Best Gig You've Ever Seen?

[Remmie]

The Doves 2007 Other stage Glastonbury

 

Although seeing as I knew none of their songs The Flaming Lips on the Other stage last year were just jaw dropping

[Cliff T. Beast]

Lamb of God - MEN 2005

Metallica secret gig 2003 in the tent Download

Megadeth - Sonisphere 2011

[Robbo29]

Sparks at the Empire, around '74 cos it was my first gig

Jacko at Aintree on the Bad tour, he was a showman

UB40 in Fort Lauderdale, cos i got backstage

[funkster]

Iron Maiden Empire theatre 12 October 86 -my first gig and 25 years ago today

Metallica at Donnington 91

Anthrax/Testament Royal court 87

Blur in manchester on great escape tour

Gomez - HJC support night 1999 i think

SFA at various times at the royal court

Bowie royal court about 1999/2000

Bjorn again at the phil last year

 

Such happy memories

[sir roger]

The Jam, early 80's @ Deeside Leisure Centre

[madstock]

The Specials, last night, Wolverhampton. The best performance I have seen from them, in what is their farewell tour.

 

Honourable mentions go to both The Prodigy & Chase and Status for putting on some of the best shiny light shows that I've seen.

[razor]

Top performance that. I loved that projection veil over the stage.

 

I've seen hundreds of top performances, some small, intimate gigs (Stone Roses, Stephen Duffy, Johnathan Richman) with a handful of people in the audience interacting, others at about 10 Glastonburys (plural?) I've been to or big "concerts". The La's and Mission (and Wylie) at Royal Court in 1989 was special.

 

It's a hard choice, but I can't think of any better than McCartney at Glastonbury for me. Springsteen in Sheffield was close. As were Pixies in Manchester.

 

Impossible to pick best ever as there have been so many but these stand out.

Bruce Springsteen at Bramall Lane, Sheffield (Tunnel of Love tour)

 

 

That's the one I was on about - incredible performance. Just went up on the day because someone mentioned it at a party the night before, bought tickets outside and didn't have any expectations. He played for 4 hours or something.

 

He had even the most cynical of us eating out of his hand by the end. A showman putting on a show and taking every one of the audience with him.

[Karl_b]

The best gig I've been to was in May this year, Sufjan Stevens at the Manchester Apollo. It was in the middle of my amazing run of gigs which included The National, Arcade Fire and bright Eyes too but this was definitely the best.

 

I've been wanting to see him for a few years, since hearing Illinois and when the opportunity came to do so I couldn't turn it down.

 

We waited, the lights dimmed and Sufjan arrived on stage armed only with an acoustic guitar; he plucked his way gently through the first half of Seven Swans before the stage lights went up, his neon outfit began to glow, the rest of the band joined in and his massive swan wings opened.

 

He played most of the tracks from his latest album, The Age of Adz, threw in a cover of REM's The One I Love and did encore of Concerning the UFO sighting, Casimir Pulaski Day and finally Chicago. There were stories to be told of Royal Robertson and his influence on the latest album, there was excessive amounts of neon, dancing and a whole load of balloons and ticker tape. It was the most theatrical gig I've been to, the most fun and it was incredible to see an artist at the top of his game.

[redsoxs]

86' - MJ Aintree (Bad tour) - 130,000

[Get Carter]

The Killers - Nottingam

Foo Fighters - Wembley -

Rod Stewart - City of Manchester Stadium

 

Shakin Stevens - Liverpool Empire 81' (I was 6 he was my hero!)

[Barzini]

The Orb - Glasgow Barrowlands 1993

 

Although I was chemically altered to within an inch of my sanity, so I could probably have sat in a room with a washing machine and a flickering lightbulb and had a similar experience.

[razor]

The Orb - Glasgow Barrowlands 1993

 

Although I was chemically altered to within an inch of my sanity, so I could probably have sat in a room with a washing machine and a flickering lightbulb and had a similar experience.

 

Haha. They played in Liverpool in mid-90s. My mate was off his head. He went dancing to the band and completely lost himself. He came back after about half an hour as the music had stopped.

 

"That was the best gig EVER! What a band!" he said.

 

"Gary, the Orb haven't been on yet. That was the warm-up DJ. It's not even 10 o'clock."

[General Dryness]

Radiohead, Pyramid Stage, Glastonbury in 2003. Phew for a minute there, I lost myself, I lost myself....

