Chaos and Noise: Castle Rock

Besides the obvious magical allure of Scotland, the deciding factor in our quick return to that wonderful place was the Arcade Fire concert at Edinburgh Castle. And, on September 1st, the time had finally come for the show. Now, faithful readers already know of our love for Arcade Fire's music, and you know that we saw them in April in Utah. The anticipation level was extremely high!

On the day of the show, we cruised up by the Castle to check out the scene, and see if it would be ok for me to bring in a camera (Yes). Here is Karen in the Esplanade with the stage being set up behind her:



A bit closer to the stage. All of these people are getting the place ready for us!



In case you can't make it out, the tape on the one case below says 'REGINE ACCORDION' and 'F---ING FRAGILE':



Going on a walkabout described in the previous post, we passed the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT VEHICLE IN EDINBURGH. That's right, it is the beer truck. The one dude rolls the kegs down the sidewalk to the other dude, who keeps them from rolling all the way down the Royal Mile. We were relieved and happy to know there would be plenty of good ale in town for the evening.



After a quick supper of bangers and mash at Mum's, it was time to head for the show.

Karen, ready to go:



A couple of Arcade Fire fans, ready to rock:



Several weeks before the show, it was announced that the Walkmen would be opening act for the night. These guys have put out a bunch of music that I have liked, and I really looked forward to hearing them play live. Apparently, I was the only one there who was excited. The Walkmen played a very lackluster, lifeless set to a crowd that might have listened if the band had given them a reason. But they never projected any energy at all, and the crowd reacted as you would expect. The band never announced who they were, or who any of the individual members were. Even I was running out of patience before they finally left the stage.

A bit of a digression, concerning opening acts: Over the years, I've had the great pleasure of seeing a lot of concerts, some with openers, and some without. And some have been good, and some, um, not so good. We saw Kings of Leon open for U2, and they came out and tore through a solid set that pleased the crowd. Ben Folds opened for John Mayer a few years ago, and blew him off the stage. On the same night, Brett Dennan opened for both of the aforementioned, and he won over a bunch of new fans. Hardly anyone goes to a show for the opening act, but that does not excuse those openers if they come out and play a lazy set that looks like they were only there for the money. How many people at that U2 show even had a clue who Kings of Leon were? Years ago, I saw Procol Harum open for Mountain. Talk about two groups with different fan bases! But did Procol Harum just mail it in? No. They were great, playing their music with passion and energy, and the audience appreciated it.

So, the Walkmen were a real disappointment, but, if given the chance, I will give them another opportunity to win me over. I still like their music. We just happened to be there on a very off night for them.

The Walkmen finished while it was still light, but daylight was fading. While the stage was being re-set, the Castle people lit up a bunch of gas lanterns around the rim of the outer wall, which was very cool.

And then, finally, the lights went down, and it was time for Arcade Fire! Instantly, from the first chords of 'Ready To Start', the mood of the place changed. Energy level was over the top, from the band and the crowd. At the end of the first song, Win Butler announced that everyone in the seated area (that was us) needed to stand up, dance and keep warm! And we did, and it was great! This is what it looked like from our seats:



And, the band:



It still gives me goose bumps to look at this picture:



I was not expecting the sound to be all that good, it being outdoors, in a venue not made for concerts. But the sound was really quite good. We could hear clearly, and loudly!

Here is the setlist:

1. Ready to Start
2. Keep the Car Running
3. No Cars Go
4. Haïti
5. Rococo
6. Speaking in Tongues
7. Intervention
8. Suburban War
9. Wake Up
10. Neighborhood #2 (Laika)
11. The Suburbs
12. The Suburbs (Continued)
13. Month of May
14. Neighborhood #1 (Tunnels)
15. We Used to Wait
16. Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains)
17. Encore:
17. Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)
18. Rebellion (Lies)

Personally, I would not have changed anything on the list. The show had a great flow, the slow numbers did not diminish the energy of the crowd or the band, and it was just amazing from start to finish. The band was clearly excited by the venue, and the crowd. At one point, Win said, 'This is definitely the most secure venue we've ever been in,' and later, he said that when the band first saw the date on their calendar, they figured the Castle was some place in a mall on the edge of town, not, as he put it, 'a real, f-ing castle!'

I've seen Arcade Fire live one time before, and also several times on tv and the internet, and I know that one of the real highlights of some of their shows is when they combine 'Neighborhood #3 (Power Out)' back to back with 'Rebellion (Lies)'. I told Karen before the show (apparently several times!) that I did not want to seem greedy, but I sure wished they would do that at the Castle, and they did! Wish granted! They finish 'Power Out' in an avalanche of noise, and out of that noise comes the opening notes of 'Lies'. Goose bump time again...



As the band hit the final chords of 'Lies', the cannons on top of the castle, about 15 or 20 of them, all blasted off. It was an amazing finish to an amazing show! It is hard to compare concerts over the years, but this was most definitely the most amazing concert experience I have ever had. Several times during the show, most especially during 'Wake Up', I looked at Karen rockin' away, and it made me feel so good, and then I looked at the stage, and I felt, "I can't believe we are here, in Scotland, watching Arcade Fire", and then my eyes would pan up to the Castle, and it was "HOLY SHIT, THIS IS INCREDIBLY, UNBELIEVABLY AMAZING!!"

It seems almost a dream. It was that good.

After, we stopped at the Bow Bar, and it was packed with happy concert people, and we joined all of our new best friends for an ale:



This is Karen, happy:




And, one short snippet of 'No Cars Go'. Sorry it isn't longer, but who wants to hold a camera up when there is rockin' to be done!?!





Next up, we head out of the city for some Scottish island time.