Gotye Hammersmith Apollo (by sarah)
So we finally went to see Wally perform - we ended up being scooped in with the VIPs and what have you mainly due to my stick and the fact that I'd over done it at the Tate Modern so could hardly move and was shaking! I took loads of photos and video of the gig most of which is no good as the light levels were so low and we were so far away - I am placing my blurry gig photos on the blog anyway as it is mine and Al's external memory 🙂 Considering my little happy snappy camera and the fact I was sat in the circle I am actually really happy at the photos I got.
String bean physic and a penchant for electronics - it really was like watching some relative of Alaric's on stage.
We found Gotye because people said he was like Alaric to look at 🙂
Alaric I think has kept his hair short after having been repeatedly mistaken at festivals this summer as The Gotye Impersonator 😉
Alaric was excited to discover Jonti at the concert and happy to hear Gotye who it had turned out we did own music off but had him squirreled away in Al's electronica stuff.
I did alot of experimenting with the light settings and stuff on the camera and think considering how far away I was and the light levels some of these really aren't that bad.
It is beyond me why people feel they have to spend the whole concert getting up and down from their seats - I started to get murderous over it! Especially if it was when I was trying to video or take a photo.
I loved the visuals and am constructing some short stories based on their inspiration!
They confiscated my bottle of drink at the beginning when we went in but Alaric bought me a glass of diet coke.
Alaric commented that he thought Gotye looked more like our friend Richard than himself. I just smiled and said that the official vid of Easy Way Out is like a merger of him and Richard.
There was a plinky plonky instrument that I itched to have a go on and part of me was thinking - you know I have my laptop but no microphone on me damn!
We tried taking pics putting the monocular on the camera but we just could not reduce the shake enough.
Alaric's comment about one of the songs was 'that reminds me of our hammond organ' to which I responded 'I think he sampled some of it from one'. We almost bought a T-shirt but were running low on budget.
Have I mentions the weird blowy instrument he appeared to be using? Not sure what it was or even if it was a wind instrument and I didn't get to see it properlly as it was gone by the time I wrestled the monocular off of Al.
The voice synth was halarious he really played it up!
This was mine and Alaric's first concert - I've stewarded events and works at events and performed at events but that whole audience thingy? Never really done it. Mainly due to the crowd and sitting down issue. I got these tickets as there were seated ones.
I do like my pics of pretty lights 🙂
Eyes Wide Open is my favorite song and one that I think the Green Unconference should have as a theme tune 🙂
The live visuals did differ alot in some cases and only a bit in others from the official musical vids.
This one I've kept just because I think it looks arty - it's called Ghost of Gotye.
I wonder if a better camera would have gotten me better pictures or if it is just my lack of skill!?
I loved the way all the musicians lined up and sort of bobbed their way through this one 🙂
There was only one song that I would have liked to have heard missed - everything else was covered.
This song Don't Worry We'll Be Watching You freaks me out slightly!
Some of the tunes are so haunting.
I was wondering about the sort of procussion rings that he was using - what are they?
It was quiet cool the way he would announce so and so on the synthasised/sampled sax and things like that. The thing is it does take skill to put this type of stuff together for a live show.
He is an amazing drummer - I would have loved to get hold of one of his drum sticks.
The band were so slick that it was only when a bit of sound engineering went wrong that it differed from the recordings really - this was amazingly good to the point I started to suspect mimining until he accidently mucked up the acoustic as the Apollos more of a theatre.
The moods of the different songs were caught via the lighting - the crew should be very proud of themselves.
One of the songs Gotye had the responsibility of a little tiny cymbal - it was so funny the way he emphasised this 🙂
Wally's little whitasisms thought out made us smile.
I took quiet a bit of video of the gig but it is for a holiday vid of mine and Alaric's break rather than concert specific.
Bronte is Jean's favorite Gotye track though she finds it too sad as the girl doesn't get to say goodbye to her friends - I personally wonder if there is a more sinister ending.
Lots of people left as soon as the band walked off - this was in my opinion a rookie error - and I was right.
We thought for a bit there that Ozzy's might not do oncors but they came back out and I have to find the name of the guitarist (I know he said it but I forgot it!)
The energy of the concert was fantastic mainly due to the musicians habit of noodling around on stage from one instrument to another. Wally/Gotye being the most noodly.
It was an amazing evening were I ruined Alaric's Christmas surprise by getting myself a signed copy of Making Mirrors!
Alaric thanked me for organising it at the end and agreed we should catch concerts in the future - we would love to go to Australia to visit my family at some point - it would be brilliant if we could see him on his home turf at the same time but that sort of trip is way out of budget at the moment.
Alaric, Events and Outings, Music, Sarah | sarah | 
Tue 13th Nov 2012 11:11 pm
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