10 Best Live Shows You've Ever Seen - Page 2

1. Van Halen 2008 Pittsburgh Mellon Arena

2. Kiss 1996 Pittsburgh Civic Arena

3. Motley Crue 2005 Cleveland Quicken Loans Arena

4.Alice Cooper 2010 Johnstown War Memorial He was coheadling with Rob Zombie. Alice blew him off the stage.

5. Rolling Stones 1999 Pittsburgh Mellon Arena

6. Brian Setzer Orchestra. Pittsburgh A.J. Palumbo Center

7. Cinderella 1994 Pittsburgh Metropol

8. Poison/Cinderella/Dokken/Slaughter 2000 Star Lake Ampitheater Pittsburgh

9. Paul Stanley 2006 Palace Theater Greensburg

10 Kiss 1992 Mellon Arena

 

 

Continued...

7. Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, 2006, The Greek Theater, Berkeley, CA. Tom Petty always puts on a good show, Stevie Nicks showed up in the middle of the concert and played a few songs with Tom.

8. Weezer, 2010, The Memories Tour, at the Masonic Center, SF. They played the Blue album the first night, and Pinkerton the next. Amazing.

9. AC/DC, The Black Ice Tour, 2009, at the Oakland Arena. If you have to ask, you'll never know.

10. The Pixies, 2009?, at The Fox Theater, Oakland. They performed Doolittle in it's entirety, plus b sides and their hits.

I could go on like this for a while, good thing we're stopping at 10.

My favorites:

 

1. Jimmy Eat World - Skrappy's - Nov. 8, 2003

2. Muse (w/ Avenged Sevenfold and Joan Jett) - TEP - Nov. 26, 2006

3. Bright Eyes (w/ Arab Strap) - Rialto Theatre - May 13, 2003

4. The Used (w/ Coheed and Cambria)  - Rialto Theatre - Mar. 24, 2003

5. Box Car Racer (w/ The Used) - Rialto Theatre - Oct. 23, 2002

6. Vendetta Red - City Limits - Jul. 16, 2003

7. Authority Zero - Rialto Theatre -Dec. 19, 2007

 

Oh wait, those are the only concerts I've been to.

 

I'm jealous of everyone in this thread.

Rock the Bells was F'n amazing, except for one problem. The Jones Beach venue is dry, so the crowd was completely sober save for the few who snuck in weed. But the artists were lit and kept trying to connect with the crowd, "Are you tore up as much as we are?!". No. I've never jonsed for a beer so hard in my life.

Edited by Diva - 4/10/11 at 9:03am

1. Primus, Beck and Neil Young. Vernon Downs NY.  1997. 
2. Frank Black and the Catholics.  Armory High, Syracuse NY.  2001.

3.. Liz Phair, Spiritualized, Beth Orton, Elliott Smith, Underworld, My Morning Jacket, Beastie Boys, Blur, Bright Eyes and Radiohead.  Field Day, Giants Stadium NJ.  2003.  Loses point for the non-stop rain (which made it more memorable) and the fact that it was a festival at an arena.  But holy shit that line-up.  First time seeing Radiohead, only time I've seen Blur, the Beasties and Elliott Smith.  Unbelievably memorable. 

4. PJ Harvey.  Avalon, Boston MA.  2004. 

5. Dan Deacon and Girl Talk.  The Middle East, Cambridge.  2007. 

6. Pitchfork Festival.  Chicago, 2008.  I know,  I know...another cheat, and Pitchfork no less. But not only did I see a lot of incredible performers (Public Enemy, Sebadoh, Mission to Burma, The Hold Steady, Les Savy Fav, Spoon, Animal Collective, Reatard, King Khan, Atlas Sound, No Age, Cut Copy, Dinosaur Jr, Ghostface, Dirty Projectors, and more) but it sticks out in my mind as an incredible experience I shared with my then girlfriend, now fiance.  It was our first trip together after all.   Plus it was such a great time...

7. Wire.  Middle East, Cambridge.  2009. 

8. TV Smith and Jay Reatard.  Harper's Ferry, Allston MA.  2009. 
9. The Flaming Lips.  BOA Pavilion, Boston MA.  2009. 

10.  Superchunk.  The Royale, Boston.  2010.  

Pink Floyd - 'The Division Bell' tour - HHH Metrodome, MN

- Just a great audio-visual experience.  Our seats were directly across from the main stage on the lower level, giving us a perfect view of everything.  We were also in a sonic sweetspot for the       notoriously shitty sounding metrodome, and it all came through crystal clear for us.  Gilmour was totally ON that night, too.  They were also great on their 'Momentary Lapse of Reason' tour.

