2022/09/25 - Live at Portola Festival San Francisco

[Shotglass75]

PM incoming shortly.

If there is a way to also shoot me a link to the audio I'd greatly appreciate it.  TIA

[Enjoyed]

If there is a way to also shoot me a link to the audio I'd greatly appreciate it.  TIA

Samesies.

Please & Thank You.

[whirlygirl]

Whirly I think you meant contain rather than maintain. Just a hunch.

Hahaha you are absolutely correct!! Thank you for the catch! 

[Conn6orsuper117]

If anyone happens to rip the audio before this is taken down, I'll gladly take a DM!

me too, please?

[Born In Planet Dust]

Takes two to tango. Tom and Ed have got to want to do it. I'm pretty sure Paul Tollett and Goldenvoice is more than willing to make this work. Plus, I've basically convinced myself this was always part of the bigger picture when they signed on for Portola.

Might be speculating too hard, but a springtime XDUST12 release would fit perfectly with a Coachella appearance in 2023.

Gonna have to start saving. I have unfinished business since 2011.

I'd prefer a US tour, or at least a midwest festival set or 2...

[Stefan]

The transition of Star Guitar -> Swoon seems a lot less abrupt now, compared to earlier shows this year. Have they smoothed it a bit or am I just remembering it wrong?

[shakermaker]

I'd prefer a US tour, or at least a midwest festival set or 2...

all of the above, please! (yes I'm getting greedy)

[shakermaker]

PM incoming shortly.

are these PMs still going around?

[Wolkenkrabber]

Why don't people PM Csar rather than expecting him to see your posts and PM you?

[Bosco]

Why don't people PM Csar rather than expecting him to see your posts and PM you?

Hey party poop, stop being a BM about the PMs.

But he's right guys, we ain't trying to subdue conversation or point out redundant posts. Just respectful to go straight to the source in a private manner, rather than putting the onus on Csar to reach out to those requesting. I'm guilty of this too. 

[inchemwetrust]

Still processing, and it is back to reality and work tomorrow. I had the most splendid weekend, topped by the most immersive full body experience that was The Chemical Brothers on Sunday night. More to come in the form of a review but want to check in. What an incredible show, and it is a pleasure and an honor to have experienced it with you ❤️

Oh Whirls! Just read your review! Just to see you have a moment with your family is probably the most awesome thing a fan like yourself could have! Even from my view, I envy any family that has great taste in music, especially the psychedelic, synth blazing, bass blasting kind!! Nice moment with your son at the show and having him watch out for you and dad. The best moms are the ones that start their kids young at live shows!

Every chems moment is never cheesy! Just like when you and Connor had that moment at Star Guitar! I on the other hand was crying like a B when it played, and that was pretty much my open audition for some Hallmark channel movie.

I'm glad you got some downtime before you went back to work. I had a day and a half when I got back. I've been reading thse reviews as soon as they dropped here. When I got back to work, I got a little down in the dumps. Back to life, back to reality, etc. But a sweet reminder of memories and positive flow of thoughts from your eyes from your review cheered me up after a slight struggle of me going back to the world. Very happy to see you again with your family enjoying the Chems.

I also enjoyed our talk after the show! Loved listening to you and sharing stories with each other.

[inchemwetrust]

The transition of Star Guitar -> Swoon seems a lot less abrupt now, compared to earlier shows this year. Have they smoothed it a bit or am I just remembering it wrong?

SG was literally played backwards! (EDIT: I MEAN SWOON)

Ok, I meant that it was divided into phrases or parts. beginning, mid, and end. This show just rearranged it into the end, mid, beginning.

Hear it for yourself (not my video btw)

[neorev]

I agree that Star Guitar into Swoon is too abrupt. The transition feels weird to me.

[mesamm99]

I've been on a non stop listening bonanza of the lives Chems sets. Portola was a treat to experience in person and amazing that we now have the audio as a keep sake.

It has been an invigorating experience to dive back into the beginning live shows and listen to the progression of their live shows over all these years.

It got me thinking... and forgive me if this already exists, but would we have the ability to create a website like this: https://www.ninlive.com/home.html

Put all of the Chems live audio and video into one collection? The Chems are my favorite band and I could honestly listen to only them for months on end. Their live show allows us all to dive in deeper to what they have to offer. I have a lot of their live sets from all these years and have been fortunate to attend a good handful of shows. There was a time when I missed out because of travel costs or life to see certain tours. I've been thankful to so many of you for sharing the lives sets and thinking it would be fun to have it in a place to share with all current and new fans.

