Suede @ Paradise Boston, 17-18 May 1997
A recollection of the weekend by Suede fan Sean Drinkwater:
So, I was really into Coming Up when it came out. I was really into the new lineup and was psyched that they had the most Suede person of all time, Neil Codling, in the band. I liked the tasteful synth/atmosphere stuff on the third record and was really looking forward to seeing the band at what I would have called âfull power.â
I had seen the Dog Man Star show at Axis a couple years earlier, and while it was a good show (very crazy energy), as a musician I was strangely nervous as they had a new guitarist and hadnât been together that long. Plus Brett was injured which made it a little weird too. Plus, much jostling.
Anyhow, I was really looking forward to the Coming Up tour as I thought it would be a real triumph as I loved that record and knew theyâd be prepared. The first show was on a Saturday and the audience seemed a little off to me. I actually got to speak with Richard Oakes for a bit during the Longpigs set, which was a treat, obviously (heâs a badass guitarist, if anyone is unsure about that). He seemed in good/polite spirits, but when the band took the stage their energy was odd and the crowd kind of reflected that. I donât know if there was internal weirdness or what. It was a good setlist, not super-long, maybe a little light on the first record, and afterwards I was glad we were going to go the next night because I had hoped it would somehow be a little bit better.
When we arrived at the Paradise on Sunday everyone seemed to already know about the gear. I donât remember who told me, but it was a bummer, obviously. At least they didnât cancel. Maybe there was a sign?
I donât remember seeing the Longpigs on the second night but I think they played (I guess they lost their gear too?). Suede came out to a different set order than the night before with borrowed instruments, most of them acoustic. They seemed apologetic and bummed as well, but then they got on with it and it became great very quickly. Three or four b-sides, and they chose the rest of the set very carefully given the format (theyâd only been able to rehearse briefly, I think Brett mentioned).
The mood was a lot better. They sounded pretty damn rehearsed to the point where I wondered for a second if it was all a big scam/joke. They did âMy Dark Starâ which is a favorite and âSound of the Streetsâ and a couple other more obscure tunes and the feeling of it was just incredible. It was also a bit short, but they were forgiven this time as it wasnât exactly in their control.
It was just a perfect 75-ish minutes of music.
After performing two nights at New Yorkâs Supper Club on May 14 and 15, Suede came up to Boston for two dates at the Paradise Rock Club on Commonwealth Avenue, May 17 and 18.
After a sold-out show on Saturday, May 17, their gear was stolen. Only one piece of gear was ever recovered:
The theft forced the band to play the second of their two shows, on May 18, acoustically, and the result was magic: a 13-song performance of at-the-time current hits, b-sides (âMy Dark Star,â âSound Of The Streets,â âAnother No Oneâ) and album cuts (âThe 2 Of Usâ), all stripped down and more intimate as ever.
By Michael O'Connor Marotta. Full article available here. Published on Vanyaland on May 17, 2014.
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