2015-01-16 - Cleveland, Ohio

[sean.bonner]

House of Blues

" And lower me slowly, sadly, and properly
Get Ry Cooder to sing my eulogy "

01 - Grace, Too
02 - My Music At Work
03 - At Transformation
04 - Man Machine Poem
05 - In View
------
06 - Courage
07 - Looking For A Place To Happen
08 - At The Hundredth Meridian
09 - Pigeon Camera
10 - Lionized
11 - Locked In The Trunk Of A Car
12 - We'll Go Too
13 - Fully Completely
14 - Fifty Mission Cap
15 - Wheat Kings
16 - The Wherewithal
17 - Eldorado

18 - Poets
19 - The Kids Don't Get It
20 - Long Time Running
21 - New Orleans Is Sinking
22 - Little Bones

[bstrauss24]

If anyone has reasonable GA tickets available, please email me at [email protected]

[Tthip]

Grace, Too
M@W
At Transformation
Man Machine Poem
In View
Fully And Completely
Poets
The Kids Don't Get It
Long Time Running
New Orleans Is Sinking
Little Bones

[Escape@Hand]

Cool that they played Kids...if only they threw in one more rarity, perhaps in the first set, it would make things so much better. Still, I'm glad they are bringing at least one song/night from left field - coupled with the rare songs from Fully and there are about 1/2 dozen songs that you don't normally get to hear.

[spottrax]

Absolutely amazing show at the HOB in Cleveland. If anyone is on the fence about seeing them this tour, do not hesitate, the band sounded fantastic! The visuals were sensory overkill and best of all, Downie sung his ass off. Details to come.

[TuckerKatt]

What time did they hit stage?

[ikky99]

http://www.clevescene.com/scene-and-hea ... e-of-blues

The Tragically Hip Delivers Mesmerizing Show at House of Blues
Concert Review
Posted By Jeff Niesel on Sat, Jan 17, 2015 at 3:31 PM
Since forming in Canada some 30 years, the Tragically Hip have regularly included Cleveland as a tour stop. The band played here before it got big in Canada and continued to play here even after it got big, turning the intimate club shows it played in town into real treats for Canadian fans who would usually just get to see the group when it played at the country’s big sports arenas. Last night at a sold out House of Blues, plenty of Canadians were in attendance (you could tell by the number of hockey jerseys that fans wore) and the band put on a mesmerizing show, playing its 1992 album Fully Completely in its entirety and offering up a handful of hits to bookend the performance of the entire album.

Wearing a black leather jacket and matching black leather pants, singer Gordon Downie practically moonwalked his way across the stage during the opening number, “Grace Too.” Using a white handkerchief as a prop, he wiped down the mic stand and dangled the thing in the air as if he expected a dove to magically appear. It was a sign that the singer was in a particularly playful mood and throughout the night he would regularly pantomime and dance as if he was some kind of intense vaudeville performer.

As soon as the band launched into “Courage,” Fully Completely's rousing opening number, audience members began singing the lyrics in unison. “Looking for a Place to Happen” delivered a great blues guitar riff and “Lionized,” one of many highlights in the two-hour set, started with a bit of hi-hat and then gave way to a nasty guitar riff. Downie’s sneering vocals had a real urgency to them too. “Fully Completely” found Downie extending his arms upward as if he was some kind of possessed preacher. To the crowd’s delight, he virtually shouted the song’s refrain. After playing the album in its entirety, the band left the stage for a minute and then returned for an encore that included hits such as “New Orleans is Sinking” and “Little Bones,” the latter of which was played with such ferocity that it bordered on metal.

In this day and age, it’s not often you can find bands that have been together for 30 years and still sound sharp. Though the Hip’s most recent albums haven’t resonated as deeply as Fully Completely, the group still puts on a hell of a live show. Here’s to hoping they keep revisiting their back catalog and continue to include Cleveland as a tour stop.

[Hugh23]

7

DJ Brendan Canning 7-8:25pm EST. The Hip were on stage from 8:30-10:20pm except for two short breaks. The fans were packed tightly on to the GA main floor, pushing and jostling for space in the sold out and smallish HOB Cleveland. As the alcohol flowed, the temperature and the tension began to rise. The fans at this show were into the experience, singing and dancing along with the band. One fan was out of control, drunkenly sing and moshing into everyone around him, ruining our enjoyment. Thankfully, he was removed by security. As Spottrax mentioned, Gord D sang his heart out. He is really using his voice as an instrument to compliment the band's own sound. Each member of The Hip delivered a solid, artistic performance.

The final 5 song set was fantastic! The Kids Don't Get It and Long Time Running were outstanding. The fans were mesmerized and loving the intensity of NOIS and Little Bones.The Chicago shows were good, but the intensity and edginess of the band, mixed with the eagerness of well versed fans, made for a great show.

