New tour!

[Tish]

Originally Posted by savemejebus

Because it's a far better song for a gig, it's a high energy up-beat song that would have 100% of the crowd pogoing and returning energy and enthusiasm to the band as opposed to ...well whatever the max 20% of the crowd who'd be interested in it would call Brushstrokes of Reunion.

But surely the point of the tour is to promote the new album, so playing the new songs should be central to it? Five new songs a night seems a reasonable amount to drop into a set list otherwise made up of fan favorites, especially as this tour is probably the only time most of these songs will ever get played.

I don’t mind the repetitive set lists or the fact they’re unlikely to ever play my favourate obscure album tracks, but if they’re going to bother making new music then they should play it live, at least once.

Anyway, I’m going to be charitable and assume the lack of new songs is down to the Dave Eringa situation and that by next week he’ll have learnt a few more of them.

[Tish]

Originally Posted by NeverWantAgain

Seems to be multiple people here in this forum year after year who have been to so many gigs that they’re sick of hearing the same songs over and over again, well the obvious solution to that is to stop going and retire or at least give it a break. Stop hanging over the barrier at every gig and move over and let some of us younger people in, those of us who aren’t lucky enough to be able to attend multiple dates on a tour..

I have to agree with that. It’s difficult to have sympathy with people who choose to see the same band multiple times on the same tour then complain that the gigs are all the same. If you enjoy going every night then do it, but don’t moan because you have to sit through You Stole the Sun every night. And if you don’t enjoy it, stop doing it.

Do many people still do that these days? Other than the filmers in the front row who get in everybody else’s way?

[Routine Builder]

The irony of people coming to a discussion board and complain about people discussing things.

[Routine Builder]

Originally Posted by NeverWantAgain

Well said! I saw them on Friday night and loved every minute. Why can’t people just go and have fun instead of standing there criticising them for not playing an old b-side from 1992 or whatever. This was only my 13th Manics gig since 2014 so I felt lucky to be there as I won’t make any other dates this year. And it was *almost* ruined by people standing completely still and filming it on their phones above everyone’s heads rather than being considerate and letting people behind see.. I would rather Manics played a full set of You Stole the Sun 20 times if it meant that nobody was holding their phone up in front of my face when I just wanna jump around.

Clearly it's the hardcore fans who stand around not reacting staring at their phones...

[Tish]

Originally Posted by Routine Builder

Clearly it's the hardcore fans who stand around not reacting staring at their phones...

I think she means people filming through their phones, not reading something else. And they are annoying, people who stand right at the front, then hold their phones up filming the whole show, meaning everyone stuck behind them ends up watching the band through the screen of their shitty little phone. The scourge of modern gig going.

[Routine Builder]

Originally Posted by Tish

I think she means people filming through their phones, not reading something else. And they are annoying, people who stand right at the front, then hold their phones up filming the whole show, meaning everyone stuck behind them ends up watching the band through the screen of their shitty little phone. The scourge of modern gig going.

The people on the front generally don't put their phones up in the air in my experience, mostly due to the fact that they don't have to stick them above people's heads. The worst offenders seem to be those that saunter up close to the front 5 mins before the band come on with a pint in a hand, generally only reacting to three songs while Livestreaming to their facebook messenger chat.

Also it's not the people on the front row who spend their time here complaining about setlists.

Stop hanging over the barrier at every gig and move over and let some of us younger people in, those of us who aren’t lucky enough to be able to attend multiple dates on a

Stop being so entitled. These days you could show up at the venue 15 mins before opening and get to the barrier. I remember the days when you had to get there at 09:00 to nab a good spot. I don't do the barrier these days but it's not these folk who are ruining your time.

[Tish]

Originally Posted by Routine Builder

Also it's not the people on the front row who spend their time here complaining .

I know. Often it seems to be people who’ve not actually seen them live in years who complain the most.

I’m thinking back 15 odd years ago when after every tour this forum would be inundated with people going “I’ve seen the band 10 times on this tour and I haven’t enjoyed a single gig.....” and I’d think “well stop fucking going then!”

And then when you went on your one gig of the tour you’d see them all at the front, obviously bored and sulking. But I’m guessing most of those people have just stopped going now.

[Porco]

Set lists, fans, videoing, videos… it’s all about balance, and there will always be moaning.

I really enjoyed the full video of Friday’s gig, and am always grateful to see/hear such vids, even if I can understand how lots of people holding up phones is annoying if you’re there, but … you’re there!

Likewise, I’m sure we could all design our ideal set list, and they’d all be different. The band have to design it for (deep breath) themselves, for hardcore fans and for more casual fans, for people attending multiple gigs and for people who don’t get to go very often, to reflect/promote the newest album, and to perform at least a good number of the ‘expected’ hits. And like the band, people are still going, so I think they’re doing something right if people will still go despite modern ticketing, people holding phones up, etc etc.

Obviously everyone is free to complain about whatever they want to, so my small complaint is that to me it sounds like a lot of missing out on greatness whilst searching for perfection. Or maybe people just like to post more about their gripes than the things they enjoy (generally, not just here).

Anyway, I think they sounded really good. I appreciate they still try slightly different arrangements, even if only for their own amusement. Dave did great, but I hope whatever Nick N’s situation is turns out ok ASAP.

[LA ex]

Worth throwing in that whilst playing four songs from the new album seems low, back on the PFAYM tour they only had space for three songs from the album they were promoting when I saw them.

https://www.setlist.fm/setlist/manic...-63d28e4f.html

[Europa Gluten Free]

For everyone moaning etc, watch the full Friday night gig on youtube (Would love to know if the person recorded it with those Ray bans glasses as it hardly moves at all. Great recording). It is a great gig.

