Rockhal, Luxembourg 14/06/2018

[ChemicalBob]

Jesus fn Christ, those EBW12 Visuals are full on nightmare fuel! Looking good so far, might have to get a ticket for Munich (although I'd prefer another Amphitheater gig pls )

[Enjoyed]

How 'bout Galaxy Bounce for good measure

OH HECK YEAH!

[Bosco]

I can't help but feel they missed an opportunity for Elektrobank "angry neighbor" to be on the phone with the Nien Nunb-looking Mad As Hell guy.

[Biff]

Thanks Ben_J! The new shows look amazing.

[inchemwetrust]

Shit Ben! You done good with all those videos!

Spoiler

IDM/SNOW/STA is nuts. Free yourself vocal + EBW and Galactic Girl visual was a big step up. LFB transition into CB was another improvement. I'm very surprised and shocked on how much you recorded GKOMMH because I wouldve maybe recorded at least one minute of it and just danced to the rest because that track is contagious! This song is literally stuck in my head. Thanks for taking one for the team with the uploads.

[hstn]

Spoiler

you can hear a bit of Superflash here at 0:51 (and better at 2:23), might want to listen a bit closely https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9HsojH-xwk&index=15&list=PLviZk_wl_9ehON8CfG9bBe-glcWJDWBxp

here's the same stab sound at 0:15

[Conn6orsuper117]

Ok I take it back, Ben_j's footage made me excited again. fingers crossed for U.S. tours.
best thing about Piku/Playground was the reaction from the crowd (hearing fans who own bootlegs )

Spoiler

you can hear a bit of Superflash here at 0:51 (and better at 2:23), might want to listen a bit closely https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q9HsojH-xwk&index=15&list=PLviZk_wl_9ehON8CfG9bBe-glcWJDWBxp

here's the same stab sound at 0:15

Nice catch!

[Ben_j]

Here is my complete review.

Go
First surprise of the set, they open with Go! Not the best opener in my opinion, but those new visuals are pretty awesome. Very imposing, and they almost look 3 dimensional.

Do it Again
The transition could use a little more punch, and the acid line doesn't quite feel right, here. I'm guessing they wanted to put the two big singles out of the way from the start

Free yourself
Mega track, but I'm not sure about the visuals. Of the new visuals, it's the ones that impressed me the least.
There's a really nice new "breakbeat" break in the track that is a very nice addition, I loved it !

EBW12 (Mad as Hell)
What a banger ! Very rough and acid, and the visuals are out of this world. The mad as hell guy is proper freaky

Believe
Excellent transition, and really fitting to put the break part of Believe right after MAH. The visuals do feel a bit dated and blurry on that big screen though.

Let Forever be
Transition is too rough (to tell the truth, it's inexistant), but maybe it's on purpose to through us off our feet. At first with the visuals I though I was hearing I'll see you there, but when the vocals popped in, I realised it was Let forever be ! The vocals are weirdly twisted, a la Revolution 9.

Chemical Beats
Perfect transition, although seeing the SIFSD visuals and vocals is frustrating, as I'd love them to still play the track in full
As for Chemical beats, same old tune, same visuals

Swoon / Temptation / Star Guitar
Same old same old

Got to keep on
With the Three little birdies down beats.
An acid bassline lead to the start of the track. Red figures with pipes, pyramids and other weird stuff on them are dancing, voguing even, on the screen.
Giant Disco balls lighten the place ! The track is wonderful, although I prefer the funky break version I heard in Lyon last year. The chimes after the break are really nice, with the dancers on screen matching them with their hands. Probably my favourite new track in this show

Hey Boy Hey Girl
Excellent transition, although a bit too long. The crowd really cheered when they heard the vocals. As for HBHG, same old

Saturate
A bit of a surprise to hear it after HBHG, not much of a transition either.

Elektrobank
I still love the telephone guy and hate the pitch changes on the vocals.

