2007-05-05 - The Warfield, San Francisco, CA, USA

[Dead Flower]

Hope everyone has a good time. 

[loungefly04]

Can't wait to hear details!  Setlist?  Any new songs?  How was it in comparison to the show the other night?  Questions and questions and questions...

[rhyte]

I just saw the greatest show I have ever seen. And I don't mean the greatest VR show it was hands down the single greatest show that I have ever attended. It's gonna take me a moment to sort out the details but...WOW!

As for the new songs...
SBQM
She Mine
The Last Fight
Let It Roll
Get Out the Door

[centaine]

i can'r wait fo he details!

[rhyte]

I am a culturist not a documenterian so if your looking for set lists and such I am sure someone else will cover those things. Having said that I have to write about this show. It was the greatest show I have ever seen and to make that clear I have to start with L.A..

The L.A. Show was fantastic, it really was, but there were some kinks. The vibe was very particular in L.A. For a number of reasons I am certain. They played amazing, I can not stress that enough, however, their energy was largely internalized. Which is to say that they vibed off one another more so than they did the room at large. And that is cool albeit a bit frustrating. Why was it that way? I don't know but there were a few elements of the show that were less than stellar.

The hour long wait for their arrival, for me seems normal (which is not to say that it is right, so much as it is to say it's not new), but it certainly lent itself to turning the crowd. Boos, jeers and the like are, I'm guessing, not conducive to facilitating good will and banter from the fellas.

In addition to the wait/crowd vibe the performance itself for Scott (clearly) and for Matt and the others as well, I am sure, was very personal in its nature. Scott who on most of the occasions where I have seen him delivers any speech or verbal banter with a kind of swagger that is utterly befitting a superstar frontman, when addressing the crowd regarding his brother stammered, spoke haltingly, struggled to find words to accurately describe his sentiments and seemed to genuinely be reeling in his attempt to get his brain around what he and his family are currently facing. You probably have seen the video on this but did you hear the jeering? While Scott attempted to speak his heart, assholes around the room yelled “just play something” or some other equally obnoxious bullshit. And that does not lend itself to “outward” directed bonding.

In addition to those elements, it was the first night of the tour in the U.S., much of the material was new and they were no doubt weighing shit out as they went along. Here's the thing though...Slash didn't say a word. Dave was stoic. Duff didn't flirt. And Matty was missing that grin (you know the one) for much of the show. They PLAYED the shit out of that material and they absolutely fed off one another and as I stated at the outset that is cool, albeit a bit frustrating...

Enter San Fransisco!!!!!

I am Slash girl. That's not a secret, the thing is though and you gotta feel me on this whether he is your boy or not, the grin on his face tonight by the end of the first song said it all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! From ear to ear (you know the one), that grin lit him up like he was laughing his ass off and it stayed there for two hours. Slash solo anyone? And I don't just mean the intro to “Wish You Were Here” but he soloed on that as well! Slash doesn't do it for ya?

How about Dave? Super Dave was in full effect tonight, that fool was doing knee bent leaps off the monitors and the drum riser, spinning his guitar and dancing his ass off. Yes! I said Dave and dancing in the same sentence. Off the hook. I think he even smiled! (LOL!)

Scotty!!!!!!!!!! Spectacular night. Not a perfect vocal performance (that was in Vegas last summer for those keeping score) but what he brought in energy, crowd engagement, band engagement and dance moves, kicked Vegas' ass! Scott ripped around that stage like a whirling dervish, spinning the whole damn room with him. Collisions and laughter.

Matty beamed. Yes, beamed. Even when the microphone went to shit on the bass drum, still beaming.  Duff played his ass off and just for good measure went topless!

So here's the thing. I know I had a great time in L.A. and it would seem that most of the people who posted on it had a good time in L.A. and that is GREAT. I am just not convinced that anybody in the band had a great time in L.A. I am damn sure they were at the party tonight.

From the opening chord/opening roar to the closing notes/closing bows, head shakes, laughter and waves, hands down the single most enjoyable show of my life. Flaws and all.

(It is on, this tour. That's all I'm saying.)

[MrTootles]

Just got home... Fucking fantastic. Best VR show I've seen. The guys had brilliant energy and it really looked like they were enjoying themselves. And the Warfield is just a great venue. The floor looked packed, but we were one tier up and had a great view.

Setlist, as far as I know, was the same as other shows. Their single is really cool too. This new album looks like a good one.

