2017 tour reviews

[Prairieboy]

Forget anything I ever said about any of Matt's guitarists over the years. Stage presence, style, proficiency, anything at all.

It's all about Stu. Ever since the CN tour I realized how unappreciative I've been of him. His playing really has so much character, and has created such an identidy over the years, it's really prevalent in the newer material. Even on the recordings. And that's in no way a bad thing.

Isn't he great to watch?? It's why at the GA shows we always try to park ourselves in front of the left side of the stage :)

[adam_777]

Very enjoyable show last night in Winnipeg. Crowd was pretty into it and band was solid as usual. Encore was Born Losers Decades Apparitions and Weapon. The theater was absolutely awesome definitely from a time long past. I was wsy up in the second balcony and in the corner so the sound was quite echoey up their but it was a neat vantage point to see the show. Matt was pretty engaging last night chatting with the crowd a fair bit. Not as much as Red Deer but more than any other show ive seen. Its cool to notice little things that are different each night. At this show it was how Matt sang the into a wall of fire part of strange Days.

 

On a side note this was my first trip to Winnipeg. Everyone always speaks poorly of it. But I quite enjoyed my time here. Dont see why it gets ragged on as much ss it does

[AnOceanPearl]

My impression of Stu during the Vancouver tour was that he was a very... clinical and precise and guitar player, whereas Jimmy Reid seemed like a more loose, free flowing, almost reckless sort of guitar player.

 

I went to both Vancouver shows during the CN tour - the night of and the night after the Bataclan attack, and while the whole band was just on point those nights, I clearly remember during Harridan on night 1 and Police Cars on night 2 just changing my mind about Stu as a guitar player - he blew me away.

Forget anything I ever said about any of Matt's guitarists over the years. Stage presence, style, proficiency, anything at all.

It's all about Stu. Ever since the CN tour I realized how unappreciative I've been of him. His playing really has so much character, and has created such an identidy over the years, it's really prevalent in the newer material. Even on the recordings. And that's in no way a bad thing.

[emmit643]

Stu plays guitar with his soul, with his whole body I swear. I love watching him play. He is whimsically captivating.

 

He told me he doesn't come on here and read very often because it can be easy to get down on yourself if you think you had an off night playing, since the forum is very honest, but I hope that he does see these comments and that we love him!

Edited March 1, 2017 by emmit643

[Stwlegend]

Attended the Hamilton show Saturday night and wanted to say I had a great time.  The venue was cool looking, the sound mix from my seats was great and the crowd was into it.  Wasn't sure how it would be with reserved seating but I actually enjoyed getting a drink with my wife before the show and not making a mad dash for the front railing when the doors open.  We were on Peter's side 20 rows back and it was a great view and looked that way from anywhere in there.  As soon as Giant kicked in, everyone stood up and there was no sitting back down.

 

A few notes, really enjoyed Craig Stickland. Seems like a genuine nice guy and no doubt a talented musician.  What he does with all the pedal work to get that full band sound by himself is really cool. Tragically Hip cover was a nice touch too.  He had a helluva story about his van breaking down, basically got in the venue at start time and started playing.

 

Matt said he was getting stuffy and on some antibiotics from the climate changes across the tour, but didn't effect anything that I noticed.  A stage light blew out right before Suburbia, some funny joking around about that.  It seemed everything went smooth for the band and it was just a very enjoyable show.

 

Some people there to converse rather than listen and of course people yelling songs in the middle of the BM set, but all in good fun, didn't distract me. Matt also made the comment he doesn't hear crowd banter with the inner ear monitors and cant see without his glasses so certainly didn't effect him haha. Didn't see any crowd issues/security stuff, or anything like that, venue staff was friendly and everyone seemed respectful.  Glad I took the drive from Buffalo. Have a few other comments I'll throw in the appropriate threads, hope that was worth a read.

[mr99]

Was quite impressed with the Hamilton show - love Stu more every time I see him - the whole light burning thing - Parapharsing Matt after the song..."should I keep playing...uhh should I stop...can anyone else smell that?"

I had decent seats near the front and was around a bunch of fun folks - many VIP folks - however I am pretty sure one guy next to me missed the whole "Beautiful Midnight" theme of the show...I knew for sure when he leans in and screams at me "how does everyone know what songs are coming next?"....same guy..."I hope he plays some old stuff"...more funny than annoying...

It was nice to see that many folks were present and in the moment - there was the odd cellphone - or one would come out for mere seconds and then go away....but it wasn't like some shows where 90% of the people are watching it through a screen all night...having seen another band earlier in the week with a far different target audience - the lack of cell phones in comparison stood out to me in a good way...