Piku Playground Response
Fuck yes ! They added a little synth arpeggio on top, and the Music:Response vocal, the visuals are from the galactic phase shift or whatever it was called

Escape Velocity
Same old, not long enough

Acid mashup
Probably the most twisted part of the show. An acid bassline greets us, then joined by the Acid Children hook. At this point I was expecting Under the Influence (we could see then putting the robots in place). The Eve of Destruction vocals then came, and with them visuals of a girl with futuristic clothing, much like the bad guy in the Fifth Element.
And then out of nowhere, the Setting Sun noises. The lighrs come back on the robots and Out of Control / Setting sun bangs on the speakers.
They also added the bass drop of UTI here and there

It Doesn't matter
The mashup then mutated into It Doesn't matter and some bits of Don't stop the rock, and then came some synths

Snow/Surface to Air
Some people here will be happy to hear this is back 😄 the beat sounded much closer to It doesn't matter than S2A, and it was pretty dope

Galvanize
As much as I would like to hear it as a starter, it's always nice to hear Galvanize anywhere in the set. Visuals stayed the same

Leave Home/STTS/Block rocking Beats/CHEMICAL
Probably the part that changed the less, except maybe for Music Response that disappeared

Hold Tight London
The live version of this track is fucking amazing
No visuals, mostly just raving lasers

Wide Open
Definitely not my favourite track and still isn't on the stage. I would gladly trade it for Dad Spiegel or The Test.

The Private Psychedelic Reel
The simple fact of knowing most festival goers won't witness that is enough to make me cheer.


This was one hell of a show. Certainly the most surprising one I've seen from them. We never knew what to expect next, and there were some genuine surprises like Piku and Let forever be. My only grudge would be that they hold on to some tracks and already shelved EML Ritual or Reflexion. Do it Again is the most dispensable track of the set in my opinion. Go is nice, the new visuals are good but it's not a great opener. Oh and some of those transitions need a little more work. Some are too brutal, some too long, some don't really work that well... I was expecting it, since it was the first show of the tour. I hope it will be better in October in Paris ! Cannot wait.

[Enjoyed]

Dude. I think this might be one of my new favorite Chemical songs. It's at least top ten. It's so catchy.

Have to agree. I can already picture this being blasted on repeat from my apartment all summer.
Second most played only to Free Yourself, which already feels so familiar and homely to me I forget it's a new track. I am willfully going to try and wait to hear it properly in full (avoiding them spoilers (with the exception of a small Instragram clip I heard yesterday, which doesn't count because I say so))

Thank you Ben. Such magic is on it's way, it's difficult to maintain any sense of calm.

[Conn6orsuper117]

Wide Open
...I would gladly trade it for Das Spiegel...

I %100 Agree.

[chemfan_89]

thanks Ben_J! for the videos i love it

[WhiteNoise]

Oh and some of those transitions need a little more work. Some are too brutal, some too long, some don't really work that well... I was expecting it, since it was the first show of the tour.

This setlist... maybe this is wishful thinking, but it feels much more modular and arbitrary than previous years, like they plan to mess around with it throughout the tour. There was serious work done to make the 2011, 2015, and to an extent 2016 setlists ebb and flow like a story arc. No truly awkward transitions. Everything baked in.

Things like Piku Playground, Believe > Let Forever Be and It Doesn't Matter > Snow S2A are so off the wall and wild they make me think they don't plan to carry them through the whole tour and will be throwing in more surprises (into an setlist kept 80-90% the same) as the tour progresses.

I don't know, we'll see! The new live show looks so good I wouldn't even mind if I'm wrong, and it's still the same at the end of the year.

[Ben_j]

This setlist... maybe this is wishful thinking, but it feels much more modular and arbitrary than previous years, like they plan to mess around with it throughout the tour. There was serious work done to make the 2011, 2015, and to an extent 2016 setlists ebb and flow like a story arc. No truly awkward transitions. Everything baked in.

Things like Piku Playground, Believe > Let Forever Be and It Doesn't Matter > Snow S2A are so off the wall and wild they make me think they don't plan to carry them through the whole tour and will be throwing in more surprises (into an setlist kept 80-90% the same) as the tour progresses.

I don't know, we'll see! The new live show looks so good I wouldn't even mind if I'm wrong, and it's still the same at the end of the year.

Yes that's also what Joslyn and I thought. I hope they'll do some adjustments and changes during the tour

[Ben_j]

[Csar]

Wonder why nobody asked this yet: Did you guys meet up? Any group pics? Any out-of-the-blue rounds of beer Joslyn treated you to?