[razor]

Bump. Haven't been to a rival to the best in ages. And I've recently seen The Stone Roses.

 

Love that tag, by the way - still miss him though!

[NoelM]

Felice Brothers, Whelans in Dublin 2009

Frightened Rabbit in Roisin Dubh (Galway)

Low Anthem in Roisin Dubh

Springsteen, acoustic Ghost of Tom Joad tour 1995

Avett Brothers and Grace Potter in Button Factory, Dublin last month

The Duke and the King in a church in Sligo.

[s(k)aturation]

Mick Jagger & The Brothers of Sodom.

Corner Hotel, Melbourne, 1989.

[cloggypop]

89 in Newcastle

 

Mudhoney supporting Sonic Youth .

[Moctezuma]

Because it was an ace day/trip. Dizzee Rascal followed by the Prodigy at Sziegt Festival 2011 totally soaked in sweat from dancing and moshing but was incredible.

[mattyq]

Queen, sometime in the mid 80s, Kind of Magic Tour, Maine Rd Manchester. Freddy, what a leg!

Levellers, early 90s, Glastonbury, off my head on goofballs which kicked in at exactly the same time as the fireworks. Scenes

[Neil G]

Orbital, Glastonbury 1995

Guns and Roses / Faith No More / Soundgarden, Wembley 1992

Rage against the Machine, Reading 1993

Ozric Tentacles, Leicester de Montfort 1995

[mrw74]

So many to recall.......

 

Clash of the Titans (Slayer, Megadeth, Testament, Suicidal Tendencies) - 1990 NEC

Metallica - NEC 1991

Sepultura/Sacred Reich - International 2 1990, I think

Slayer in the tent at Download, most mental pit I've ever been in.

Fishbone London Astoria 1992

Carcass Damnation Festival 2008

Big 4, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax at Sonisphere 2011

Rammstein NEC 2012

Orange Goblin at a shitty pub in Stockport, 2008 or 9

Daft Punk Manchester Academy, around the world tour

Beastie Boys Brixton Academy 1995

 

I'm sure I've missed a few out as well.....damn hard to single out just one these days

[Carvalho Diablo]

So many to recall.......

 

Clash of the Titans (Slayer, Megadeth, Testament, Suicidal Tendencies) - 1990 NEC

Metallica - NEC 1991

Sepultura/Sacred Reich - International 2 1990, I think

Slayer in the tent at Download, most mental pit I've ever been in.

Fishbone London Astoria 1992

Carcass Damnation Festival 2008

Big 4, Metallica, Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax at Sonisphere 2011

Rammstein NEC 2012

Orange Goblin at a shitty pub in Stockport, 2008 or 9

Daft Punk Manchester Academy, around the world tour

Beastie Boys Brixton Academy 1995

 

I'm sure I've missed a few out as well.....damn hard to single out just one these days

 

Was also at the Clash of the Titans. Suicidal rule.

 

Was also in the same tiny mosh pit at Download for Slayer. That really was fucking mental mate.

 

Fishbone, love em but never seen them, so I envy you that.

Defo want to see them with Rocky George. Tell em what's up Rocky...

[razor]

Orbital, Glastonbury 1995

Guns and Roses / Faith No More / Soundgarden, Wembley 1992

Rage against the Machine, Reading 1993

Ozric Tentacles, Leicester de Montfort 1995

 

Saw this. Never really been a massive fan of bands that could walk off stage midway through a gig and no-one would notice as the machine would just carry on, but that night it all made sense.

 

I remember "You Give Love a Bad Name" and "Heaven Is a Place On Earth" being covered during Halcyon - funny and fantastic.

[odris]

Foo Fighters at Reading last year. They played a load of songs of their first album which is my favourite, also some B-Sides like "Winnebago". I waited near the front for 8 hours listening to shit bands like the Kaiser Chiefs but it was all worth it in the end.

[mrw74]

Was also at the Clash of the Titans. Suicidal rule.

 

Was also in the same tiny mosh pit at Download for Slayer. That really was fucking mental mate.

 

Fishbone, love em but never seen them, so I envy you that.

Defo want to see them with Rocky George. Tell em what's up Rocky...

 

I was so knackered after the Slayer pit that I couldn't go down the front for Metallica.

 

Fishbone played The Star & Garter in Manchester last year, which holds about 100 people, but I couldn't go, I was gutted. I wonder if Rocky still wear the same hat with "P" on it