Also if you see someone wearing ear plugs its not about it being too loud - its about it sounding better - many shows / venues sound better with them in. It cuts out the echo and you can actually hear everything that is being said / played quite clearly.

 

Edited March 6, 2017 by mr99

[andydanger85]

Yeah, I was six rows back, dead center and the mix was perfect. Light shows used to provoke my anxiety in a very terrifying way, but it would seem that I have crossed that bridge and enjoyed this one immensely. I will echo the statements made above in praise of Stu's performance style - that sway makes me feel every last note he plays and I am comfortable enough at this point to say that I enjoy his lead stylings more than even Dave Genn's. Maybe that's just my own tastes evolving, but I love Stu.

Not going to lie guys, many songs in this set made me get all misty eyed and emotional. When an album is as tied to a specific group of memories and time of your life as this one is for me, you run the emotional gamut hearing tunes live that you never thought you'd head. I don't think I could see during I Miss New Wave, I was flowing so much haha

 

There was one person during the VIP who was screaming out song requests and being belligerent. She also did not seem to understand that the format of the VIP involved voting ahead of time ....her attitude seemed to be DANCE MONKEY DANCE, rather than so many others that were just super chill and there to enjoy a nice low key event/humbling experience meeting the man. She didn't ruin it or anything, but the air in the room kinda seemed to change every time there was an outburst. 

[AnOceanPearl]

My wife wears earplugs at basically every show we go to. For me it depends on venue/artist. Matt played at the Commodore in Vancouver, and for me, about 50% of the shows I've seen there I've used earplugs to get more clarity, the other 50% I haven't, even when standing in basically the same spot. And in fairness, it is a good way to prevent hearing damage from shows. I know I've definitely damaged my hearing somewhat from not wearing ear plugs at shows or during band practice.

Also if you see someone wearing ear plugs its not about it being too loud - its about it sounding better - many shows / venues sound better with them in. It cuts out the echo and you can actually hear everything that is being said / played quite clearly.

 

[Manchalivin]

I went to my first Matthew Good show in London on Friday and it was kind of a surreal experience.  I kind of thought I'd never see him live, but a BM themed tour was the extra push to get me there.   Hearing BM in its entirety was really cool and MG did not disappoint.  He really sounded good I thought.  I had a pretty good view but I think the spot I was at was not the greatest for sound.  I was up against the wall.  It still did sound quite good considering.  My first real concert ever and it was LOUD.  I went thinking I'd wear earplugs but then thought I wanted to hear my first experience normally and thought earplugs might block out the sound too much, but I think they actually might have made it sound better.  I'm hoping to see him again on his next tour and will definitely be wearing earplugs if I go again.   It would be nice if people went to shows for the music and not to get drunk with a crowd of people.  Go to a bar if that's what you want. 

 

I bought the shirt with the big monkey face on it.  Sweet throwback.

Edited March 7, 2017 by Manchalivin

[andydanger85]

Sorry if this has been asked before, but did anyone notice that the monkey mask was on stage the whole time? Beside Blake on a mic stand? Amazing touch ...

[foats]

Matt tweeted that he was in the hospital earlier today. Hope all is well.  #prayersformg

[hoogie]

I saw that too. Sounds like he's good to go for tonight still though. Hopefully everything is alright.

[Prairieboy]

Sorry if this has been asked before, but did anyone notice that the monkey mask was on stage the whole time? Beside Blake on a mic stand? Amazing touch ...

Which show? Don't recall seeing it in Saskatoon...

[adam_777]

I dont recall seeing it at any of my 11 shows and I was front row for five of them. Its not impossible that I missed it. But I think it might be something new

[andydanger85]

Which show? Don't recall seeing it in Saskatoon...

 

Hamilton. I found a video I took where you can see it pretty nicely. Just let me figure out how to post videos.

 

Edit:

 

I uploaded it to Youtube. It's a clip from Weapon during Saturday's performance. You are looking to the back of the stage, to Blake's left. It's not super sharp, but I was sixth row centre and I kept staring at it the whole night with a wide smile on my face. Fellow Wednesday Toronto show attendees .... note this position tomorrow night and you will see it!

 

 

Edit:

 

Can also be seen in this video of Going all the Way (you can see it in the thumbnail, actually)

 

Edited March 8, 2017 by andydanger85

[adam_777]

Wow really cool. Definitely not there at the earlier shows I was situated directly in front of Matt's amps a couple times and there was nothing standing up behind it

[Sly Botts]

Sarnia - March 7th

 

Encore:

Born Losers

Apparitions

Weapon

(New song not played)

 

This was my first MG show in 10 years. The venue was the Station Music Hall. It was a small venue but you could pretty much see no matter where you were. If you preferred to sit, you could sit in the back near one of the three bars and still see pretty good.