Rush - 'Test for Echo' tour - Either the Excel Energy Center or Target Center (can't remember), MN

- I've seen them close to times now, but this was my favorite setlist.  They played '2112' in its entirety.

Yes - 'Talk' tour - Target Center, MN

- Much more playful and energetic than I anticipated.  They gave their all to a fairly sparse crowd.  Trevor Rabin and Chris Squire were both incredible.

Stevie Ray Vaughan & Double Trouble - 'In Step' tour, Riverfiest on Harriet Island, MN

- This was less than a month before he was killed.  He was totally on that night, rocking through every song that you wanted to hear.

G3 - Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and Yngwie Malmsteen - G303, State Theater, MN

-Yngwie got boring after about 5 minutes, but Steve Vai came on and was simply electrifying.  It also helped that he had Billy Sheehan and Tony MacAlpine in his live band.  Satch was third and played every song that I wanted to hear.  Apart from Yngwie, I was in guitar heaven.

Prince - 'Musicology' tour - Excel Energy Center, MN

- We saw him on the third of three sold-out shows.  High energy, fantastic setlist.  His cover of Led Zeppelin's 'Whole Lotta Love' was truly exceptional.  His backing band was really, really tight.

Brian Setzer Orchestra - Christmas tour, 2009 - Mystic Lake Auditorium, MN

- One of the most high-energy shows that I've ever seen.  Great fun, and the acoustics were fantastic.

Dream Theater - 'Scenes From a Memory' tour, leg 1 (I also saw them on leg 2), State Theater, MN

- They played that album in its entirety and then played everything that you wanted to hear.  This was Jordan's first tour with the band, so he got to goof off a bit and inject some rather humorous       moments into the live show.  I've seen them many times, but this was easily my favorite show and setlist.

Robin Trower - Early 2000s, Medina Entertainment Center, MN

- We went there on a lark to see him.  For whatever reason, he was really REALLY on that night...the smiles on his face and on his singer's face told the story: WE'RE ON tonight, so let's deliver       the goods.  Hell of a show.

Bruce Dickinson - 'Accident of Birth' tour - The Cabooze, MN

- He had reunited with Adrian Smith for this album and tour, and they were both having quite a bi of fun with the setlist.  Some cool Maiden songs were in there ('The Prisoner'!).  Great show.

 

Worst concerts:

Queensryche - Excel Energy Center, MN - Opening for Iron Maiden and Rob Halford on Maiden's 'Brave New World' tour.  Simply awful.

Guns N Roses - HHH Metrodome, MN - On tour with Faith No More and Metallica.  After great setlists and performances by FNM and Metallica, GnR came on stage LATE like a wet blanket.

 

I was having enough trouble narrowing down my top ten Springsteen shows, so I decided to limit this to no more than one per artist:

 

Bruce Springsteen- Roxy L.A. '78
The Who- San Diego Sports Arena '71
Richard & Linda Thompson- Great American Music Hall S.F. '82
Prince- Oakland Coliseum '83
Talking Heads- Greek Theatre Berkeley '80
Television- Roxy L.A. '78
The Pogues- Fillmore S.F. '88
Parliament/Funkadelic- Forum L.A. '77
Rolling Stones- San Diego Sports Arena '72
The Clash- San Diego State University '79
Elvis Costello- Hollywood High School '78

 

In no particular order:

 

1. The Wildhearts, Newcastle Mayfair, '95

2. Ween, Ozone Bar, Perth, '97

3. The Darkness, Perth Metro's, 2006

4. Zappa Plays Zappa, Palais Theatre, Melbourne '09

5. Therapy?, Newcastle University, '94

6. Manic Street Preachers, Astoria, London '94

7. Iron Maiden, Burswood Dome, Perth '08

8. Supergrass, Fermantle Metro's, 2001

9. The Wildhearts, Corner Hotel, Melbourne '08

10. Metallica, Wembley Arena '92

Edited by Workyticket - 4/11/11 at 6:55pm

1. Arcade Fire - Alexandra Palace - November 07

2. Green Day - Brixton Acaemy - February 2005

3. REM - Earls Court - June 99

4. Foo Fighters - Wembley Arena - November 02

5. My Morning Jacket - London Astoria - October 06

7. Flaming Lips - Royal Albert Hall - April 06

8. Jimmy Eat World - Roundhouse - February 08

9. Offspring - Wembley Arena - February 04

10. The Killers - V Festival - August 04

 

Been clucking to see Faith No More live for about 20 years, so luck so far...

