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i just got back from
the best show i've ever seen in my life. it started with awesome sets
from the Beta Band and Kid Koala. the beta band were very interesting
and their vocalist was very charismatic. their songs were very long
though and grew very repetitive at times. They played for roughly 30
minutes before Kid Koala took the stage. He mixed some good beats and
even threw bits and peices of "fitter happier" and "pulk pull revolving
doors" into his mix. Then came the awesome Radiohead. The took the stage
and the place went crazy and there was a huge rush to the stage that
got me considerably closer. During the "national anthem" thom was shouting
something like "are we gonna get lost tonight?" and everyone went crazy.
They played all the favorites and at the beginning of "paranoid android"
thom stopped and said, "we have to start over. i got the first word
wrong and we can't have that." it was hilarious. Then The second encore
included "true love waits" this was the fourth time this song has been
played ever and i was so stoked that i was there for it because it is
my favorite Radiohead song. The final song (after three encores) was
"street spirit" which i really didn't expect them to play, but was none
the less amazing. This was an amazing show and anybody who has a chance
to see Radiohead this summer should do so because you will be seeing
the band in thier prime. thanx for reading harrison
Review: by Benoit
That was a truly amazing show! The band were in high spirits and really
seemed to enjoy the venue. All the songs were great but I was especially
glad to hear True Love Waits. Lurgee was also a highlight. They hadn't
played this one for a while. After the show, I waited for the band for
two hours near their bus (along with about 25 other patient fans). Then
Phil showed up, followed by Ed and finally Thom. They were so nice and
accessible! We got their autographs and had the opportunity to chat
with them a little. In retrospect, there are so many questions I wish
I had asked... Anyway, that was the perfect conclusion to a perfect
evening!
National Anthem seemed
to start off a little bit tricky, the vocals were loud to the point
of distortion and if there were horns I couldn’t hear them over
the din of the song. The sound was muddy for the first few loud songs,
and seemed to clear up a bit for the more quiet numbers. I have to admit,
I was one of those people who didn’t buy a ticket.. I mean why
buy air? I already know what the band looks like and thanks to the giant
screens to accommodate fans such as myself, we didn’t need to buy
a ticket to see them perform. Hey, the rent is due people! Goggles (a
friend) who reported from the inside said that the sound was much better
where we were, which was centered with the stage, just further back.
We hugged the fence the whole concert, while he stood on the other side,
just two feet away. Tony Hooper
The part of Grant Park they played in is between Columbus Drive and Lake Shore Drive. Despite the heat, the Radiohead show in Chicago was fantastic. The crowd was pretty mellow, I think maybe it was way to hot to get stupid ya know. We were close enough to see them quite well, and that they were having a great time also. Colin couldn't stop jumping. Phil and Ed were great. Jonny, I think was in as much a trance as Thom. I think Thom enjoyed having those fisheye cams on the piano. He made some pretty silly faces in the cam teasing us. Finally hearing Optimistic live was a real treat! I can't remember what song it was, but there was a Sanyo blimp in the sky, and Thom pointed his hand and "shot at it." For Pyramid Song , Thom turned around and pointed at the moon, to which he later dedicated it to. I remember, I had a pretty good view of Jonny. I was looking at his eyes, and he was just staring up at the moon and how it glowed amber against the purple sky. It was like his eyes lit up, he looked like he was in a trance, being who he is, and what he does and during the pyrimad song, I can't imagine the amount of energy or intensity of feeling he must have had seeing that awesome sky above a sea of radioheads, yet he showed no expression, no emotion. Like Radiohead, the moonlit evening sky was just perfect for the Pyramid Song. Afterwards Thom talked about how when it turned from 1999 into 2000, he was looking at the moon. He mentioned something about needing to shave partly cause other wise he turns in a werewolf. He then said this next one was for those who get [weird or something] when the moon comes out. It was Paranoid Android. Throughout the show, the look on Thom's face when he is up there is just unreal. You can see how into it he is, especially on the fisheye lens, he was like practically drooling all over it. I loved it! I loved seeing him like that, such a true artist totally giving everything he has in his performance for his fans. Before the third encore, Thom came on and said thanks to Chicago for having them here. I think they liked it here cause he said it's a pretty cool place to play at in a kind of admitting way. It was so great to have them here and to have them see the moon from the same part of the world I always do. A night to remember. Chuck Zinzer
All I can say is WOW! Amazing from DJ Koala jamming Fitter Happier and Cypress Hill until Headlining Radiohead came out. Thom and the whole gang seemed to be on top and Feeeling thr part of true entertainers tonight. N.A. & Morning Bell were the standard excellent starters, which didn't disappoint any fans who hav'nt seen the shows on the tour yet. Iron Lung was a personal fav, that just shook the ground. Much stage banter from the band (Thom) Jonny's demonic guitar was the high for me!! Ripping many tunes from Talk Show Host to Lucky... Thom's joy filled the whole area, which as a cherry popping seemed to enjoy the band as much as it did the crowd. Colin & Phil & Ed were the true inspriration that flowed thru song to song. Each acoustic tune filled me with a full body Goosebump and FAke Plastic Trees was just completely off the charts. I will never miss a Radiohead show again!!! FYI - I paid 95 bucks after not getting the 1st set of tix, and "losing" in the W.A.S.T.E. lottery after thinking I would not get any before the 2nd wave of tix. Not knowing there would be a 2nd wave. Regardless, I would do it again, in a heartbeat to see this amazing band and recommend you do whatever it takes to see them too!
