Depeche Mode - Rotterdam 2006

Depeche Mode

After 13 years they were back, Depeche Mode in Holland!! They made up for 13 lost years in one night. They were announced by the greatest photographer of the Netherlands: Anton Corbijn who has also created some 20 dc/dvd covers for the band, some videoclips and he has even published a book full of Depeche Mode pictures. He told us that this band has one of the best live shows ever and he was very very proud to have the honour to announce them.

Music
Besides a fantastic performance and all the lights and screens there was the music, and it was fantastic. After an exciting intro during which the band members entered the stage ‘A Pain That I’m Used To’ started and immediately the entire venue started clapping along, enhancing the beats of the band. Then the familiar sound of Dave’s voice set in and the party had definitely started. The band was supported by Peter Gordeno (keyboard) and Christian Eigner (drums). The second song also came from their 2005 album ’Playing The Angel’, ‘John The Revelator’ which was already well know by the audience and ‘A Question Of Time’ brought everybody’s spirits up even more. Depeche Mode was in for a party and so was Ahoy. Besides the fact that they have great songs they also know how to make them sound brilliant while playing them live, the songs are literally brought to life by the live drums, guitar and keyboards, you can feel that.



They didn’t only play party songs. During ‘Macro’ Dave supported Martin with backing vocals, he stood at the back of the stage giving him his space. At times you could feel the silence of taken breaths by for instance ‘Home’ which was sung by Martin too. He has a great voice and knows how to touch you to the heart. At times they let the audience join in and sing along, this was great for the atmosphere, though not always as good for your ears, depending on your neighbour. During ‘Personal Jesus’ the entire Ahoy hall was constantly singing “reach out and touch faith” which was quite impressive with thousands of people. The first song of the first encore ‘Shake the Disease’ was performed acoustically only accompanied by Peter Gordeno. Then they performed one of the most well know songs, being ‘Just Can’t Get Enough’ (which was a hit in the Netherlands in the early eighties) and the audience couldn’t for they kept on singing the tune just as they did with ‘Everything Counts’ which was the next song. The performance ended with ‘Goodnight Lovers’ which was a perfect song to say goodbye with. While Dave was singing Martin and the rest of the band supported him with soft humming, adding to the intimate atmosphere.

Performance
After the announcement of Anton Corbijn and one more song the Martin´s DJ set the show started. The stage was revealed. Two u.f.o. like silver rings with lights in them were placed in the middle and on the right side of the stage. One of these was reserved for Andrew Fletcher (Fletch, keyboards) and the other for Peter Gordeno. At times there was a third, lower, u.f.o. brought to the stage for Martin. On the left side of the stage there was a huge metal ball with words on it, lamps for eyes and screens on which words would appear during the entire show. The first word was there to greet us, hello. At the back of the stage there was a huge picture of the figure that is on their latest album - "Mr. Feather". When the band entered the stage the entire Ahoy hall screamed and shouted to welcome them. Dave was dressed in a suit, as for Martin… he looked like a sad crow, with black feathered wings, a hat with a Mohawk on it and silver glitters beneath his eyes. Within two songs Dave had taken off his upper clothing leaving an already soaking wet undressed upper body with only his vest left on. The jacket he was wearing is the same one he wears in the video of ‘Suffer Well’ (their new single, which is also available in ‘sims’ version). It is great to see how this band performs, never a dull moment. Besides being there for us you can just see how well they are tuned in to each other, they understand each other and have a strong connection. They make contact, especially Dave and Martin since both of them are free to move but Dave also climbs up on the u.f.o. to visit Fletch and introduce him during 'World in my Eyes'. Both Martin and Dave also visit the far ends of the stage to reach the entire audience. Dave has loads of energy, he is always moving around the stage performing as if this is his last chance to do so. At one point - during 'Home' - Martin slowly takes of his hat receiving a huge applause, and it is as if he has taken off his mask, he was showing us what he was hiding, his very blond hair. The metal ball kept showing us different lines of text during different songs, there was always something to see on stage.



After only two songs huge video screens joined in on the fun, they were at the back of the stage and besides the fact that they moved… so did the pictures they showed. There were pictures shown, for instance the bird like creature of the 'Walking in My Shoes' single of 1993. But there were also live images directly from the cameras in front of the stage. These were not just shown, they were twisted and turned, sometimes a bead curtain was hung in front of the camera for an extra movement effect. They also showed their faces, eyes and drawings on the video screens. During ‘Enjoy The Silence’ (which was a hit in the Netherlands in 1990) a drawn king was shown as there was a king in the original video (a video by Corbijn). Besides all these screens and u.f.o.’s there also was a great light show, with lamps coming closer to the stage and creating different atmospheres in a second. Without any trouble the band could let the entire audience wave their hands or sing along, it is wonderful to see the entire ocean of waving hands around you. When Dave sung the final song, the entire audience was quiet, magic was in the air. Martin and Dave stood on the catwalk that was a extension of the stage, bringing them even closer to the audience. At the end of the song Dave gave Martin a kiss, showing us that they are still great friends.
There was so much to see and so much to hear the audience was overwhelmed, in a very pleasant way. After the concert there were only smiles and there was happy chatter everywhere, not even the rain outside could change their moods.

Setlist
01. Intro
02. A Pain That I'm Used To
03. John The Revelator
04. A Question Of Time
05. Policy Of Truth
06. Precious
07. Walking In My Shoes
08. Suffer Well
09. Macro
10. Home
11. I Want It All
12. The Sinner In Me
13. I Feel You
14. Behind The Wheel
15. World In My Eyes
16. Personal Jesus
17. Enjoy The Silence
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18. Shake The Disease
19. Just Can't Get Enough
20. Everything Counts
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21. Never Let Me Down Again
22. Goodnight Lovers

Rating
Music 9
Performance 9
Sound 9
Light 9
Total 9




Visit also out article according the Düsseldorf show.
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More photos on page 2