In short, no. Gotye’s popularity has exploded over the past 6 months. So much so that on his first trip to Chicago he sold out Park West and the Riv so fast that he was actually moved to the Aragon Ballroom. And even finding tickets to the Aragon were difficult if you waited too long.
I’ve been excited to see Gotye for a couple months. I know I will have a chance to see him at Coachella next week, but I really couldn’t wait to see this talented act. This was my first trip to the Aragon. Honestly, it is a beautiful venue. Even standing close to the back I was able to see the entire stage without a problem. So this was my first time seeing Gotye and my first time at the Aragon … what I thought would be the beginning of an epic night.
The place was pretty packed. People packed the balcony and overflowed the dance floor. When the band came out on stage the place blew up for a minute. But only a minute. After the first couple songs I realized that the majority of the crowd didn’t recognize the songs that were being played. As I was dancing and singing along to great tracks like ‘Save Me’ and ‘State of the Art’ I noticed that the crowd was fairly stagnant. I really didn’t see too many people even taking pictures or video until ‘Someone that I Used to Know’ was played. Then half the crowd raised their phone above their heads.
Now don’t get me wrong, I go to plenty of shows of artists that I have never heard of before. So I don’t want to make it sound that I’m ragging on the fans that went to show just to see someone new. But the fact that on his first time through Chicago, Gotye was able to sell out the Aragon when the majority of the people that went didn’t know more than one song bugged me.
I don’t blame Gotye for this. His show was amazing. They had a very Gorillaz-esque video show going in the background. Also, I never realized how much percussion drove his act. It seemed like each band member at one time or another was playing on some sort of drums. Even if I had never heard of Gotye before, I would have still been jacked to be at this show. And even though I just saw them, I will be draggin as many people as I can to see Gotye at Coachella.
I’m scared, fukenny. It’s that rat circus out there, I’m beginning to enjoy it. Look, any longer out on that road and I’m one of them, a terminal psychotic, except that I’ve got this bronze badge that says that I’m one of the good guys. You can follow fukenny on Twitter.
4 comments
Scott Hames says:
Apr 5, 2012
Do people really pay that much money to go see a artist nowadays without even listening to the entire album? I’ve seen this more and more recently. I say, I have to blame the way music distribution has evolved. No longer do you have to buy an entire CD to get the song you like. Services like Rhapsody, iTunes and Spotify allow you to just grab that track you heard on the Radio and listen to it until you’re blue in the face. I personally can’t see going to a show based on one song….but that’s just me.
fukenny says:
Apr 5, 2012
Thats a great point Scott. The way music services are set up do lend themselves to just featuring an artists big hit. One of my favorite things back in the day was listening to a cd to find the hidden awesome tracks that didn’t make the radio. I think its great that people are getting out to see shows, but I would be willing to bet they would enjoy them a ton more if they actually listened to the artist they were going to see.
Gail says:
Apr 6, 2012
Maybe it’s just Chicago. I saw Gotye and Kimbra at the Tower here in Philly on the 23rd. Likewise, the intial venue was upgraded and sold out.
The crowd was up on it’s feet and jamming throughout the entire show (I was up in the balcony and could see the masses below) and the energy was infectious. I didn’t see people leaving after “Somebody” played, either, like I’ve been reading in some other reviews.
fukenny says:
Apr 6, 2012
Thanks for your comment. Sadly we didn’t get that kind of energy this time. Everyone did stick out to the end though. I guess that was a little surprising with how disinterested everyone seemed. Hopefully next week at Coachella we get the kind of crowd you had in Philly.