I'm sure there are website logistics, hosting, costs, and perhaps band/label approval. Might be a fun project to dive into going into this winter. Thoughts?

[inchemwetrust]

THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS @ PORTOLA MUSIC FESTIVAL SAN FRANCISCO
STILL GOT TRICKS UP THE SLEEVE!

What a perfect time to go back out to outdoor festivals and shows. Mask mandates got lifted, people have taken their vaccine shots, and everybody's back to being outdoors. It does kind of feel like nothing has happended since 2019 even though we gone through enough already as it is. With that cleared out the way, there is a big sigh of relief for concert lovers who are ready to get back into some reveling and dancing.

For Tom and Ed, its back to work as usual. During the pandemic, they have been making strides to get back in the studio and work their magic since their 2019 release No Geography, which was a refreshing take on our ears, and yet its sound imo carried us through the phases of the next 2 years. Hope arose in 2021 when we were given The Darkness That You Fear, a new track that would shed some light not just in our dark times going through the Covid crisis, but on some future releases and perhaps a new tour. Fast forward to last May when I was floored to hear that the bros would be coming out to California for the Portola Music Festival in San Fransisco in September. I was slightly skeptical for for a very small brief moment of time because I was wondering how the The Chems would pull of a show without any new material, but at the same time, I remembered their track record of always improving from their last show and pulling out a some great surprises as well. But if there's one live act that can do the job and over-deliver, and get the attention of new fans, the Chemical Brothers are the best live act to do it, and they've consistently kept pushing the bar higher in their sets, and not just musically, but also visually.

WELCOME BACK!

It's Friday morning! I just got home from work. Tired as i was, I was excited to be driving out to San Francisco to see my boys again. After I slept and woke up around 3pm, I did some quick errands, got the car gassed up, packed my carry on, made some dinner, then just laid in bed, just thinking of sundays show and meeting the forum mates one again. I slowly drift off to sleep. I was surprised that I slept that whole night without waking up because I tend to be too excited to sleep and I need the energy and focus while driving to SF the next day. I left around 5:15am on Saturday morning . I got some minor tunnel vision when I left L.A. but when the sun came up, I was kind of riding smoothly toward my destination. I had my Spotify to keep my listening habits occupied. I play the Lowlands set, the Anti-nazi mix, Come With Us, the new Beth Orton album, and a mix of other tunes. I got there to my hotel pretty quick and landed to SF around maybe 12:30pm when I checked in. I was relieved when I crashed on my bed and just kind of thought how I was going to kill time before the show started tomorrow. So, I walked and traveled about the city, which was a crispy and clean 65 degree weather and did some snooping around, but didn't find much in particular. I did find a record store and saw some copies of The Chems OOC Sasha remixes but already owned them. Later on, I took Boscos' earlier recommendation and went to Boudin's Bakery near the fishermans pier next to the ocean. Had 2 French Dips and they were awesome! I went back to my hotel later that night and just relaxed. I slept that night much differently than the previous night as I got overly excited for the show and had a minimum of like maybe 5 hours of sleep, including waking up about 3 times on sunday morning. It happens! The next day around noon, after a fat and hearty lunch, followed by some quick text messages to my Chembase team (Whirly, Pooter, and Ryno) saying that I will arrive around 4ish. Pooter texts me back and wants me to meet at the Kelly Lee Owens set around 4:30. No problem! I get another text from Whirly that said to meet up near the VIP exit near the main stage for the Chems at 8pm. I get dressed up and make my way to the front of my hotel for my Lyft ride. But what happened was my driver couldn't find me. I told him that I'm actually in front of the hotel but he blows me off. So I caught another Lyft! Okay, so it looks like he's gonna arrive in three minutes. Nope, he bails out as well! Finally I get a car to take me and now I'm off to the show. I already lost some time ( 45 minutes late )and got dropped off at least 2 blocks away from the festival entrance. And for some reason, I had an unsettling feeling, I just felt like crap which is weird because my arms and my legs just felt so weak. I wasn't sure if it was some anxiety attack or not. So, when I got out of the vehicle, I slowly walked and took my time to breath deep and calm down to let myself some space.

