where it was with them suited and with the strings it made the whole experience special.....the ocassion rather than how good the gig was is what stands out best for me being at the Royal Albert Halll.
I just wasn't a fan of some of the vocals to some of the songs and especially some of the mk1 ones like Skin Deep and Sewer and many more wasn't for me.
Paul looked great and gave it his all but it's the old thing again for me unfortunately it's just a shame it wasn't Hugh up there with them with the orchestra now that would of been something worth seeing for me....but putting that to one side it was a massive occasion for the entity as a whole in their history that's set in stone forever and so will next year when they return there again but i've a feeling this will be bigger and better than before except very sadly without Jet and Dave.

I have seen a few bands and acts at the Royal Albert Hall in my time and the one thing that always struck me was how difficult it was for vocalists to sound good there. Its the very high ceiling and the round shape of the venue it makes a vocalist get lost in that mass of area. The only person i have seen that sounded excellent there was Siouxsie and the Banshees as she has a sort of pseudo gothic operatic voices and it really benefitted her in that echoey type place.

Lots of artists do add the orchestra when performing in there due to that's what its really designed for as well as opera singers but also bands realise they need to fill that place with such a high rounded building with more sound to sound better.

I honestly don't think Hugh would have sounded that great in the Royal Albert Hall either.

[Waffle waitress]

Some of tracks played at the Albert Hall were quite enjoyable with the string section. It doesn't come across so well though on the DVV though. Valley of the birds for example.

For me of what it was and where it was with them suited and with the strings it made the whole experience special.....the ocassion rather than how good the gig was is what stands out best for me being at the Royal Albert Halll.
I just wasn't a fan of some of the vocals to some of the songs and especially some of the mk1 ones like Skin Deep and Sewer and many more wasn't for me.
Paul looked great and gave it his all but it's the old thing again for me unfortunately it's just a shame it wasn't Hugh up there with them with the orchestra now that would of been something worth seeing for me....but putting that to one side it was a massive occasion for the entity as a whole in their history that's set in stone forever and so will next year when they return there again but i've a feeling this will be bigger and better than before except very sadly without Jet and Dave.

I have seen a few bands and acts at the Royal Albert Hall in my time and the one thing that always struck me was how difficult it was for vocalists to sound good there. Its the very high ceiling and the round shape of the venue it makes a vocalist get lost in that mass of area. The only person i have seen that sounded excellent there was Siouxsie and the Banshees as she has a sort of pseudo gothic operatic voices and it really benefitted her in that echoey type place.

Lots of artists do add the orchestra when performing in there due to that's what its really designed for as well as opera singers but also bands realise they need to fill that place with such a high rounded building with more sound to sound better.

I honestly don't think Hugh would have sounded that great in the Royal Albert Hall either.

Great idea for another thread, lm thinking,
Venues where HC might sound crap

[droopsnoot]

They got rid of those mics after the tour though because the sound quality was inferior. They did crackle a little and could lose connection at odd times as well.

I recall reading in Strangled that another reason the wireless head mics went because they felt the stage lacked a focal point if the two singers could stand anywhere, without having to go back to the usual mic stands. I expect quality and reliability is much better now, of course.

[Waffle waitress]

They got rid of those mics after the tour though because the sound quality was inferior. They did crackle a little and could lose connection at odd times as well.

I recall reading in Strangled that another reason the wireless head mics went because they felt the stage lacked a focal point if the two singers could stand anywhere, without having to go back to the usual mic stands. I expect quality and reliability is much better now, of course.

There's only one band that gets away with using a head mic theses days (l don't mean pop acts jumping around miming to a backing track) and that's Kraftwerk.

oh, wait...

[ThinkTank]

That's a good point about the focus points were missing. I didn't like those mics but i was never too sure why. I thought it might be the voice mic coming around to the front obscuring good vision of the face but i think it could well be the focus point reasons as well.

[toilerinblack]

That's a good point about the focus points were missing. I didn't like those mics but i was never too sure why. I thought it might be the voice mic coming around to the front obscuring good vision of the face but i think it could well be the focus point reasons as well.

I'm not a fan of the head mics at all never have liked them it just gives off a crap vocal sound for me,my dislike is not a visual one at all infact you can hardly see them ...it's just totally a crap sound....

[ThinkTank]

That's a good point about the focus points were missing. I didn't like those mics but i was never too sure why. I thought it might be the voice mic coming around to the front obscuring good vision of the face but i think it could well be the focus point reasons as well.

I'm not a fan of the head mics at all never have liked them it just gives off a crap vocal sound for me,my dislike is not a visual one at all infact you can hardly see them ...it's just totally a crap sound....

oh yeah Toiler i absolutely agree i was glad to see them dropped i did hate their sound as well as visually .

The funny thing though they caught me by surprise when i first saw them on stage with those mics. They were singing the song Something Better Change as the opening number and i actually thought they were messing about and had come on miming at first (as i could see they had the freedom on stage and moving about and didn't notice the head mics) and JJ sounded so good vocally.

Which kind of relates back to the other thread when i mentioned the same song was sang a bit weird by JJ with a whisper at Alexander Palace. Its another example how JJ can be so good vocally on one tour and then so different at another.

[droopsnoot]

Which kind of relates back to the other thread when i mentioned the same song was sang a bit weird by JJ with a whisper at Alexander Palace. Its another example how JJ can be so good vocally on one tour and then so different at another.

Maybe just a thing of the time - if you recall he sang it the same way when they played on "The Word" before they'd announced Paul had joined the band. He's said that he lost confidence in his voice around that time.

[ThinkTank]

Which kind of relates back to the other thread when i mentioned the same song was sang a bit weird by JJ with a whisper at Alexander Palace. Its another example how JJ can be so good vocally on one tour and then so different at another.

Maybe just a thing of the time - if you recall he sang it the same way when they played on "The Word" before they'd announced Paul had joined the band. He's said that he lost confidence in his voice around that time.

Yeah good point . I do find it hard to understand how JJ could lose confidence though but then again i am not a singer.
That recording at Alexander Palace made it sound a hell of a lot better than it was being there in my opinion i don't know if you was at that gig but i was and i remember thinking wtf is that why is JJ whispering Something better change !!! when only a few years ago i see him doing it and it sounded awesome.

[droopsnoot]

i don't know if you was at that gig but i was and i remember thinking wtf is that why is JJ whispering Something better change !!!

I wasn't, much too far south for me to venture. As for why, hadn't he just been beaten up on the way through France to get to the gig? Maybe his ribs were hurting so he couldn't sing loudly.