Concert Reviews: Labatts Apollo Theatre, Manchester, UK
After spending half an hour driving around the center of Manchester and asking numerous people for directions, my friend and I finally found the Labbatts Apollo Theatre. The weather, being typical for the UK in September, was cold and windy with the odd rain shower. Not being one to learn from my previous experiences (ie. the previous night's Hull concert), I was dressed only in jeans and a shirt, with an hour of waiting to look forward to. After gaining grateful access at 19:00, I made for the front of the auditorium while my friend went to the bar to procure some liquid refreshment :)
We chatted with a couple about the forthcoming performance which helped
to pass the time till the support band, Chyna, made there appearance.
They made there way through the same set list as the previous night,
including the same, rather cliched narrative...
Quarter to nine, the stage had been swiftly changed and the lights
extinguished. The natives were growing restless.
Wild Deep Water Don't Cry People Asking Why Blues in 'E' Whirlpool Kiss From A Rose Bring It On Killer Crazy With an encore of;
Future Love Paradise
All the songs were altered vastly from their album origins, but it only
served to enhance them. As expected, 'Kiss From A Rose' gained much applause, even in it's eastern incarnation and 'Killer' had everyone rocking. With 'Prayer For The Dying', Seal asked us to sing with him, and by the sound of it, every one did! At the end of 'Future Love Paradise', Seal was asking us 'Can I reach out for you if that feels good to me?' and 'Can you reach out for me if that feels good to you?' to which the general consensus was a definate 'YES!'
The lighting throughout the whole show was fantastic. Consisting of a couple
of dozen vari-lights and copious amounts of smoke, the beams of shimmering
colour gave the gig a surreal fantasy quality.
Outside the theatre, there was a gathering at the backstage doors. I decided
to see if I could meet the guy for real. The security had us behind railings
so the gear could easily be loaded into the trucks. When Seal showed, the
group, mainly consisting of women, started shouting and screaming. My friend
and I had a good laugh at this display. Conclusion to both the Hull and Manchester gigs; fantastic, awe inspiring, professional and uplifting. While the Manchester gig had the edge due to a more enthusiastic audience, the Hull concert is the most memorable for me as it was the first. I look forward to future concerts from this performer. I hope you do too.
Love & Life, G. |