As most of you would expect, ultimately amazing. The atmosphere was beautiful. The city and sears tower projecting to the right of the stage where the sun slowly dipped behind creating hues among the low lying clouds, to the near full moon brilliantly shining which gleamed the entire evening. Thom made several references during Pyramid Song. Those black eyed angels nearly carried me off. whew... Brilliant, brilliant, brilliant... I was forunate enough to catch True Love Waits at Santa Barbara. James if you are there, I thought of you, and wish you were here. Thank You Thom for the breath taking accoustic performance. Chicago was an amazing enviroment. Besides the 25K packt like sardines in 95+ sweltering heat. It is unbelievable how many times I was able to accumalate goose bumps all evening long. The some what cool life saving breezes always came at the right times during the peaks of the perfomances. I distinctly remember during Green Plastic Trees... she looks like the real thing... taste like the real thing... the wind swept through, causing my shackles to rise and I stood there, with a smile plastered to my face. How sweet it was. Ariel, Shannon what can I say... Can't wait for the Hollywood Bowl!!
i've given up rating concerts that i go to from best to worst; this year has just held too many amazing performances for me to keep comparing them all. but radiohead at hutchinson field was certainly one of the most dynamic, passionate, spellbinding shows i've ever seen. i must admit, i was hoping for a horn section for the opener, but it was powerful just as it was; got the crowd moving right from the start. "morning bell" was beautiful/painful as always; "my iron lung" just blew the roof off (figuratively, of course). it was so sweet to see thom having such a blast, just enjoying the feeling, making faces at us during "karma police." note to previous reviewers: just because you didn't hear anyone close to you singing "permanent daylight" doesn't mean you were the only one in the audience who knew it! a lot of fans like to absorb rather than participate, and the b-sides make me giddy, too, but i know sometimes people singing along loudly is distracting. ANYway, i was really surprised by "optimistic"; they haven't been playing it much, and it was fantastic, especially the electric guitar crescendo at the end. "how to disappear", what can really be said? brings tears to the eyes even on the album. "dollars and cents" was WAY better than the studio version; i was reeling from the impact. "packt like sardines" also; i didn't recognize it 'til the singing started, but wow, colin was playing like a madman, and i couldn't stop moving. "talk show host" i sort of expected in the encores, but it fit perfectly where it was; it felt like a spaceship was abducting us all. "pyramid song" was extremely touching, and since this was my first radiohead show, i've been waiting all my life to see "paranoid android" live; it did not disappoint. naturally, you can't continue if you miss the first fuckin' line! "idiotheque" bounced me around all over the place, and "everything in its right place" proved to be a great techno. . .jam? obviously, it left us all wanting much more, but never in a million years would i have guessed "lurgee". what a powerful performance, johnny was just going apeshit. i was still thinking, "they have to play 'you and whose army". . . before this show, i just couldn't figure out why they always play "climbing up the walls", but know i see. mesmerizing. and then finally, "army" (technically, it was still part of the first encore), which surpassed all my expectations, tears mingled with sweat dripping down my face. knowing they'd be back, i prepared myself (by screaming?). i've always loved "lucky", and it was just overwhelming. i hope my luck NEVER changes, from that moment on. . . i was rooting for "bones", my buddy was rooting for "fake plastic trees", and he got his wish, but i must admit, i was unprepared for the surge of emotion that song would elicit from me. all in all, i got my wish after all. then, i didn't know if they'd come back out or not, but i screamed my lungs out just in case. thom on the acoustic. "killer cars"? no, TRUE LOVE WAITS! my luck hadn't changed. you could hear a pin drop in the audience, everyone was rapt. every strum was perfect. PLEASE tell me someone taped this show! so that HAD to be the end, right? thankfully, no. the band came back on, incredibly, and floored us with "street spirit". "immerse your soul in love"; it no longer sounds ironic to me when thom sings it. it is just what we all did for two and a half hours. am i right? why can't we do this EVERY night? -cal roach