I get to the front entrance and there's ALOT of people trying to get in. I showed the gate my ticket and made my way inside. The Portola festival has 4 stages, in which the Chems would be playing and closing the main stage. I went to the Warehouse stage to find Pooter and the gang but to only find out that the Kelly Owens Show was over, I then tried to text the gang but there was no phone signal or internet data for my phone, so I was stuck with no communication with my team. So I'm back to square one! So I'm kind of winging it right now, so I go to DJ Shadow, which was in the next tent, and I was eager to check him out. He played tracks from our Pathetic Age and The Mountain Will Fall, plus he played some new revised versions of classic songs such as 'What Does  Your Soul Look Like Part 3, March of Death, etc. Organ donor was played near the end. So it was kind of a treat. Other than that the tent was nearly packed for the San Jose resident. I then went to the Blessed Madonna playing at the next tent, and for some reason, I got a miraculous text from Pooter and Ryno to meet at 'Madonna' near the back of the crowd. So I went over to find them but no dice, so I got situated near the center. Alot of manly bodies dancing and full of sweat were surrounding me, and kind of look like they were gonna squeeze me in and make a inchem sandwich. LOL. The crowd looked like they were to countdown to some NYE party, but that's just the vibe I got. Some house tracks, disco, and other tracks that I wasn't familiar with, but I'm never to disengage from the sound and the vibe that I was getting into. There was a stripped version of Tom's Diner playing in that tent I think, which I thought was kind of interesting. I check my phone later and its 15 minutes to 8, so I make my way near the main stage to prepare myself for the carnage. but before I did I made a stop at the merch booth and buy a Chems shirt. Black T with the aqua blue logo. Shirt number 4 for me!

I finally went to the VIP entrance near the main stage where I was able to meet up with Mia with a big hug and shook hands with Stash, and their son Connor. Seconds later, I see Pooter with Fern ( Its Fern from the last show and the newest addition to our club) and right in the corner of my eye I see Ryno. Now my blood is circulating and my energy is peaking form my near meltdown when I got here. Mia looked looked great and never aged ,The chemical mommy of the us forumites. Pooter, with his warm and kind demeanor, yet sophisticated, ready to battle with us tonight. And Ryno, always ready to geek out on things chemically related and just being super friendly. We all talk and discuss about the last meetup, the last shows we been to, and how were all doing. Just basic catching up here and there. I know we would have more time to talk after the show because in a few minutes, the Chems were gonna come on, so Whirls guides us to the sweet spot, which was near mid-center in front of the stage. James Blake finishes his set and comes off the stage. We immediately hear 'Scale' playing in the background. I'm prepped and ready as the night got darker. We then hear music coming in and light blaring the stage. Here we go!


FAMILIAR TERRITORY

INTRO/ BRB

The show starts off with some unfamiliar music and blue lights start circulating on the screen for 30 seconds. I'm waiting for something to happen on screen. Then out of nowhere, the CWU dot face appeers! I see Ryno with a big smirk on his face and I was totally elated when I saw this. Then we hear the voice 'Come with us and leave your world behind' Then the Voice keeps repeating 'their coming back' and then to 'back back back back back'  Then the lights are blinking faster and sirens go off. The voice crescendo goes higher and higher in the air then 'Boom!'. Strobes are blinking into the crowd for a moment but you cant see the stage because its dark. Then, the strobes turn off and there are now lights pointing directly downward to the stage, and now we see Tom and Ed finally visible to the S.F. crowd saying hello. Everyone freaks out,yells and roars to the sky. To me, it was my impression that Tom and Ed's appearance looked like some surprise Bday party where the room is dark, and when the Bday boy or Bday girl arrive, we turn on the lights and say 'HAPPY BIRTHDAY!' At least that's what I got out if it! Then immediately we hear the first seconds of Block Rocking Beats.

So after 3 years and 4 months, while going through a difficult time and hardship in this country, We finally get redemption and some healing! THE SHOW HAS NOW BEGUN! I was unexpectedly unprepared for the last shows 'closer' to be this years 'opener'! No need to explain this track as it is the standard for us, but new for some of the those in attendence getting their chemical 'cherries' popped for the first time.

GO

Then we have the letters C.H.E.M.I.C.A.L. pop on the screen as Tom and Ed are posing for the crowd. We get then get a transition into GO, in which I thought was pretty smooth. Go had relatively stayed the same with no fixes or changes , but I'd didn't mind a bit, it's my second fave track from the album BITE. So far so good l! The chems are just warming to something bigger.