[spottrax]

Cleveland:

My wife and I traveled from the Detroit area to catch the HOB show Friday night. We were not disappointed in any way. The band delivered a solid show with many high points. As Hugh said above, the band really fed off the crowds intensity rocked the house. The 5 songs then FC then 5 more songs format was interesting and very different. Most fans knew what to expect and were really into it. As been said in other reviews, the FC segment is very well rehearsed and choreographed to the visuals. There is no wiggle room for improv which is not necessarily a bad thing. It was fun watching the band work to get things right (which was amazingly 99% of the time). After one of the FC songs (might've been We'll Go Too) Johnny and Paul gave each other a big smile because they really nailed it. You can tell the pride these guys still have in what they do. An interesting thing happened in Kids Don't Get It. Obviously not a live staple, something did go a bit off the rails in the middle (I'm guessing most people didn't notice at all). As professional musician myself, I noticed it and also noticed at the end of the song, GS came over to PL and GD and sorted things out with Downie actually putting his arm around Sinclair. This is what camaraderie is all about. Another reason this band is so damn good. As for the setlist, All the hits were amazing. The crowd sung as loud as the band at times (which was difficult because the band was really loud!). GD swayed from the melody line in certain non-FC songs but it didn't distract at all. It was passion for the sake of passion IMO. At Transformation and MMP were ok. Even though they are way, way overplayed (staples for what, about the last 5 years?), they still rocked. The ending trifecta of Long Time, NOIS and Bones blew the roof off. Make no mistake, these guys still bring the goods. My wife hadn't seen the Hip since the ILV tour and is a casual fan at best BUT she really loved the show. She knew everything except (maybe) Kids and Wherewithal. For me it was show #26 (I think) and I hear rumors the band will be doing summer dates (a friend told me July 3rd they are returning to Windsor).

A couple other notes: We had dinner at the Bar/Bowling ally just across the street from the HOB and LOVED it. I can't remember the name (too lazy to look it up now) but it was so cool. The place had a retro (60's), lounge type feel and had a sound system that connected with patrons blue tooth's. So....most everything played was Tragically Hip! We also stopped in for a night cap after the show (and pizza) and were treated to nothing but Hip songs! Very cool indeed!

And finally, Hugh.....You must've been about 5 to 10 people to my left. I was just to the right of the other jack ass that was dancing/pushing/shoving and mouthing off. (we seen the dude who was removed). I apologize, if I shoved our distractor into you guys. I've been to hundreds of shows and this guy was one of the biggest buttheads I've ever encountered. I can endure nearly anything but when his antics were hitting my wife and I in the face and he didn't give a hoot, I gave him a couple good shoves (I can't believe I lost it...ugh). He was with his gal and another couple. Classic case of when the first song started, they (coming from the back) started to push their way to the front. They got stuck because of the big guy in front of me (who was pretty tall too). I believe he was pissed because he thought he would get to go all the way up to the barrier. So he took his frustrations out on us around him. He was planted directly behind the tall guy and I'm sure didn't see much. I really hope the dude isn't a hipbaser (I doubt it, he didn't seem to know any words except NOIS and Courage etc). During Bones GD sung to this guy and mocked him. I can't recall what he said but in classic Gord style he started ranting in a positive way to lure him in and then dissed him....I know this stuff irritates GD. Funny that the guys gal was like "what did he just say to you?"

and to end on the positive...... On the drive to Cleveland my wife said if she could hear one song it would be Long Time Running. One of the best Hip moments of the past three decades is when they played it. AWESOME.

[Hugh23]

At the end of the Fully, Completely set, the band leaves the stage for about 5 minutes. During this time the stage lights are low and the crowd is usually cheering loudly to encourage The Hip to return. After 5 minutes of lackluster applause, the band returned to the stage with Gord D coming out last. He went right up to his mike and said, "Your applause and cheering was really lame! We decided to come back anyway".

[spottrax]

At the end of the Fully, Completely set, the band leaves the stage for about 5 minutes. During this time the stage lights are low and the crowd is usually cheering loudly to encourage The Hip to return. After 5 minutes of lackluster applause, the band returned to the stage with Gord D coming out last. He went right up to his mike and said, "Your applause and cheering was really lame! We decided to come back anyway".

Yea, I remember thinking the crowd was a bit unsure of the situation OR were being lame at that point. Eldorado is a terrific song and The Hip played it with precision and passion but it's not really a closer. I think GD should say something like he did at the end of the first set of the 2009 Evening With tour (drink yer drinks, smoke yer smokes...we'll be right back etc). The hardcore fans know the deal by now 5 songs followed by all of FC and then 5 more. However, there seemed to be some confusion by casual fans. After Little Bones the crowd was in a frenzy and would've cheered loudly for an encore had the house lights not come on right away..........just my two cents.

[johnwblake]

Great show! My girlfriend and I drove down from Toronto and were lucky enough to stand by some great fans from Buffalo, Ontario and Detroit near the back of the venue. We were singing the whole night. The band sounded awesome and it was great to hear LTR and Kids. Can't wait until my next show!

[bake364]

Out of the four times I've seen The Hip in Cleveland, this was probably my second favorite of the four shows (the first being the 2009 tour). My buddy and I were up in the balcony, and had a blast! The band was tight, the crowd was wonderful. I haven't chatted with that many people around me in a while. Everyone was singing! At one point I looked around at the crowd and just smiled and enjoyed! This was the first time I've ever seen a band do an "album" tour. I wasn't sure how I would like a band playing an album straight through, The Hip did it and made it work!