Homeland in Dublin, Ireland, September 28th and 29th 2007
By Gerald Morly
The stage was black with a few lit electric light bulbs dangling down on long flexes precariously close to the stage floor and the performers. Spread across the stage were lots and lots of little candles, in a river like pattern, all burning and causing smoke to swirl up through the occasional beams of light from the spotlights.
From stage left there was a low keyboard setup (Peter Scherer), a guitar stand (Doug Wieselman), a larger higher keyboard setup (Laurie) and a cello stand (Okkyung Lee). Laurie walks onto the stage to enthusiastic applause and the performance begins...
Picture Courtesy of Gerald Morley.
Song List
(The songs have been named after a line or phrase in the song or colour cue, except for the Encore)
- Lark's Song
- Bad Guy
- Mouse in a Trap (twisting)
- Only an Expert
- Maybe I Fall
- Forgive Me (Rock and Stone)
- Lady / Whore
- Yellow Themed Instrumental (Yellow light)
- Big Billboard (Underwear Gods)
- I Am Surrounded by Ghosts (Father with Diamond Eyes)
- Girl Enlists - Big Machines
- Strange Perfume
- Money / Numbers
- Performers Introducted
- Embody the Spirit in Motion
- Sky
- Snowflys Are Out
- She Pretends (Lost Art of Conversation)
- In the Event of Evaluate (Gun in the handbag)
Encore:
- Let X = X
Laurie and Band Musicians take a bow after the performance.
Picture Courtesy of Gerald Morley.
Review
I saw the Homeland show on 2 consecutive nights at the Olympia Theatre, Dublin. The first night I was seated in the middle of the front row and thought that the sound quality was not great. Though on the up side my view was dominated by Laurie straight in front of me and it felt as if I was the focus of her performance. The songs were accompanied by striking light changes, which made the stage expand and contract to suit the songs.
On the first night the audience was in a boisterous mood and laughed heartily when they got the jokes. Although the show contained many new songs, which were heartily applauded, the Encore got the loudest as if welcoming the return of an old friend. The only disadvantage was that my vantage point made it difficult to view and appreciate the other musicians' contributions.
On the second night I was seated further back (9 row), which helped improve my perception of the sound quality greatly. My view was expanded and I could see what the other musicians were doing and how they added to the performance. The crowd this time were a little more subdued than the previous night and weren't as vocal with their appreciation of Laurie's humorous remarks. They did however show their appreciation with their loud applause at the end of each piece.
My only real complaint was that the Let X=X went a bit wrong somewhere along the line and this marred a great song. Perhaps Laurie could have chosen something else from her repertoire for the encore and made the night a bit more special!
Gerald
PS. As I live in the North of Ireland (Ulster), it was a bit shame that the Ulster Bank, which sponsored the shows, couldn't have brought it to Belfast to let some of the people there appreciate an artiste of Laurie's calibre. The Waterfront could easily accommodate the stage set and held more people than the Olympia Theatre without the addition of the sticky floor and the occasional broken seat!
Thank you lots, Gerald, for your personal impressions, setlist and pictures!