Waiting 14 hours in a 105 degree oven was worth the breath-taking experience to come. 6:00am We arrived in Grant Park at about 6am and had no idea where to go from there. Of course, the giant stage came into view and we followed that. We came around the backstage area and proceeded to the area where there were already about 50 Radiohead fans already camped. Some arrived at 2:30am. The atmosphere around us was surprisingly uplifting, considering the fact that Chicago was right in the middle of a massive heat warning and the sun was just coming up. 11:00am There was a park area with trees across the way, so many of us would take shifts watching the stuff as we basked in what little shade was available. The sun beated down on us until it seemed there was no air to breathe. All the people waiting, including us, brought ample water and food to hold us over and keep us hydrated. A few people brought guitars and a tambourine and soon everyone crowded around them in a Radiohead sing-a-long. Some people had T-shirts with "I Love Radiohead" written on them, while others (like me) improvised by writing "Radiohead" on various body parts. 1:30pm At this point, it reached about 105 degrees. Various news reporters would come by and interview sweaty fans about the heat and the parks "no outside water" policy. We were told that there would be no water of our own to be brought into the park. Instead, there would be water on sale for 4 dollars! The news helped us get the park to let us bring in a least 1 bottle. To our amazement, they decided to let us in at 1:30, instead of 4. Since no one expected to be moving, everyone abandoned their things. I threw away a blanket, 10 bottles of water, an umbrella and others thinking we were going into the park at that moment. Instead, they let us into a holding area right infront of the gates where we all were ordered to sit like children into sections depending on the spot in line. I was about 2 people from the front when I heard the most beautiful sound: Jonny's guitar strumming chords to Lurgee. Radiohead was soundchecking about 40 feet away from us! All the fans cheered as Radiohead performed a kind of mini-concert. They played parts of Lurgee, Optimistic, the Tourist, Like Spinning Plates, Knives Out, Idioteque, and another song I had never heard before. The fans sang along every word and applauded after every song. 4:00pm About 3 hours waiting in direct sunlight and little to no water (since everyone threw away their ample water supple due to misinformation), they started to search our bags and set up metal detectors. Some people began to pass out from heat and were taken away by paramedics. Surprisingly, my excitement about the show helped me forget about the intense temperature. Then, the gates opened. Everyone ran toward the stage despite the many park employees yelling to walk. Finally...I took my place in the audience in the fourth row! I could see pieces of Johnny's setup and was in direct sight of Thom's mic. I couldn't believe it. The excitement soon wore away as we were packed together for another 3 hours with no water. They eventually took a fire hose to us about 3 times. Many people wee just sitting down with their heads bowed. Everyone had this glaze of sweat and water over their faces. 6:15pm Finally, after hours of listening to dance, barbershop and jazz music over the speakers...the Beta Band took the stage. I had never listened to them, but heard that they rocked. They were dressed in 80's attire and the lead singer frequently had conversations with the audience. When he asked "How are you?" Many people answered with "hot" or "water!" He then yelled to the guys in charge of the hose and told them to "get them fucking water, howd you like to be in there!" They sounded awesome with the funky bass grooves and the DJ/keboardist had a ton of energy as he jumped and sang along. The lead singer and bass player often changed instruments. The highlight of the performance was "She's the One for Me" as the singer changed to percussion and the bassist changed to accoustic guitar. I was very entertained by them. Another highlight was that if I stood on my toes, I could see Colin enjoying the performance from backstage. At this point I lost track of time from the adrenaline from my stomach churning knowing that Radiohead would soon be onstage 5-10 feet in front of me. I had heard that Radiohead's set up requires a lot of time and that they would go on at night. Kid Koala then took the stage as the roadies set up for the headliners. I am not a fan of DJ's or dance music in general, but I enjoyed him. He was a little guy who was always smiling and dancing. He also sampled "Pull/Pulk Revolving Doors" and "Fitter Happier" which obviously won over the crowd real fast. For what seemed like 