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I'm guessing that all the people who keep saying "the setlists are great, who cares" just haven't been to the Hip shows of the past, and therefore have no idea what they're talking about.
It was great when every night, a totally "unique" show emerged, You totally had no idea what song they are going to throw at you next, Gord never forgot any words, They jammed out NOIS and Meridian for 10-15 mins each, and Gord only picked up that acoustic of his on rare occasions. Unfortunately, after seeing over 25 Hip shows since 1994, I must say that the quality has steadily declined (and yes, I have seen 3 shows this tour).
So to all you people who say "F@#$ off, listen to your albums", that's exactly what I'm going to do, because $60 X 4 for the same show is not worth it anymore.
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To those who say that they used to change it up more back on the Henhouse tour etc., here's something else to think about. Back then they were only playing songs from 5 albums. So let's say just to make it easy that they rehearse 40 songs for a given tour. Back then that would be about 8-9 songs per album. So obvioiusly more "rare" non-single tracks would appear in sets back then, because they had a smaller catalogue to choose from. Now they have 9 albums, so that would be about 3-4 songs per album, plus they obviously play more than 3-4 songs from the new album.
So the point being they can only rehearse so many songs for the tour, and being that they can only choose roughly a few songs from each album, they are going to choose the more popular songs. I don't know, maybe I'm just making excuses for them but it kinda makes sense.
And they still do throw in surprises now and again.
Nick
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I think a lot of people need to relax. They're playing to tiny crowds with marginal fans right now...would you bust out a gem, that for all intensive purposes is hard to play, hard to get into a groove as you haven't played it that often for a crowd that doesn't know your songs that well? Or would you stick to the hits?
During the summer, the fans got all the hits...now we're seeing a few gems...naturally, I think we're going to get all kinds of gems for the Canadian tour...
Have faith folks...
Escape Is At Hand-Tales of a Boy and a Band due June 2013 from Eternal Cavalier Press
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I enjoy every show I've ever seen the hip play, BUT, I'll have to admit the last few shows, I walk away with only a few "standout" tunes that made my night. Not that the usual songs aren't great.... they are just totally expected, and don't vary much from night to night.
I can't see the large catalogue as an excuse.... C'mon they're professional musicians who can obviously master more than 30 songs per tour. The last PJ tour, they played back to back to back shows in Boston, and played EVERY single song from all albums in those 3 nights! How crazy is that?! Pretty ambitious I think. A true fans dream.
If PJ can do this, I'm sure the hip could brush up on say 60 songs for a tour. Not trashing them one bit, I just think that some of ya's have a good point on the lack of variety in setlists.
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First off... isn't this a review thread of the Myrtle Beach show?
Secondly, If all we have to complain about is, what some call, routine setlists; I think we have it pretty good.
These guys go out there, night after night, playing their asses off for us. Be happy that the band we love is still out playing shows.
Thirdly, my memories of a show very rarely involve the setlist. It's all of the fun times leading up to, during, and after the show with friends (new and old) that really make it special for me.
Let's talk about all the good stuff for once.
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laskosean Wrote:chris Wrote:First off... isn't this a review thread of the Myrtle Beach show?
Secondly, If all we have to complain about is, what some call, routine setlists; I think we have it pretty good.
These guys go out there, night after night, playing their asses off for us. Be happy that the band we love is still out playing shows.
Thirdly, my memories of a show very rarely involve the setlist. It's all of the fun times leading up to, during, and after the show with friends (new and old) that really make it special for me.
Let's talk about all the good stuff for once.
Regardless, the shows are not even close to those of the past. I'm not saying that the music isn't great anymore, I'm suggesting that the Hip have slipped into a boring, predictable routine. I'm paying $60 a show in Toronto: the Hip don't have video-monitors, special effects, or any other extras to add to the show. The one thing they did have that made their shows so great (and worth the $60) was their unpredictable nature. Unfortunately, that time is gone, and so is my $60.
My two cents...
$60 to see a show in Toronto is a bargain. Check and see what it costs to see many concerts (or other shows and sporting events) in TO. For myself, its not about the special effects, it's about THE BAND! This is why many of us spend hundreds of dollars to travel and see the Hip in smaller venues (and feel fortunate to have the opportunity to do so). The Hip have certainly matured over the years and so has their music and concerts. IMO they are better than ever and so is their music. My favourite Hip concert is generally the last one that I've seen, because the experience is still fresh.
"They're your blues, we just play 'em"
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This was my first show, and I was completely blown away. Right in front of the band, then got to meet them after the show. All around a great experience.
As for the setlist stuff, the only thing that I can tell the person who posted the 2 night stand from the ACC is that it was a 2 night stand at ACC. If you play more than one night in the same city, I should hope things would be a bit more mixed up.
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Musicians who play similar shows night-in night-out:
N-Sync
Backstreet Boys
Christina Aguilera
Britney Spears
Musicians who change up their sets every night:
Phish
Pearl Jam
Radiohead
DMB
Enough said.
