Entertainment For Lively Minds
Liverpool Echo Echo Arena Arena
Never have I heard sponsorship taken to such extreme lengths. Went to the Liverpool Echo Arena last night for the first time (Pretenders/Squeeze - undemanding good time anticipated) but the echo was the most extreme I've ever heard at a gig.
Only half the arena was being used, and it's smaller than the MEN Arena, so I thought it would approximate to a very large concert hall vibe. We were sitting on the first tier at the side, half way down the hall and were assaulted by a loud echo with a good half second delay in one ear and the original sound in the other. The only way I could (barely) tolerate it was to turn, so my head was directly facing the front, which reduced the effect to just distortion. (Had the added disadvantage though, that I had to peer out of the fuzzy bit at the side of my varifocals to see the stage. So, sound or vision, but not both - the joys of ageing.)
Granted, I normally avoid arena gigs (soulless atmosphere), so is this normal, or just the Echo Arena, or because they'd blocked off half the arena, or just where I was sitting?
Is there any point in risking any more gigs there?
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Mr Cohen
I saw Leonard Cohen there earlier this week and it sounded wonderful.
Wondered about Mr Cohen's gig
Would really want great sound for that.
Where were you sitting, was it a half or full arena set-up, and were the top tiers occupied? They were deliberately left empty for the gig last night, and covered over with black cloth. Mr Mandy (engineer, but with cloth ears) said they'd have been better leaving the seats uncovered to act as baffles or some such nonsense.
Laughing Len
Was a full hall, definitely.
Sound at gigs
Can't comment on that venue as i have never been
but Last Friday i went to the Civic Hall,Wolverhampton
to see,err.... Thunder (Yes i know,i know but Danny Bowes has
got a great voice)
Anyway ,i was sitting up top on the balcony directly
facing the stage and the sound was terrible.I can only
describe it as really,really tinny.When they blasted it out
i couldn't make out the instruments,it was just noise.
Perhaps someone on here knows about these things and can
explain the problem(is it with the mixing desk or what?)
I've been to lots of gigs at the civic,as Wolverhampton is my home town and never noticed a problem before.
Are my ears knackered Or am i just
getting too old to go to gigs (i am 42)
Oh Dear.
Thunder were a quality, traditional, British rock band.
Saw 'em a few times in the 1990's. EMI had them as a priority act for a while but tried to position them as a British Bon Jovi rather then letting them go down the Free/Faces route. When that didn't work, EMI seemed to lose interest.
Little Angels
Another band in the same vein that decided to quit whilst at the top (a No.1 album)
I saw the 'This Song Is Overrated' hitmakers
a few times, including their farewell gig at the RAH.
A storming live band they were too.
I was there as well
in the lower tier towards the back of the hall. I didn't get an echo but somehow felt divorced from the action and sound. It was like watching the telly. More so during the Pretenders who, I thought, were sterile.
That was because
The Pretenders committed the fatal crime of playing tracks from their new album when all that most of the audience had gone to see was a greatest hits set. Squeeze on the other hand delivered what the audience wanted and it became a community singalong
I thought they did a decent job
I expected some of the new stuff from the Pretenders, but I thought Chrissie was very good, very charismatic, even if we couldn't understand a single word she was saying at the time. The set balance was pretty good and we got all the hits, didn't we?
I've seen Squeeze several times in Liverpool and the city loves them. Last night seemed a bit perfunctory though. No banter, just tune after tune (not in itself a bad thing). On the plus side the fact we got "It's so dirty" and 'Slightly Drunk" was great..wasn't too sure about "Melody Motel" though.
The sound was a bit muddy. We were in the first block, down the front and it wasn't too bad, but not great
I really enjoyed The Pretenders
to the extent that I've ordered the new album/greatest hits package today. And I agree that Chrissie was great. But they didn't get the audience going in the way that Squeeze did, because their set was new song/hit/hit/new song/new song.
No sound problems noticed last night
But I was on the floor, straight in front of the stage. As the Arena is still relatively new (about 18 months old) it may be that there are certain seating configurations where they haven't got it right yet. I'd suggest emailing your comments about the echo to feedback@accliverpool.com
Unless it's subliminal marketing for the Liverpool Echo, of course
Thought it was fine
Was on the second row on the floor, and I'm the first to complain about bad sound, but it was good where we were. I was working last night too, and thought that the sound beyond the barrier was good compared to how it normally is because they'd put a couple of speakers directly in front of the stage at audience height.
You can see a few pictures from the show (watermarked, sorry, got to make a living somehow!) at one of the sub agencies that mine syndicates to if you're intested.
http://bit.ly/KJ5c4 for Squeeze and
http://bit.ly/12cK33 for The Pretenders
I've seen a couple of shows there before and not had any real problems with the sound, Pet Shop Boys on Monday was fine, although I did notice that they seemed to have sound coming from behind me, which seemed an odd way of mixing it. Was sat in the tiers and had sound coming from the stage and from the back of the room, or so it seemed.
Echo Arena sound sucks, generally
I have seen loads of stuff there, mostly (Summer) pop(s) and comedy and there always seems to be an echo as MMM pointed out. Worst place is to the left upper tiers where it can feel like being in swirling sonic maelstrom of McGoohan/ No6's nightmares.
Although, it showed the great technique of the top comedians who can time punchlines between the echoes. Tommy Tiernan dealt with it well last year.
Thanks guys
Maybe we just struck unlucky with our position. I'll have to give it another go because we've got tickets for, ahem, Only Men Aloud (Mr Mandy's Welsh) in a couple of weeks. However I will e-mail the Arena with some feedback and see what they say.
As for the gig itself, I know what you mean about feeling like you were watching it on the telly but I find all arena gigs are like that, which is why I rarely succumb. I'd bought the Pretenders latest Break Up The Concrete/Best of CD, so knew all the tracks and can recommend the new stuff. Had never seen Chrissie Hynde live and I was well impressed with her voice (but no, the crowd really didn't get going).
Have seen Squeeze several times and know they're always great value. Loved the warm up act too (though Mr Mandy only twigged it was Peter Kay after he finished singing Tempted and started pratting around on the drums. He thought it must be the real lead singer of Squeeze, bless). The piccies are great, itf - do you think Glen Tilbrook had two fans blowing on to him just to make his hair waft in the breeze? The gig also reminded me that I must see Glen Tilbrook at one of his smaller solo gigs.
Anyway, at least I can look forward to fabulous sound when I see Richard Hawley in October - Bridgewater Hall, none better.
For me...
The thing I always forget about Squeeze is what a great guitar player Mr Tilbrook is. I liked his "I get paid by the note" coment too.
Completely agree
And thanks for translating the comment - all the chat got lost in the echo.
Best spec: In front of stage centre
Was there for Counting Crows, well just to see The Hold Steady. Even with duff support act sound, it was the best so far, hands down . Joyous.
Although many Crows fans were left in disbelief when we left after the Steady. Was only there to see MPLS' finest.