 

Sound was alright, sometimes it was hard to make out some of the lead guitar though. The band played very well, and there did not appear to be any significant technical issues from what I could tell, however it's hard to say since I wouldn't know what to look for. Matt seemed to Ribb on ?Stu? (Lead guitar) a bit which added some humour to the show. The band certainly did not disappoint and it was nice to hear those old BM songs live that I,ve always wanted to hear. Something strange though... Does Matt normally just walk off after the encore without saying anything? Some people seemed confused about weather or not the show was really over.

 

There were a lot of talkers during the show (lots). Lots of folks who appeared to be there just to drink and chat. It didn't, take away from the show however.

 

Matt went into the crowd at one point, walked over to one of the bars and sang Lets get it on, which was neat, and yes the monkey mask was on stage to the left of the drummer.

 

Overall I quite enjoyed the show, lead guitarist was fantastic.

 

Thanks for coming out Matt.

 

Note: I forgot to add Matt made a comment asking if people ever get confused about the City on the American side of the bridge being called the same as the Canadian side. He was corrected and told it was called Port Huron. He then said something along the lines of thinking it was a Sault Ste Marie situation followed by friendly "booo's" from the crowd. Oh Matt, you poor man. Lol. Maybe if you went back to the Soo and played again you wouldn't get the cities mixed up. *hint hint*.

 

If anyone was there I was the guy wearing the Mass effect N7 hoodie.

Edited March 8, 2017 by Sly Botts

[UnderdogsofBeing]

I've been to 20 MG shows and can't think of a single time he's said anything before leaving when the encore is finished.

[andydanger85]

That is so rad!!! I totally didn't notice it in Victoria at all. I was pretty far back though and distracted by how much that venue sucked, ha ha.

 

Andrew, thanks for uploading that video. Matt's singing sounds absolutely spectacular! His voice is stronger than ever. The energy on stage is just awesome. I wish I had been out to more than one of the shows now but it was just bad timing in my life. It's great to have some audio and video from other shows. You guys from The Bored are awesome. I hope I can meet all of you one day. I'm feeling a little bit sappy, don't mind me. It's just cool to be part of a community that is so positive and loving without ad hominem attacks on people. At the show in the Rio a couple Novembers ago, I remember Matt saying that he feels like because he has had longtime fans supporting him at so many shows for so many years, he feels like we are all this together. I just wanted to thank everyone for maintaining such a respectful and enthusiastic space for fans of Matt to enjoy. A Pleasurable Headache and some of the other older web forums from MGB days could get quite nasty. Anyway I'm going through a rough time in my life and it helps a lot to have The Bored around to brighten things up. I'll stop now before I get too saccharine!

 

tl;dr Thanks, everyone, The Bored is the best forum ever!!! 

 

You're quite welcome! I think, as adam_777 has suggested, that it was not present. I checked a few of the other live videos taken from this tour and it does seem to be absent. Perhaps an afterthought, or maybe someone packed it and it was forgotten for a few dates, but yeah - a very cool touch!

 

And yeah, I agree. I lurked on this board for a long time, but I was a part of old communities (especially The Metro/Nation of Cool) and it seemed like a race to who could pick a fight with Matt the quickest. As for longtime fans supporting him, tomorrow is my 16th show over thirteen years. I'll always go because I love it and because the man has inestimably contributed to my life!

[Sly Botts]

Yeah the old metro actually continued as a site called "go analog" until 2 or 3 years ago. People seemed to mellow out by then and it was obviously no longer mg themed however people still talked about him from time to time (ie new album). I think the old Metro was just full of people who had yet to experience life and mature. Lots of highscool type bullying went on there. They really picked on some girl named Jen and that Scot guy. (Yes I remember).

 

Im pretty sure i saw someone at the show last night who used to post there (a few maybe) but i forgot their names.

 

I also spoke to a fan who only just started listening to mg. I should have told him about this site.

Edited March 8, 2017 by Sly Botts

[Guest jjazz]

Well. That was a lot of fun. Matt and the band were in top form, and I really think the rest of the Toronto shows are only going to get better.

 

Encore setlist was

Advertising On Police Cars

Decades

Apparitions

Weapon

 

So yeah, I was in front of the bass player whose name escapes me, and he was really great. He has a POG octave pedal on his board, so it really gives the synthy type songs a run for their money compared to how they would have sounded with previous players.

 

Matt was into the bourbon, and talkative. The crowd seemed a little restless at times because of this, but whatever. I usually don't mind, but I do agree it sometimes felt like there were too many long breaks between songs, and broke up the mood of the album being played in its entirety. I'm being picky, but after Load Me Up gets played ANYTIME, my mind automatically goes right into Rorschach test. It would have been cool but again, whatever. It's Beautiful Midnight front to back. And it was incredible.