MAH

I hear some new instrumentation of the GO chorus on the segue that I never heard before. But the BPM gets a tad slower while matching up the 'Horsepower' visualizations that came on the screen,followed by the red woods visual that gives me a recall of the Blair Witch Project for some reason. Mad as hell was peeking in. Then we see the V for Vandetta masks pop up on the screens. It's started to get packed in here where I was standing at, especially a tall guy right in front of me, which happened to somewhat obstruct my view slightly. Plus, there was this guy holding some glow bear on a stick, and it was kind of pulling up in front of my view and got in the way of my camera for any pics or videos. Oh well, It's petty for me now to say anything about it, until later. But I was focused, and I was fixated on that big ass screen for the MAH clown. Then the heavy strobing is probing my eyeballs. Thunder and bass arrive. The clown then casts his spell toward us and now chaos and cheering arise everywhere.The ballistic crowd is jumping up and down and screaming for this massive payout that they got. From my view,everything gets crazy!

NO REASON

The crawling roaches comes in and And now we're getting into some other track which I had no idea what it is or can't make out.We have drummers colored pink, neon green, and red on the left and right side of the screen and the main screen has a drummer facing us. So this is the new track everyone's talking about. And so there's nice buildup that just keeps going and going, and i'm like 'JUST DROP IT'   Then the master drummer on the screen is leading all these march dance formations and 'I'M BLOWN AWAY! Then the next, you know, the band is marching from the both sides of the screen and in front of us. 'WOO' is blasting for the speaker arrays while the marching band is doing these hops and dances. I'm grooving and moving with the crowd, yet the screen drumming kept us in cadence in our steps. Overall, I loved it.

HBHG

Wow! Really coming in early compared to last year.The drummers then make another appearance on each side of the big screen. And they're queuing in Hey Boy Hey Girl. Then a purple neon-lined head starts moving left and right syncing with lasers from his eyes. We now get a different variation of the visuals though. From when I saw last time, are now long gone. The two solo dancers of green,red,and white are now replaced with purple dancers flying around all screens and dancing. A another minor improvement made to the track! But then I realized that I started to notice a trend. The setlist tracks from the last show are actually being pushed slightly earlier than compared to the this show. (I have a side by side comparison for both setlists for both shows down below near the end of this review)




EVE OF DESTRUCTION

Again coming in early! A shorter blend introduces Eve of Destruction. A standout from the last show but one of the most cinematic of all of the visuals imo. It's like the chemical brothers met the producers of Might Morphin Power Rangers. A lot to talk about in terms of production quality and art. The tracks is laced with 90's house with apocalyptic lyrics. One my highlights again for Portola! Crowd was fixated on this one.

cont ---->

[inchemwetrust]

MORE CHEERS ON THE PIER!

CHEMICAL BEATS

Chemical Beats remains the same since I last saw it played in the last couple of shows. A few changes were made but slightly noticeable. I noticed the 'laser swishing' FX that is found in the track 'The sunshine Underground'. Additionally, there was another layer of sound on top of the main track that's hard to describe.

If you see the video, you can hear what I'm talking about.
Like I said, it just added some slight fx and an extra layer to the track. In my opinion, the change was minor, but I hope in the future that they can maybe have it come out the gate very strong like it did in 2007, which was a revised version of the classic track. I really enjoyed that version. Other than that, subtle changes were made to Chemical Beats, which is one of my top 3 tracks by the bros.

DREAMIN

Ok this is heavy! We now get a visual that is similar to the one from the BITE era, which is I'll See You There' but with new actors/ actresses? it was such a blur at first because I'm seeing some ritual with a cup and a mask unveiling going on with the visuals with layers of bright magenta and tourquoise. I filmed only the second half, but there was 2 build ups that were really good that led to a hopping crowd with hands in air. TONS OF ENERGY GOING ON! MOST ANTICIPATED NEW TRACK FOR CHEMICAL 10!

UTI/ DYOH

Wow! The robots attacked early in the set. Very surprised again on how the re-arrangement of this setlist is done. Lasers and beams are firing at everything on the pier and we're not running from it! If this crowd is not convinced by now on how powerful this show is, they better get some therapy quick! No DJ in this world, no matter what tent there in, cannot match the majesty of these men from Manchester! The guitar plucks kick in from DYOH over the UTI baseline, which is nonstop and relentless.  We have three little dirty down beats at the tail end of the track.

(MISSING VID! ACCIDENTLY DELETED IT! TRIED HD RECOVER ON PHONE. NO LUCK!)