I hate you guys so so much.

1. NINE INCH NAILS - Southside Music Festival '09

2. THE PRODIGY - Rock am Ring '09

3. NICK CAVE & THE BAD SEEDS - Southside Music Festival '09

4. PRIMUS - St. Louis, USA '04

5. TOOL - Mannheim, GER '07

6. RAMMSTEIN - Dortmund, GER '10

7. KRAFTWERK - Southside Music Festival '09

8. ARCADE FIRE - Lollapalooza '10

9. TITO & TARANTULA - Muehle, CH '10

X. THE CHEMICAL BROTHERS - Coachella '05

 

Bonus: GOGOL BORDELLO / TYPE O NEGATIVE - Rock am Ring '07

Edited by andrewhawkins - 4/11/11 at 3:32pm

1) Arcade Fire - Manchester Central - 11th December 2010 - They played quite a massive venue, but they just created an amazing experience. This was actually the second time I’d seen them, but before they’d been almost openly hostile to the audience, for this one the band was really relaxed. Even Win Butler was fairly easy going.

 

2) Henry Rollins – Leeds Academy – 22nd January 2010 - Hilarious, Rollins spoke for nearly three hours and was never anything less than entertaining. Just a great presence.

 

3) The National – Manchester Academy – 27th November 2010 – The National were phenomenal, but the highlight was perhaps the guy trying desperately to start a fight with me all night.

 

4) The Airborne Toxic Event – Sheffield Leadmill – 6th May 2009 - Wasn't fond of the album, but they made each song work when played live.

 

5) Final Fantasy – The Cockpit – 23rd October 2006 – Amazing, small scale, show from Owen Pallett. Watching him perform was just kind of amazing, especially considering he performs all his songs solo.

 

6) LCD Soundsystem – Leeds Academy – 27th April 2010 – Hurt my ankle before this gig so had to spend the night completely still, amazing set filled with energy.

 

7) 65daysofstatic – The Cockpit – 21st April 2009 – Amazingly intense show.

 

8) The Decemberists – Manchester Academy – 10th March 2011 - Lots and lots of fun, great crowd interaction, fantastic renditions of some of my favourite songs and a generally great atmosphere.

 

9) Yeasayer – The Faversham – 22nd February 2010 - Amazingly funky, amazingly fun.

 

10) The Hidden Cameras – Brudenel Social Club – 23rd March 2010 - Played to a half empty venue, but got everyone dancing. Never seen a band with so much energy.

Honorable mention goes to:

Green Day, 2009, secret show at The Fox Theater, Oakland, CA. I'm not the biggest Green Day fan, but they tore the roof off the place.

Conan O'Brien, 2010, at the Masonic Center, San Francisco, CA. Not technically a concert, but it sure felt like one. Absolutely hilarious.

In kind of/sort of no particular order except for the first few (and only listing a few of the Tool shows I've seen. Honestly those could mostly fill up my top 10, but that's fairly boring):

 

Tool - New Orleans, LA - UNO Lakefront Arena - 6/19/10

Tool - Orlando, FL - Amway Arena - 5/31/07

Bonnaroo 2007 (Tool, The Roots, Flaming Lips, The Police, Sasha & Digweed, The White Stripes, David Cross, Aziz Ansari)

Radiohead - Atlanta, GA - Lakewood Amphitheater - 5/8/08

NIN - Lollapalooza 2008 (also, Radiohead, Battles, Explosions in the Sky, Rage Against the Machine, etc. but NIN was the standout performance for me)

NIN (Wave Goodbye Tour; 3 hour set) - Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom - 8/28/09

311 w/ No Doubt and Shootyz Groove - Pensacola, FL - Bayfront Auditorium  - 5/23/96 *my first real show

Face to Face - New Orleans, LA - House of Blues (can't verify date, was sometime in 97 I think. Possibly 98)

Less Than Jake - Pensacola, FL - The Night Owl - 2/28/97

Tool - Kansas City, MO - Kemper Arena - 9/15/06

 

My tastes are actually pretty varied and I've seen a lot of other amazing shows over the years (I know this list seems very recently loaded), but for various reasons these are all the big standouts.