That being said, my friend and I got in line around 3 and while we expected a somewhat dull wait, two interesting concert-goers kept us entertained. If any of you were towards the front, I was the dude with the curly hair that was recording them with my camera phone.

If you guys are out there, thanks for keeping our wait from being boring.

[my3sons]

Whew...awesome review from rhyte!!  (Tell us what you really thought  )  Lord, I felt the energy half way across the country and was grinning myself ear to ear by the time I finished her description of the show - thanks for sharing!  (I'm soooo envious.)  And congrats to the band on a great performance!!!

[Wendy]

we are about to crash.   I'll have a very long review later.   All I could say right now is that this was the best show ever and at the same time San Francisco is fucken crazy.  No Pictures

[dl8esman119]

While Scott attempted to speak his heart, assholes around the room yelled “just play something” or some other equally obnoxious bullshit.

Yeah, I totally heard the obnoxious assholes at the L.A. show while Scott was trying to explain what was about to take place (Wish You Were Here), and how he felt about the whole ordeal. I couldn't really make out what they were saying though, I was right in front of Slash, and the jeering seemed to come from the back, so yeah. It's like there's something about L.A. that turns my favorite bands off!!! Sometimes I hate living in L.A., people can act like such freaking a-holes! Like they've seen it all!!! Hopefully I'll be able to see VR in a friendlier environment soon. Did they really play for a full 2 hours? That's awesome! Oh, and great review! Was there a camera man there like at the L.A. show? I'm thinking maybe they'll finally put out a DVD...maybe a compilation of their best performances from the Re-Evolution tour!!!

[IN UTERO]

From the moment we arrived the people here is San Francisco have been so accommodating and hospitable. However we stayed in the "Tenderloin" of SF and I was constantly hustled for money as we walked down the street while watching hookers and drug deals go down. Besides that I think the people here are colorful beautiful people I love it here.

The crowd at the Warfield were insane compared to LA. You could see and hear the appreciation the crowd had for the band, that was sooo cool to see and the band loved it. I haven't seen Scott sing this good ever as far as presence and passion goes, he's in a different place completley. Again the band was in top form, switched up the set list order a bit I think it seemed to flow better if they did.

Psycho Killer was really good this time they had it down. Incredible show they just keep getting better and better.
Saw all my friends again and met more nice people. I'll explain after I get some sleep. No VIP afterparty here which was fine with me, ready to sleep  

[Dead Flower]

(It is on, this tour. That's all I'm saying.)

Great reviews everyone.

Man, I hope they come to Perth when they tour Aus.

[tomass74]

Sounds like a great show.. I saw Slash's Snakepit at the Warfield back in like 96...

[slashVR86]

they better come to perth, they cancelled last time very disappointed had floor tickets at the front

[Human_Tripod]

they better come to perth, they cancelled last time very disappointed had floor tickets at the front

amen to that brother

[rhyte]

Did they really play for a full 2 hours? That's awesome! Oh, and great review! Was there a camera man there like at the L.A. show? I'm thinking maybe they'll finally put out a DVD...maybe a compilation of their best performances from the Re-Evolution tour!!!

Not quite two hours but close.  There was no camera man down in the front but there appeared to be video rolling from the sound booth on the balcony tier. I don't know for sure though. The video crew in L.A. might have been in relation to the video shoot they did on Tues/Wed...I don't know that for sure but it is possible. And fyi I was right/rhyte behind you dl8esman in the entry line outside for the Avalon!

And on that note, I am off to catch my plane to Seattle! Cheers to my new Slash friends, Eva and Rachel!!!!!

[movininstereo]

I've been to my share of shows at the Warfield and last night was far and away clearest I've ever heard it.
In my experience it's been pretty muddy.

Re: new tunes
Last Fight and Get out the door sound really good on the first listen.
SBQM having heard it earlier was definitely a highlight for me.

old tunes
Scott sounded great on Slither. Everybody was clear (except I can never hear DK)

old band tunes:
Vasoline got a big response from the crowd. But it sounded a little darker than i remember.
Used to Love-her - they need to retire this one

[Ericaaa]

Ooooh you guys, thank you for the reviews, especially rhyte! I definitely felt like I was at that SF show after reading (and I'm all the way in Jersey!). It's great to see that people are finally easing up on the band, y'know? For such a long time, they got so much crap. I think this is their moment to shine!