SETTING SUN!

Probably the biggest and updated song they played that night! A slightly higher pitched vocal followed by some classic oil, water, and red dye fire up the demented yet psych track. We have the track pitch going up and down and i'm like thinking 'Is this the late 60's era?' REALLY REALLY ACID LIKE! This is what i've been craving since the last show. T and E making classic tracks into new monsters. Really impressive all around! Grade A!

GOT TO KEEP ON!

Yessssss! I was ready to put the pedal to the medal and dance my ass off. That sexy tease of bom. bom...bom..bom..bom..bom, bom.bom...bom..bom..bom..bom! When those vocals finally kick in, I get those shivers and i'm squealing like a girl. Still one my top 3 tunes from them right now.




WIDE OPEN

Wide Open steps up, and there was a lot of space before the chorus kicked in that lasted around 2 minutes, but was full ecstasy and total bliss. The blue lights shattered across the stage and Illuminated the crowd. Then the K+D+B birds come flying across the screen. I'm grooving down to the beat and just taking it all in? I can feel myself being in touch with the atmosphere and feeling total relaxation.It's a Euphoric drug.

(FOOTAGE NOT FOUND! ACCIDENTLY DELETED! I FAILED AS A HUMAN!)


YOU HAVEN'T SEEN NOTHING YET!

EV

Okay, we're getting closet to the end of the show. HOLD TIGHT SAN FRANCISICO lights up for a brief moment and then were gonna head into space. Escape Velocity comes in with that warm humming sound. And I'm thinking, 'how is the crowd going to respond to this one?' Because I remember when my ears first laid on this back at Coachella, It just blew me a way of how how fast and strong It sounded out of the gate. We get the golden path lyrics come in, and there's a new visualization of a new actor that comes in and is reciting Wayne Coynes' lyrics. So, another improvement! I heard people in front of me yelling 'YEAH' and just hopping like crazy like it was no tomorrow. I think now would be a good time to bring this up but this crowd has given so much love and reception throughout the show.

FREE YOURSELF/ EML/HOOPS

This is a MONSTER! 3 for the price off one! Getting the only black and white visuals of the show and adding Hoops to it is the best 'Frankenstein' idea in a while. We get 'FREE YOURSELF....DANCE' and 'FREE ME' chasing my ears like some axe murderer in a horror movie is chasing me. Then we get that spinning visual with 'I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO IM ABOUT TO LOSE MY MIND!' It's devastating! BUT NO....WHY STOP THERE WITH EVEN MORE FASTER SPINNING THE SECOND TIME AROUND AND MORE OF 'I DONT KNOW WHAT TO DO IM ABOUT TO LOSE MY MIND!' WITH STROBES AND FLASHING, AND A BUILD UP TO SHAKE THE LAST OF MY HAIR FALL OFF MY FREAKING HEAD! Then a BOOMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!

I'm dead!

The song ends with the booming bass still riding in the background at lower volume but kind of just sits there creepingly!  They could've close with that and I would've been fine with that! Please T and E, don't change this track! It's fine the way it is! PERFECT!

OOC/ DO IT AGAIN

OOC gets 2 improvements! First, a visual facelift. Long gone are the silhouette officers, and are replaced by silhouetted people in outlined green oscilloscopes. (shout out to Marcus)  Second, the Do It Again vocals come in midway but keep the OOC baseline intact. I thought this was really clever and both of these tracks sounded good together! Damn good! Don't be surprised if you see more 2 in 1, or 3 in 1 combo tracks in the future. ( I'll explain this in a bit)




STAR GUITAR

The most important track of the night for me. The definite must hear! After all that me and my family been through during the last few years, this was my moment to just...FLY! I tell Pooter who was next to me to 'put out his best energy possible, this is your moment!' I then look to Ryno and would both smirk at the same time. 'Were Going Up' he says as the build up is about to to drop any second now. AND WE ARE OFF...AND IM HOPPING LIKE MY ASS WAS ON FIRE. The red visual lines from previous sets are now gone and replaced by yellow and white cicrles in rows that are in sync. Then we get to the halfway point where the 'piano keys' kick in. THIS IS THE BEST PART OF THE SONG AND THE BEST MOMENT OF TONIGHT FOR ME PERSONALY! I could listen and dance to an 8 hour loop of this and be resuscitated at the local hospital for Tachycardia and still wouldn't keep me from dancing from this. Then the breakdown hits and we have 'Do You Feel like I feel' echoing through the crowd as the track slows down and takes a break. I cried! This is the first time I ever done this at a show. I felt my cheeks puffed up and my eyes swollen. I was shaking just being emotional. I think my heart was just too overwhelmed!