[Routine Builder]

Originally Posted by Porco

I really enjoyed the full video of Friday’s gig, and am always grateful to see/hear such vids, even if I can understand how lots of people holding up phones is annoying if you’re there, but … you’re there!
.

The thing is that having someone else's phone in your eyeline stops you from being fully there in the moment. Your enjoyment of a gig is being impacted by someone blocking your view of the stage constantly recording videos that are a) likely never going to be watched b) put on YouTube to be watched by 5 people because the sound and quality are so crappy. People take time off, spend money on tickets, travel and hotels to go to gigs and it's really f**king annoying to build up your hype for these gigs to be spoilt by people who refuse to acknowledge that the Manic Street Preachers are playing a gig in front of them, for them but instead focus watching them through a phone. Not all people who do this are as indiscreet, Emily Hyatt is able to do this without sticking their phone in people's faces. I also appreciate not everyone can attend these gigs for many unavoidable reasons, but it is a live show and that's the experience people are paying for. The tickets say Manic Street Preachers, not Manic Street Preachers hiding behind a dozen smart phones.

[Abstract Unknown Girl]

Originally Posted by NeverWantAgain

Why? The ‘hardcore’ fans aren’t owed anything, it’s up to the band what they play and they wanted to play this setlist. Seems to be multiple people here in this forum year after year who have been to so many gigs that they’re sick of hearing the same songs over and over again, well the obvious solution to that is to stop going and retire or at least give it a break. Stop hanging over the barrier at every gig and move over and let some of us younger people in, those of us who aren’t lucky enough to be able to attend multiple dates on a tour..

Hey come on now, the regulars who queue and follow the band across multiple dates of every tour are mostly not even active/registered on this forum and aren’t the ones complaining about setlist choices. A lot of the setlist complaints tend to come from people who weren’t even at the gigs.

On that last point, a setlist is only half the story and doesn’t tell you anything about the band’s performance or the crowd atmosphere. I was at both Glasgow gigs on the barrier (and didn’t actually have to queue that much to achieve that, so it’s hardly fair to say any new or younger fans aren’t being ‘let in’…compared to years ago, the queues are way smaller than they used to be) and had a blast.

I’d never been to the Barrowlands before (we had tickets on the TUVL tour, but husband’s broken arm meant we had to change our tour plans), so it was great to finally tick that one off my list. The band seemed happy to be there (James apologised for not being able to do his signature one leg spinning move due to an injury, which he stressed was not age-related ) and the crowd were singing along louder than I’d heard in a long while.

The Everlasting started off with just James on electric guitar then the rest of the band snuck onstage and they went full band from the solo onwards, which actually worked really well. People tend to turn their noses up at that song, but I think it’s an underrated guitar solo and it was nice to see them re-jig the live arrangement. Similarly, I like the three piece THB/JFPL double as well…it divides the gig up a bit in a way they don’t usually do.

I wasn’t expecting a huge amount of new songs (Dear Stephen wouldn’t have been my first choice to hear tbh, but Brushstrokes, Hiding in Plain Sight, People Ruin Paintings and Decline and Fall sounded great) or a big change from night 1 to 2 (and to be fair, I don’t actually think the majority of the audience will have been the same for both nights as most people just do one gig per tour, so I get them not changing things up much), but This Sullen Welsh Heart was a nice surprise and I’d not heard Australia for a long time.

[IntlDebris]

Originally Posted by rosetree

It is up to the band what they play at their concerts.

Thanks for that, definitely acknowledges the point of your gatekeepy comment about who the "true fans" are.

[rosetree]

Originally Posted by NeverWantAgain

Well said! I saw them on Friday night and loved every minute. Why can’t people just go and have fun instead of standing there criticising them for nàot playing an old b-side from 1992 or whatever. This was only my 13th Manics gig since 2014 so I felt lucky to be there as I won’t make any other dates this year. And it was *almost* ruined by people standing completely still and filming it on their phones above everyone’s heads rather than being considerate and letting people behind see.. I would rather Manics played a full set of You Stole the Sun 20 times if it meant that nobody was holding their phone up in front of my face when I just wanna jump around.

I get what you mean. I have seen the Manics quite a few times over the years and occasionally I've gone alone. I really love the atmosphere and I think people filming can be in the way often though, The last thing I think is what the setlist should be or why they're playing something. I'm glad fans manage to get videos and I think some know people want to see the band, I guess that kind of thing happens. Though i'm on holiday, I'm looking forward to see them in Manchester and I'd still love seeing them live, if they played the same set.

[NeverWantAgain]

Originally Posted by Routine Builder

Stop being so entitled. These days you could show up at the venue 15 mins before opening and get to the barrier. I remember the days when you had to get there at 09:00 to nab a good spot. I don't do the barrier these days but it's not these folk who are ruining your time.

I’m not saying I’m entitled to anything - in fact it’s the very opposite. I am not fortunate enough to afford to travel the country and see them every concert like some, so I’m extremely grateful for the few times I do get to see them. It just annoys me to see people on here moaning about setlists when a lot of these people attend loads of shows and seem to think they’re ‘owed’ something because of how much they love the band or something. I’m not blaming specifically the people who stand at the barrier, I meant it more of a figure of speech. These shows sell out every night and people are still moaning, I’m just confused by a lot of attitudes on here. If you don’t like the things they play these days then don’t go.