OH HECK YEAH!

Take that single 03 version and picture a dramatic build-up/ climax live version. Makes my mouth watering just thinking about it. Galaxy Bounce would be kick-ass opener!

I am willfully going to try and wait to hear it properly in full (avoiding them spoilers (with the exception of a small Instragram clip I heard yesterday, which doesn't count because I say so))

Haha, that's soooo me!!! To avoid any major spoilers or killing the thrill, I quickly skipped through some of the new tracks feeling quite guilty doing so. So thanks for that neat line of excuse.

This setlist... maybe this is wishful thinking, but it feels much more modular and arbitrary than previous years, like they plan to mess around with it throughout the tour. There was serious work done to make the 2011, 2015, and to an extent 2016 setlists ebb and flow like a story arc. No truly awkward transitions. Everything baked in.

Things like Piku Playground, Believe > Let Forever Be and It Doesn't Matter > Snow S2A are so off the wall and wild they make me think they don't plan to carry them through the whole tour and will be throwing in more surprises (into an setlist kept 80-90% the same) as the tour progresses.

I don't know, we'll see! The new live show looks so good I wouldn't even mind if I'm wrong, and it's still the same at the end of the year.

Well, some passages do sound improvised like during HTL (which even sounded a bit messy to be honest).
But regarding changes and experimentation in terms of track selection, I can't really remember any tour since 2005 where this wasn't the case. They always changed bits and pieces throughout and refined their sets mostly during the second half of their tours which makes these extra special. Think of that apple gig in 2016 with its dramatic refits or 2005, where they even threw in Morning Lemon as a fan-request, or das Spiegel/ AMMC/ The Pills in 2007/2008.
I do believe T&E experiemented with alternative segues/beats/mash-ups in their rehearsals which they then could throw in as they go. As it seems, they might be even more flexible this time around with some of the new gear and stuff. They sure will see what works and what won't as the tour progresses. For instance, I predict Go will be moved as an opener to somewhere else in the set as it is too weak for that purpose and it's also missing its dramatic breakdown at the end which is just live material gold meant to be blasted out loudCsar talked out of is ass here.

[MIKL]

Thanks for the feedback and 'documentation' BenJ much appreciated for some of us fans where we haven't seen them live for quite a while now. My time might come early next year maybe and if it does will be interesting to see if it changes and develops post new album release.

I guess they have to start somewhere and perhaps will take note how that crowd reacted to the setlist. The new guitar elements to Go sounded nice and gave it a new hook from what I heard in an instagram post. Piku Playground gave me goosebumps and the attitude of just throwing in the new stuff like it just invaded the well established live set they've had for some years now was a good change up. Wish saturate was replaced instead of some of the other tracks that had a shorter lifespan in the live set but can't have it all I suppose. Even with Do it again this time, the new sounds made it more appealing and then the main course of Free Yourself just bombed it out of place for a good shake up.

[The Bloke]

The show was great, but overall apart from the new tracks, they mostly played tracks that they already  usually play, they just changed the order. I'm really fed up with Galvanize !
Too bad the two big surprises (LFB and Piku Playground) were too short though. LFB was only a short segue fading into Chemical Beats, and Piku Playground abruptly ended after 2 minutes (as you can see on Ben's video), it was not the same version as on Singles 03 CD2.
Just some details : the description of music (a combination of sounds..) made by Erik in "Hanna" (which you can hear at the beginning of Devil is in the Beats) was played during the intro of Escape Velocity. The C.H.E.M.I.C.A.L. vocal was played during Leave Home/STSS.
EBW 12 is TREMENDOUS !!! Dark acid EBM, it really kicks ass. I also like KOMMH very much. The light effect they used during the latter was nice too (lasers put behind the screen with the big puppets moving their hands, making it look like they throw the lasers out of their hands, over a crystal-sounnding melody).

[The Bloke]

Ah yeah : I really missed the Acid clown ! They played Acid Children but no clown...

[wrclaguna]

4.09 min - 4.38   

[wrclaguna]

SRBK   

do you have full versions?