SWOON

Did we just go backwards on Swoon?  The tracks starts at the exact moment when it was about to end from the last show! I'm scratching my head and shocked at all these changes this show has made. Next thing you know, we get the 'Swoon' couple making out and the audio breakdown (the middle) THEN we finally get the beginning (or near beginning) of the song! What the hell? The phrases of these parts were just switched around but I wondered why when it was already fine the first time. Maybe it was time contraints and had to make some room for the rest of the set list! I'm really curious!

(Yet I failed again! My apologies to the readers)


GALVANIZE

No surprise here. And just looking at the process of elimination. Galvanized is the final track of the night. As the tune is probably the most familiar track with the crowd. Something I just noticed though about that song was the beams of lights that are coming down over the screen like prison bars (keep this in mind) or represent a cage for Mr. Galvanized man. Every time the galvanized man, knocks,  punches, or bangs against the screen he's facing, the light beams move at an angle to make the impression as if the galvanized man is trying to break free from his cage. Which I thought was pretty cool once I realize this lighting trick. Then we get the small sing-along quote, 'My finger is on the button' Then finally Mr. galvanized man breaks free from his cage as he's spinning around in freedom.

And no show is complete without the octave kitten. Ed comes to the mixer and Tom climbs up on his rig and stands the octave kitten by itself. He's twisting knobs to get some choice squeaking and screaming effects. To the San Francisco residence,  It's all coming down on them! The lights, the sound, the screaming fans, and just the most awesome applause praising this wonderful work of art. Then we finally see the 'Love is All' flash across the screen. Ed jumps from the left side of the stage and raises his hands, and accepting the crowd approval. Tom joins him in the middle of the stage as they raise hands and high-five each other, and turn towards the crowd and thanking the fans for coming out tonight.

When the show ended, we talked about the show and glanced at people nearby walking past us who were screaming, shouting, and hugging friends and loved ones. As the crowd was leaving, we started to say our goodbyes to everyone gave out hugs. I walked out with Pooter, Ryno, and Fern to the halfway point near the front entrance. I told them thanks for sharing the experience with me and I'll see them at the next show. Then I walked with Whirls and family to the front gate and onto the street to say goodbye and thanked them for tonight as they got into their Lyft. My ride went and picked me up a few minutes later and I was in back in my hotel room. I crashed on the bed with post-glint all over me and just fell asleep.

POST SHOW NOTES

One of the interesting things that I realize about this particular show (or other shows) is that every time new material or in this case new songs are put out by The Chemical Brothers, some songs have to be cut off from the setlist. For example, this show, we didn't hear Saturate or No Geography. But in return, we got two new tracks! So this is an ongoing thing for Tom and Ed in having to make a tough decision and build a shows setlist.

But in some cases, instead of eliminating some songs to make room for others, How about grouping songs together as in one mix. You heard them before: UTI with HOOPS from the last show, or tonights 2 in 1 of OOC/DIA

The biggest flex from the bros tonight was of course, FREE YOURSELF/EML/HOOPS ! A 3 in 1 monster! So by doing these song 'combos', they don't have to make any sacrifices or removing it from the set list. Tom and Ed were just geniuses tonight!

I put a list of both setlists from 2019 and tonight's show as a side by side comparison to show how they differed vastly from each other. (sort of)




I LEFT MY CHEMS TSHIRT IN SAN FRANCISCO!

Overall, the show was the most surprising and the most positively shocking performance by the Chems, and that's due to the changes in the setlist despite no album. (yet) The improvements on the tracks and the visuals were clever and brilliant. The exciting new tracks 'Reason' and 'Dreaming', and making the flow of the show seemless and steady. The crowd was the perfect test for the Chems to do what they do best, and that's put on a performance for the ages, including this old fart! There are alot of electronic dance acts out there that still see themselves as equals and peers of this music genre, but for now, the crown still belongs to The Chemical Brothers for making live music unforgettable and still bringing the masses in from all walks of life and continue to push their limitless music through the darkness, and into the light! Pier 80 is toast!

I want to say a big thank you to the BTS team for putting some damn good sound on a big ass stage!  Professor K , the chemical advocate  of all time, and all the organizers who made this happen!

