Date: 21st April 2005
Event: The Prodigy Concert – AONO Tour
Venue: Alsterdorfer Sporthalle
City: Hamburg
Country: Germany
Support: DJ Mense Reents
Tracklist:
1. Wake Up Intro
2. Wake Up Call
3. Their Law
4. Warning
5. Breathe
6. Spitfire
7. Girls / More Girls
8. Back 2 Skool
9. Firestarter
10. Action Radar Link
11. Mindfields
Encore:
12. Poison
13. Method Beats
14. Smack My Bitch Up
15. Out Of Space
Extra info:
Review by MC.Smith:
I really like this place for performances. The hall is between forests, the town park, a river (Alster) and lots of allotment gardens. And the distance is only 10 minutes by foot from the flat I’m living in.
Their last performance in this hall was in november 1997. The hall was sold out, introduction group was Junkie XL and the stage looked more expensive with two giant displays and very nice ideas for a “Serial Thrilla” performance: Like seeing Keith’s shadow through a mirror and then having him standing right in front of you when the lights are going on. You can’t discribe it! But that was 7,5 years ago.
I actually would like to know where Neko was standing, because I have seen a photo of her and I think she was not at the front row – there where only a few people so I definitely would have recognized her (unless she had new hair color or something). Actually I was surprised how many people with tatoos where there like a girl with the prodigy ant on the back of her neck and a guy with a tatoo “prodigy” on his arm. There was someone with a “spitfire” coat with spitfire airplanes and stuff, even a trouser. Real hardcore fans!
There where so few people that a third of the hall was barricaded to get the impression that the hall would be full. The hall is intended for 7000 people but there where less than 2000 according to a daily news mag. In my opinion there where 1500 at all. The ticket for 45 euros was just too expensive! But with only 100 people standing in front of the stage when Liam entered it I was surprised how easily I managed to get to the front row at the center. I actually had the chance to touch Keith who came down to the young girl right beside me who longed her arms all the concert time to him and Maxim. Btw she never heard of Nuclear/Trigger because I had prepared a sign “Nuclear Trigger” that I showed to Maxim and Keith. Maxim definitely saw it (I think also Keith) and then looked quite surprised ! But then he shook his head (means no) and did not say anything. I think these tracks are definitely never going to be released !
Maxims clothing was interesting. He had a belt with two “M”s like in the Maxim logo. And his boots had the Maxim logo as well. Besides, at the entrance was massive distribution of “Maxim Fallen Angel” postcards with mobile ringtones for “I dont care” and the next single “Nouveau Riche”. (Fallen Angel did not enter the album Top 100 in germany.)
A few notes about the tracklist:
The Wake Up Intro consists of a vocoded Wake Up vocal, a simple bass and a very good sample that you can find on the ZeroG-Sample CD “Chemical Beats” on track 83 at time 1:03. If you are interested I can send you a MP3 !
Wake Up Call was performed as extended full vocal version (but unfortunately I could not understand Maxims lyrics). Warning was slowed down at the end and Spitfire was the 05 version with the drums right away (intro skipped).
I did not like Firestarter. The new version that I loaded from that russian page sounds very good in the beginning but this performance had only the new parts (in the refrain, you know what) but the beginning was 100% identical to the album version – quite boring now.
When I read on this page about Action Radar Fill I always thought that the first parts of Action Radar are meant but instead this one started right through Firestarter with a male (or slowed down) vocal of “A little Action is all I need” which was played over and over, then the radar sound – that was it.
Poison was quite good cause it was the 95eq version and the end was quite interesting: The song was sped up, up and up while Maxim rapped “I got the Poison I got the remedy I got the pulsating rhytmical remedy” faster and faster to prove some of his rap skills.
The last two tracks where quite disappointing: Smack My Bitch Up and Out of Space. These where only played half ! (Although Keith was very good during SMBU: He performed air smackings all the time!) – SMBU ended before the vocal chant and Out of space while the refrain was going. The funny thing was Maxim said “Everybody sing now” when the refrain started (“I’m gone sending…”) but then just left the stage. All you could still hear now was the refrain with Action Radar samples fading out.
The crowd felt quite ripped off for the huge ticket price and I heard *loads* of “Verarschung” (german for like “fucking rip-off”) and saw middle fingers but I liked it (the only annoying thing was the dj that played before them).
The band actually flew away right after the performance. I left the hall as fast as possible and saw a car very quickly driving away. I think it was The Prodigy.
It’s obvious if you got a gig in Berlin the next day.
Review by neko:
Finally. I’m on my way to Heathrow. I only just left the office 2pm this afternoon and now ahead of me are 3 days in Germany with 3 shows by Prodigy. Yeah!
I land at 6pm, get to hotel and meet my friend Yuki, then we’re off to venue before 8 already. The ‘Sporthalle’ is quite huge, and still very empty. There’s a DJ on though, he’s so bad that it’s almost funny again. I’ve heard him nicknamed as the ‘priest’ because he looks like one, talks like one (yes, the little man is talking german words to us) and his music sounds like it as well. So, not too exciting yet.
It’s an early show, so at around 8.30pm the DJ is leaving. I look around, it’s still daylight outside, the hall is huge and half-empty, surely they cannot come on now?
A very familiar ‘Exterminator’ is played though and I know too well what that means: they’re just about to come on indeed. Personally I’m not quite there yet, haven’t quite switched into the whole Prodigy thing yet (it’s been a long five weeks).
The band are then on at 8.45pm, with the very familiar Wake Up Intro and then Wake Up Call. Even the following Their Law doesn’t feel quite right. It’s great to see the band back on stage but somehow the whole energy gets quite lost in this massive hall. I must admit, I’m never as receptive to the whole thing when I just come from work. Spending the afternoon at some beach in Australia somehow worked better for me usually :). So, yeah, objective review as ever.
Anyways, next on is Warning, well received actually, as many must have downloaded it somehow by now. Tonight there’s actually 2 or 3 very subtle, short new samples in it, not very obvious though. Also there’s the extended ending, lots of beats. Cool.
It’s still a very weird vibe in this venue though, the place seems much too big for the band and the stage looks really little and lost in the middle of it. I can’t really put a finger on what’s wrong, it’s just a bit strange. Probably a combination of venue not being ideal, funny sound, shite support DJ and it being the first show the band are playing for a while.
Breathe is the first time tonight I start to get into it now, it’s a great performance of the track and that familiar Prodigy energy comes back. Ahh, great to see them back!
Spitfire is next and then Girls / More Girls, and with that the show gets a bit tamer again. Now Back to School, an excellent track, features a bit of a fuck up, which is quite funny actually. Maxim does his big ‘on the count of three” then goes ‘1,2,3’ and then the beats are supposed to come in, but Liam is actually still in the middle of the build up, ha ha ha. (I guess you had to be there).
Firestarter then, doesn’t do it too much for me tonight’ new is a very subtle ‘a little action is all I need’ sample in the middle of it, very nice.
The Action Radar link then is excellent, still loving this one and tonight it features a very nice link to Mindfields, featuring great drums a la Pepper.
Now, you guessed it, band leave stage, return back, continue with Poison, then an excellent Smack My Bitch Up and close with Out Of Space, which is quite well received. And then that’s it, it’s all over.
Hmm, not sure what to make of this one, a bit of a weird one.
The rest of the night then is a bit of a blur, but in a good sense. My turn to lead people astray. Mmmhm, Caipiroshka.
Poster:
Photos from the show:
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