Day 132: Massive Attack.

I did a bit of a stupid thing and bought tickets to two concerts for the same night. One was The Pixies, the other was Massive Attack. After much flickering indecision, I elected to attend Massive Attack on account of the fact that it was at the Sydney Opera House and that I saw The Pixies last time they were in town. And it was a rad show. Peopled mainly with thirty to even forty somethings, it was in one sense a vivid musical jolt into the days of my youth (you know you're getting on when you first heard a band's song 18 years ago), but in another it was an awesome comment on right now. For one thing, their latest offering of tunes are just as cool as some of their more legendary tracks of old. But in addition, they managed to use a dazzling display of light and technology to send a potent brew of messages to the crowd; Massive Attack have grown political in their old age. Or were they always, and was I just too young and dumb to notice? Anyway, using a totally cool light board at the back of the stage, they displayed a far reaching array of statements, facts and visuals that both entertained and educated their fans. And it made the music more meaningful. Finding out how much it costs to fund a kids' HIV clinic in Ghana versus how much a UK MP spends in a week on towels brought new meaning to songs like Karma Coma for example. Clever lads. The general vibe of the whole gig was really cool too. Probably owing to the older demographic, there was no moshing, or sloshing of beer for that matter, which was great. Just appreciative group laughs at 3D's topical jokes, clapping, and a bit of embarrassingly old school hippy raver dancing. And the setting was kind of amazing, with the stage sitting under a sheer cliff of rock, facing the crowd perched on the steps of the Opera House with its impressive peaked curves looming above. Wow right? Oh, and there were probably crowds of eligible males there in about the right age group for a girl like me. Only no-one was interested in eyeing anyone up, we were all too busy gazing at the stage.