Obviously, the biggest thanks goes to my fellow forumites who have been there for me and the best support group I could ever have for this band. S F. was awesome thanks to Pooter, Ryno, Fern, Stash, Connor, and Whirls! Thank you again for embracing me when I first hopped on this ride back in 2009! Love you guys so much!












GUESS I'LL LET THE CAT OUT OF THE BAG!

Shout out to this amazing duo Tom Rowlands and Ed Simmons! I want to give a sincere and heartfelt thank you to The Chemical Brothers for giving me the ultimate experience and finally meeting you both backstage after all these years. You don't know how important and profound this moment is for me. I'm cutting onions as I type this, and my tears 'Don't Hold Back!'

I was really nervous, excited, and shy...all at the same time.
I almost didn't know what to say when I finally met you both but lot of the nervousness went away when I shook hands with Tom and fist bumped Ed. I had so many thoughts and questions ( like when are we going to hear the Galileo stk, the pending 'Drums' track, a Superflash release, the missing clown cherub visuals, Ed's record collection, the story when Aurora went 'missing' etc)  I wanted to ask you, but as soon as I met you both, they kind of flew out of my brain and I forgot because I was so starstruck. LOL!
I'm happy that I told you that how I discovered you both from the very beginning, starting with first compilation CD with your track 'Delik' and then I bought EPD to seal the deal. 1997 live was the year I hopped on this chemical bandwagon and never got off. Tonight would be my 12th show, and many more to come!

One thing I mentioned at the meetup was the music that I listened to while growing up in Los Angeles, and that It continuously grounded me, and I needed a new sound to break that mold.  Your music pulled me out of that norm and shaped my listening habits that helped part of my musical personality. Your music made me more cultured to listen to other forms of music and artists that influenced you when you were DJ's. I would've never known about My Bloody Valentine. New Order, Ed's reggae 45's, 12 inch balearic, and amongst other music that got me hooked through you guys!

Your music has given me so much fulfillment, yet your sound reflects my times and memories of joy and happiness (Surrender, No Geography, etc) And when times are not so good, I pull out your records to help me dissolve the pain (Star Guitar, Got To Keep On, Chemical Beats) And when you come to California for the live shows, it's a miracle and a lifesaver to me!

But Sunday night was definitely the cherry on top! And in retrospect, from the first Chemical Brothers Cd I bought, to finally meeting you face to face, it's a grand moment where everything comes full circle. I'm still in disbelief, yet so honored of finally meeting you both. Do you know how much that means to me? I'm happy to always have a show of support for you both through albums, live shows, streaming, shirts, etc.

In closing, I'm very lucky to say that you changed my life. Thank you once again for allowing me the opportunity to finally say thank you personally after all these years.

From the bottom of my heart, I love you guys, and thank you for always watching each other and sticking together after all these years.

[Bosco]

Holy crap, Inchem! You have such a vivid memory, well done!

And what a treat to rub elbows with Tom and Ed! I'm so happy for you! So incredibly deserved for a loyal and dedicated fan such as yourself.

Your review/recap has me amped for the weekend and already dreaming about the next show!

Inchemwetrust, In Chems We Trust... Indeed

[ThePumisher]

I had so many thoughts and questions

At least you asked them from what K+D+B is the acronym of - or haven't you?

[Wolkenkrabber]

DREAMIN

... We now get a visual that is similar to the one from the BITE era, which is I'll See You There' but with new actors/ actresses? it was such a blur at first because I'm seeing some ritual with a cup and a mask unveiling going on with the visuals with layers of bright magenta and tourquoise... I

In your video above at 1:05 we can see Benedict Wong who I guess is kind of a big deal these days thanks to to the Dr Strange films.

In the "making of" video below for the I'll See You There visuals, we also see Benedict Wong. So I think it's the same actors and visuals, perhaps given a slight "remix" for Dreamin'.

Incidentally, in the same way that EML Ritual's visuals were basically a remake of a scene from  Truffaut's The 400 Blows, so these visual seem to be a remake of Kenneth Anger's The Inauguration of the Pleasure Dome:

[whirlygirl]

Holy mother of a review, inchemwetrust! Thank you for the play-by-play capture of events you relayed so well. And Ryno's vivid and emotional take, as well as ALL the reviews from everyone - I've read through this thread many times, holding onto that weekend as we're back to the daily grind now. Thank you, these reviews are such a joy to read and look back on! ❤️