April 21, 2012
Review by Fabio Augusto Silva
This was my first Dylan concert ever. When he was here in São Paulo in 2008
I was a little short on cash. This time, however, even with ticket prices still
outrageous, I couldn't pass up. I know Brazil is finally starting to be included in
world tours from lots of artists, but who knows when Dylan would be back?
Besides the guy just turned 70. I used to listen to a lot of concert tapes in
the early 00's but since then, apart from the occasional Youtube video, I
haven't really been listening to his shows. I knew his voice is shot to hell and
that the band was pretty great. After the show I can say that my expectations
were met, as his voice is indeed pretty rough but his band is excellent! I dig
blues based rock and this band can really play that, not to mention a little bit
of country in the accoustic numbers. I also thought Bob's keyboard playing
was pretty good, and his harp play was a personal highlight.
The Credicard Hall venue has great accoustics, so even though I was pretty
far from stage I could hear it all loud and clear. Unfortunately it's an all seat
venue so most people stay seated during the show. The crowd however was
pretty excited throughout the show and I think Bob sensed that, as he was
moving nonstop on keyboards and on center stage, bending his knees when
playing the guitar and harp, waving his hands, and overall he seemed to be
excited. I think that reflected on his vocals too, as he was growling and
shouting quite a bit in most songs. A little rough for the ears of casual fans,
but for me it was a sign he was really into it.
Personal highlights: Don't Think Twice was quite lovely; Tangled Up in Blue is
a personal favorite and it was one of the songs I wanted to hear live, this is a
good version though I prefer the early 00s ones; Beyond Here Lies Nothing
sounds pretty damn good without the accordion; Make You Feel My Love was a
great surprise, I think he rarely plays that all... maybe he's been hearing Adele
and wants to claim the song back? Every Grain of Sand is one of his most
beautiful songs and great to hear, even though it was pretty hard to understand
him; during The Levee's Gonna Break the band went into a certaing groove, led
by Bob's keyboard, that got the crowd clapping in rhythm, the band really got
into it and was one of the most applauded numbers; I was really happy to hear
Love Sick, this song is always a live highlight for me; and finally the highlight of
the show for me, and the crowd, was Ballad of a Thin Man, Bob was really into
the vocals (with a strange but effective ech o) and into his harp playing.
Blowin' in the Wind was a lovely surprise encore. Now let's wait and see what
he comes up for tomorrow's show! Also pretty excited to see what his
supposed next album is gonna sound like.
Fabio Augusto Silva
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