 

Highlights for me were Strange Days, Rorschach Test, Born To Kill, and Police Cars.

 

Strange Days with the full band BLEW MY FUCKING MIND AND EVERYONE ELSE'S. It is so much more powerful, and just really resonates with you. Born To Kill just takes on a whole different life, and I think some have mentioned that it's kind of a hybrid of the new and old versions. Actually the same could be said with most of the singles, and even Giant. The stuff that regularly gets played sticks to the original album version for the most part. Matt in his vocals and Stu in his solos usually noodle around and improv, but not as much this time around. And I welcome it considering they're touring the album.

 

The stuff that's transposed to different keys: I understand why this has to be done, Matt's voice is not the same as it was back then. However, songs like Jenni's Song and Machine Gun do lose a little bit of their flair because of this.

 

I hope it doesn't sound like I'm complaining too much...

 

Ok, so for the encore in decades, Matt has Warne come up on stage and play the guitar for it, which was really cool and apparently the first time that's ever happened. I have a video of it uploading as speak. I'll post it when it's ready. Hopefully the sound is alright too.

 

Someone mentioned the lights before too, and they're right. They are fantastic. Matt and the whole crew gave the lighting guy an ovation because he's the same guy who did the lights for the Hip on their farewell tour.

 

Running For Home was especially cool because the lights are supposed to illustrate the sunrise and the night fading away. It's really beautiful.

 

I'm very happy tonight, and I get to do it all over again tomorrow and Saturday. Cheers folks!

[emmit643]

Well. That was a lot of fun. Matt and the band were in top form, and I really think the rest of the Toronto shows are only going to get better.

 

Encore setlist was

Advertising On Police Cars

Decades

Apparitions

Weapon

 

So yeah, I was in front of the bass player whose name escapes me, and he was really great. He has a POG octave pedal on his board, so it really gives the synthy type songs a run for their money compared to how they would have sounded with previous players.

 

Matt was into the bourbon, and talkative. The crowd seemed a little restless at times because of this, but whatever. I usually don't mind, but I do agree it sometimes felt like there were too many long breaks between songs, and broke up the mood of the album being played in its entirety. I'm being picky, but after Load Me Up gets played ANYTIME, my mind automatically goes right into Rorschach test. It would have been cool but again, whatever. It's Beautiful Midnight front to back. And it was incredible.

 

Highlights for me were Strange Days, Rorschach Test, Born To Kill, and Police Cars.

 

Strange Days with the full band BLEW MY FUCKING MIND AND EVERYONE ELSE'S. It is so much more powerful, and just really resonates with you. Born To Kill just takes on a whole different life, and I think some have mentioned that it's kind of a hybrid of the new and old versions. Actually the same could be said with most of the singles, and even Giant. The stuff that regularly gets played sticks to the original album version for the most part. Matt in his vocals and Stu in his solos usually noodle around and improv, but not as much this time around. And I welcome it considering they're touring the album.

 

The stuff that's transposed to different keys: I understand why this has to be done, Matt's voice is not the same as it was back then. However, songs like Jenni's Song and Machine Gun do lose a little bit of their flair because of this.

 

I hope it doesn't sound like I'm complaining too much...

 

Ok, so for the encore in decades, Matt has Warne come up on stage and play the guitar for it, which was really cool and apparently the first time that's ever happened. I have a video of it uploading as speak. I'll post it when it's ready. Hopefully the sound is alright too.

 

Someone mentioned the lights before too, and they're right. They are fantastic. Matt and the whole crew gave the lighting guy an ovation because he's the same guy who did the lights for the Hip on their farewell tour.

 

Running For Home was especially cool because the lights are supposed to illustrate the sunrise and the night fading away. It's really beautiful.

 

I'm very happy tonight, and I get to do it all over again tomorrow and Saturday. Cheers folks!

 

Awesome!! Thanks for posting Jesse! I am so stoked for Saturday! Cannot wait.

 

(oh and it's Peter Fusco)

 

 

I had trouble telling from the video, is there still a barrier/media pit this time? Or are you right up by the stage?

[Gomo]

Matt said something the other day on Twitter about being treated in the hospital. Anybody know what this was about? I guess he is ok if he performed last night?

 

Sorry if I missed someone answering this already.

[Guest jjazz]

Peter fricken Fusco. He's really good, I liked his style a lot.

 

Yeah there's still a barrier at DMH.

 

Matt seemed fine. Didn't mention a single thing about it.

[Peeterr]

Hey, can anyone tell me what time everyone went on stage for the Toronto shows? I noticed it says doors at 7 - does that mean opener at 8 and Matt at 9?