15 minutes after Kid Koala finished, Jonny ran onstage and picked up his transistor radio/TV instrument thing followed by the rest of the band and began "The National Anthem". The crowd went nuts. I began to cry as I realized how close Thom and Jonny were to me. Colin's distorted bass was over-powering as Thom sang. It seemed shorter than usual, but awesome. Thom immediately then sat at the organ and announced "Morning Bell". I couldn't believe I was watching this live after so many times listening to it and seeing the Canal+ performance. The crowd sang along to "everyone wants to be her friend, everyone wants to meet her". Phil's 5/4 drumming was impeccable as Jonny cut in with his guitar. Radiohead then tuned their guitars down and began "My Iron Lung". Jonny was dancing and swinging his hips to the guitar solos and seemed to stomp on his petals. This was the first song that I noticed the amazing lighting. Then came "Karma Police" and "Knives Out" with the entire audience singing in unison back at Thom. I thought Thom was in a bad mood at first because they were flying through the first 8 songs and he wasn't saying much. After an awesome "Permanent Daylight" and "Optimistic", it was very clear Thom was having a good time. I was able to make eye contact with him and he flashed a brilliant smile. "How to Disappear Completely" was next as the lights dimmed to a beautiful blue. I then called my answering machine with my cell and left a message during "I'm not here, this isn't happening" because it was such a surreal moment. I also cried during this one! "Dollars and Cents" was, by far, one of the best songs last night. The lights were blue with white chasing lights lining the back of the stage during the verses and during "quiet down", they became so intense it was blinding. The funny thing about it was that Ed screwed up the harmony on "you never go out and you never stay" and Thom and him looked at each other funny and laughed. Ed didn't come in the next time. The band seemed so into it. The wind blew through Ed's hair as he played making him look like a god. After that, Jonny took his place at the bells and I knew what was next, "No Surprises". This was another audience sing-a-long. "Packt Like Sardines" was after, another highlight song of the night. Radiohead seemed like they were playing another song completely as they pushed the tempo, and distorted the bass line with this dirty sound and Thom grabbed his tambourine and swayed with the music singing "I'm a reasonable man, get off my case". "Talk Show Host" brought the house down with orange lights as Thom beat his guitar strings. The most beautiful song of the night, "Pyramid Song", began with Thom taking his place at the piano with his back to the audience. The lights went to blue and Thom dedicated it to the full moon behind us. Colin had the stand up bass and scratched the strings down the neck creating the eerie sounds. The wind picked up and blew the silk screen behind the stage, revealing the beautiful Chicago skyline. Truly breath-taking. Then came my 2 favorite songs back-to-back, "Paranoid Android" and "Idioteque". Thom dedicated "Paranoid Android" to President Bush and "For anyone who goes a little crazy under the moon". The intro was fine and Thom stopped the song because he started on the wrong word. He said would instead of could I guess. Everyone laughed as Thom faked the beeping noise from the album version and started over. "Idioteque" drove the crowd into a frenzy. Something happened with the drum machine and they carried on anyway. During the dance break Thom went nuts. Every limb on his body was gyrating. Colin was jumping up and down as if he was doing a work-out video when he wasn't playing the keyboard. It was great. The closer, "Everything in its Right Place" was amazing. I was a bit skeptical about it because I wasn't sure how it would fit as a closer, but my worries were laid to rest after the first chord. Thom sang it brilliantly and Jonny came in with guitar licks. As the band played, Thom grabbed the mic with a big smile and held it out to the crowd on the right side as we all screamed as loud as we could. Then, he went to the left and did the same pretending he couldn't hear us. He then walked offstage followed by everyone but Jonny, who stayed and played the end. He then waved and left. We cheered until our throats bled and our hands were raw. I had heard the guy behind me chanting "True Love Waits" constantly, knowing how beautiful the song was, I joined him. We chanted it over and over until the band came back for the first encore. Thom thanked us and said "This is a song off...Pab...what was that album called again?" We went crazy as they went into "Lurgee". I had a