[Daisy518]

The show last night was amazing! It was straight up one of the best concerts I've ever been to. I woke up this morning still humming the songs they played. Anyway... about the show, it was CRAZY!!! SF people are nuts (in a good way). I should know, I live here  . There was so much energy in the room and everyone was into the band and the music. The Actual were pretty good, I really enjoyed their set, and people around me generally seemed to appreciate their music, even though it's different from VR's. I have to say that seeing Max after the show... he's a lot shorter than I thought.

Afterwards we waited over an hour for VR to take the stage, which was okay with me, but some people were getting annoyed. When VR came on, they just blew everyone away. Let it Roll is a perfect opener, especially with Scott wearing the fur coat over his regular outfit. All the new songs in general were great. The Last Fight is just stunning... what a great song. I can see it reaching "Fall to Pieces" success and more. After seeing the show... I now love She Mine too. The old songs were great... the audience just exploded on DIFTK and didn't stop for the rest of the show. Scott said some funny stuff leading into Fall to Pieces... he referred to some guy in the audience and said something like "this next song is a love song, but it's not about you and me brother."  Vasoline sounded great too, I enjoyed hearing it again after the AoA show. One of the greatest moments was Slash's solo for Wish You were Here... all I can say is WOW. Psycho Killer was pretty good too. The band was really having a lot of fun, there was not one dull moment. I wish the security was a bit more lenient though... I almost got my cell phone taken away for sneaking some pics. I'll post them, but they all blurry. Amazing, amazing show... I can't wait to see them again when they come back to the states in fall.

[Ladyhudson]

Awesome pics, but ....... none from Slash? 

[dl8esman119]

Did they really play for a full 2 hours? That's awesome! Oh, and great review! Was there a camera man there like at the L.A. show? I'm thinking maybe they'll finally put out a DVD...maybe a compilation of their best performances from the Re-Evolution tour!!!

And fyi I was right/rhyte behind you dl8esman in the entry line outside for the Avalon!

Really? Was that you all in black with the pink top under? HAHAHAHAHAHA! How weird is that?! Hey what happened after the whole "will call" thing? Where did you end up for the Avalon show? I thought it was a bunch of crap that you were there so early and had to wait for will call!

[rhyte]

^^^No that wasn't me. That's who I joined though. I will let her tell her story but in brief...she was on the Dave side, scored souveniers and had a fabulous night. 

I just got into Seattle...with a two hour plaane delay. Must eat, then sleep.

[Calisky3]

Even though digital camera's weren't allowed I managed to sneak a few in there. There are some crazy ones, but I got two amazing shoots of Slash! Rhyte it's me Rachel! LOL Remember. If anyone wants to see the pics go to my photography page on myspace: http://www.myspace.com/caliskyphotography 

^^ It's private though so if you have one, log in and add me! They're worth it trust me. The  concert was amazing. I saw Slash sweating and just wow. -Rachel

[evakinevil]

Did they really play for a full 2 hours? That's awesome! Oh, and great review! Was there a camera man there like at the L.A. show? I'm thinking maybe they'll finally put out a DVD...maybe a compilation of their best performances from the Re-Evolution tour!!!

Not quite two hours but close.  There was no camera man down in the front but there appeared to be video rolling from the sound booth on the balcony tier. I don't know for sure though. The video crew in L.A. might have been in relation to the video shoot they did on Tues/Wed...I don't know that for sure but it is possible. And fyi I was right/rhyte behind you dl8esman in the entry line outside for the Avalon!

And on that note, I am off to catch my plane to Seattle! Cheers to my new Slash friends, Eva and Rachel!!!!!

hey Rhyte! it's Eva! Rachel took some cool photos but i didn't take any bc I was too focused on Slash!  whatta show!

[Libertard]

Scott said some funny stuff leading into Fall to Pieces... he referred to some guy in the audience and said something like "this next song is a love song, but it's not about you and me brother." 

That was great!  I guess the guy was flipping him off the whole time, and Scott was like "I don't understand...are you trying to get that up my ass or something?".  I don't know why someone would actually pay money (and tickets weren't cheap!) to go to a show and do that.

Anyway, I had an awesome time.  I have to admit that, until this point, I wasn't completely won over by this band.  But I wanted to catch them live at least, and I'm glad I did.  Every Contraband song sounded so much better than it does on the album.  The new songs show more depth, and I can see them becoming fan favorites (especially Last Fight and Get Out The Door). 

I have some pics too.  The camera policy kept changing and they were saying no cell phone cameras were allowed.  Then the show starts, and everyone's snapping away on their phones.  So I got a few

[centaine]

thanx for the reviews guys! the pics are awesome!