feeling they would play that one since it was performed at the soundcheck. Jonny seemed bored with that one though. Following that was a fabulous "I Might Be Wrong" as Thom beated the tambourine. "Climbing Up the Walls" was kick ass, and the lights went crazy. Thom screamed into the soundhole in his acoustic for the end. "You and Whose Army" was beautiful. It was during this song that I noticed the giant screen. I was close, so I didn't even see the screen until I saw Thom's head swaying back and forth. His back was to us, and there was a camera on the piano showing the audience his face as he closed his eyes and drowned himself into the music. The band left again and we all screamed and clapped. Again, the kid behind me and I went into another "True Love Waits" chant. Radiohead came running out again beginning with Ed as he clapped his hands at us. Thom pretended he couldn't hear us as we screamed louder. He had us put our hands into the air and Phil began "Lucky". Then they went into "Fake Plastic Trees" and the whole crowd of 25,000 seemed to know every word. Thom smiled as he said "it wears me out". As the band left again I was sad. I knew that they usually do only 2 encores, but I noticed that the lights didn't go out yet. I stayed and chanted "True Love Waits" again and clapped because my voice was starting to go out. To my amazement, Thom returned to the stage alone with an acoustic guitar. He looked right at us and announced "True Love Waits". His voice was the most beautiful I had ever heard it. It resonated off the city buildings. Every time he sand "don't leave" I would think how badly I wanted them to stay. As it ended, the whole band returned to the stage and went into "Street Spirit". Yet another gorgeous piece of music, and perfect end to the perfect night. My dream came true and it will forever haunt all my days.
Gina Pantone, Chicago
WOW! What an amazing show. Probably one of my Top 3 shows ive been too. Radiohead has been one of my favorite bands since The Bends came out. I cant believe Radiohead came even remotely close to were I live. I'm from Iowa and I never thought in my wildest dreams that I would ever get the privledge to see them. The show started out with The Beta Band who was is a really good band that didnt ,(in my opinion) get the respect they deserve. They played about 5 of their tunes and then Kid Koala came on with a great performance. I wasnt too familiar with this guys stuff, except for the masterpiece rap album which is Deltron 3030 , which I strongly recommend. Kid Koala shouldve came on for a lot longer though, I think The Beta Band's performance was a little monotonous for the crowd in Grant Park. His DJ wizardry is like non-other I have seen. He got off after what looked like stage hands kicking him off. I cheered the loudest for him I think. After that Radiohead came on after about another 30 minutes. When I first saw Ed Obrien come out I was completely star struck and I went crazy. Then all of a sudden people rushed towards the stage and I got about 40 feet away from the stage it was nice to be a lil closer to the band. They played an awesome live version of National anthem and the show rocked from there. I was very pleased to hear Lurgee , true Love awaits and street spirit in the set. For those of you who think they were the only true fans there you were very wrong. I could write more but I just got back from Chi-Town and its 1:30 and im goin to bed. Overall I think radiohead was in a great mood and they played the longest they have played on this tour so we got a special show. Bottom line, the show was life altering. Nic Dell
"Chicago is a pretty cool place," Thom Yorke mumbled through a rare smile Wednesday night at the close of Radiohead's amazing two hour-plus set Despite 90 degree heat and bone-headed administrative decisions which barred concertgoers from bringing in an adequate supply of water (I have a feeling the city made quite a profit on selling bottled water at $4 a pop), Chicago must have indeed seemed a cool place to play what with 25,000 fans absolutely knocked off their feet by a varied and energetic set. The fans were well behaved yet rabidly excited, the hot weather gave way to a cool lake breeze and the whole field was eerily lit by the light of a full moon giving Hutchinson Field, set right in front of Buckingham Fountain with the country's most beautiful skyline as a backdrop, an unbelievable, almost mystic air. And The Church of Radiohead was in full session. The Beta Band hit the stage to the delight of a crowd which had, for the most part, been waiting hours for a decent seat, and played an enjoyable if unspectacular set. I consider myself a casual fan of the band, and found a few moments quite enjoyable, but for the most part the crowd was indifferent, save for wild MTV-bashing cheers when the lead singer mockingly read from an article claiming that our whole generation were jelly in the mega-station's hands. Kid Koala put on a great set that I seemed to enjoy a lot more than anyone else around me but I doubt that most Radiohead fans, I suppose, share my enthusiasm for electronic music. There were cheers, however, for the few RH songs he mixed in. The real excitement started when the first chords of National Anthem hit, though. The sound was loud and amzing-I never thought an outdoor venue of that size would have such great acoustics. It might have helped that I was about fifty feet back, if even, and dead center. With the crowd energized by NA, they kicked into Morning Bell, which was disappointing in that it sounded more Amnesiac than Kid A, followed by the most incredible live version of My Iron Lung I've ever heard. Thom was spitting out the lyrics "The Bends" style and Johnny could hardly contain himself as he strangled a few mute notes out of his guitar. Amazing. Karma Police was unspectacular, but got the crowd going before "Knives Out". While it's not one of my favorites (I think it sounds like a mellow Paranoid Android), the live version does it justice. They followed their radio hit with an absolutely stellar version of Permanent Daylight that not too many people seemed to know and then kicked into sure crowd pleasers Optimistic, How to Disappear Completely and Dollars and Cents. While I preferred Permanent Daylight, these got the crowd going. The concert hit another level though, beginning with a haunting "No Surprises" and a version of Pakt that saw Colin playing his bass with a whole lot of distortion and Johnny flat rocking out. It was the most rocking translation of an electronic song I've ever heard, and really showed that all five members (but especially Colin) were feeling it. Talk Show Host is always a live treat, this time with Johnny going wild on synth at the end, Pyramid Song was beautiful and Paranoid Android , after a mis-start, went off pretty well (although they seemed a little rusty on this song, more used to Knives Out maybe?) The highlight of my night though, and maybe my life (hehe) was the absolutely stunning version of Idioteque that began with Colin of all people dancing like a fool and ended with Thom raving around the stage. The version was so intense that my sister who was with me at the show actually passed out. (Don't worry, she's ok!) Everything In It's Right Place continued the amazing live interpretation of Kid A and closed out the first set. Those two songs blew anything else I've ever heard live out of the water. After playing a song of off "pa.pa.pa.pablo?" as Thom called it (Lurgee, a decent version), they rocked through a bass heavy I might Be Wrong (Ed actually started busting a move during this song!) they played an amazing Climbing Up The Walls where Johnny fiddled brilliantly with a radio giving it an even more haunting feel. They returned for a seond encore of You And Whose Army (Thom pointed at the crowd when he said "chronies" and made some delightful faces for the camera), a beautiful version of Lucky which everyone joined in on and a crowd sing a long version of Fake Plastic Trees. I'm pretty sure the band was done after Fake Plastic Trees, but the crowd of 25,000 wasn't letting them go at that. After what seemed like ages, Thom sneaked back onto the stage all by his lonesome and did the unthinkable: HE PLAYED TRUE LOVE WAITS!!! Long one of my favorites, I was in heaven. I hope someone taped this beauty as he added a few unexpected chord changes. The crowd didn't know it, though, unfortunately. The finisher was with the whole band, a moving "Street Spirit" that was a fitting end. Thom seemed to love the venue, and rightfully so, and the crowd seemed to more than love the band. All in all an amazing show, played with energy after their recent break and an unusual amount of gleeful enthusiasm. My hats off to Colin though who really carried a lot of the songs and was very very active on stage, quite surprisingly. Bravo!!! --Orion Kellogg |
01-08-01
Hutchinson Field, Chicago,
USA 
Thom-
Good evening this is a song called Morning Bell, Packt Like Sardines
In A Crushd Tin Box (Thom- This song is dedicated to those who have
formerly destroyed their brains and for those who sit in traffic), Paranoid
Android (Thom- This song is for those who have problems when the moon
is full [Note: False Start, Thom- I got the first word wrong!] Everything
In It’s Right Place [Thom- Tony, this song is for you]. True Love
Waits {Thom- A song that’s been around since the O.k. Computer
days)[thanks Tony Hooper] 
by Fritz