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We've had a best gigs of each year thread - now how about the worst ones? Could be the setlist, could be the atmosphere at the gig (though I guess only those who were at them can comment on this), could be the performance.
As Delia Smith would say "let's be avin you!"
Don't get me started ... 
Oh, alright, Coachella, Chicago and New York from last year. No atmosphere whatsoever, bar the song of the same name.
Melbourne Big Day Out, 2002. Watching a lone loon get chucked out for basically doing a v.bad Hooky impression and for shouting out between songs. And this was down the front. In a venue holding 55,000 people. The people around us actually cheered when he got lifted from the front. S c u m.
Worst ever though, Vancouver 2001. Shit venue, shit crowd, shit performance, no ale. And it rained. So much for a fcuking 'dry-gig'. Only plus-point was they came on at 4.30 or something so we could have a decent night in town afterwards.
Worst atmosphere in this country MEN 98 (boy, am I not looking forward to MEN 06!), and worst venue Wembley (seats to contain the fans and a band who were both surely at their ultimate zenith).
Gotta be 2001 koln/cologne gig for me,the robster support.
I had a particular opinion on our german friends,and i was proved right,they dont know how to have a good time!
I think Barney picked up on the vibe of the german crowd when he asked if they were into " marching music" 
As many of you will no doubt know, I have this unfortunate tendency to get shitfaced at gigs, so am probably not in all that good a position to talk about gigs from an audience perspective. Even the worst performances sometimes become fabulous after a shedload of Stellas!
Some bad ones though:
Swansea 85 Warrington 86 Edinburgh 86 Hacienda 87 Wembley 87 G-Mex 88 NEC 89 Finsbury Park 02 (or am I being unkind?)
some awful performances as evidenced by the recordings:
Newcastle 82 Kilburn 82 (though this was actually a great gig!) Atlanta 85 half the US 86 tour
oldmonkey wrote: As many of you will no doubt know, I have this unfortunate tendency to get shitfaced at gigs, so am probably not in all that good a position to talk about gigs from an audience perspective. Even the worst performances sometimes become fabulous after a shedload of Stellas!
Some bad ones though:
Swansea 85 Warrington 86 Edinburgh 86 Hacienda 87 Wembley 87 G-Mex 88 NEC 89 Finsbury Park 02 (or am I being unkind?)
some awful performances as evidenced by the recordings:
Newcastle 82 Kilburn 82 (though this was actually a great gig!) Atlanta 85 half the US 86 tour
Newcastle Mayfair March 82? You're joking?! LMA was worth the entrance money alone, imho...
Steve Lea wrote:
oldmonkey wrote: As many of you will no doubt know, I have this unfortunate tendency to get shitfaced at gigs, so am probably not in all that good a position to talk about gigs from an audience perspective. Even the worst performances sometimes become fabulous after a shedload of Stellas!
Some bad ones though:
Swansea 85 Warrington 86 Edinburgh 86 Hacienda 87 Wembley 87 G-Mex 88 NEC 89 Finsbury Park 02 (or am I being unkind?)
some awful performances as evidenced by the recordings:
Newcastle 82 Kilburn 82 (though this was actually a great gig!) Atlanta 85 half the US 86 tour
Newcastle Mayfair March 82? You're joking?! LMA was worth the entrance money alone, imho...
Well it was new I suppose, but a mess like the rest of the gig!
digital mike binoche wrote: Have to agree Wembley 87 was shite and fucking cold coming back
You were lucky.We had to sleep on Euston station
Mine was Warrington '86. I was that pissed I thought the support act were New Order so was the only one moshing, and spent the real New Order gig face down in a hedge.
And by all accounts I just missed out on a kicking from Blackburn yoof.
Vodka 
:(
Done that before Johnny, then 4:30am (stop at every station on the Planet)train back to Brum - Bummer 
Never been to a BAD New order concert!Does this mean i have LOW standards or have you lot got HIGH standards.Maybe it is because i don't do the OFFSHORE gigs.They would NEVER issue me another PASSPORT. TAGGED and GAGGED :D
Personally I didn't have high hopes before the Coachella gig, especially with all of the NIN fans about. Guess that makes the Oakland show the best of the US jaunt then, by default.
Portland in 89 was a good solid show, good audience appreciation for the band, quite unlike Oakland in 85, which had a nice performance wasted on a lackluster crowd.
There's been a few shambles over the years
Luckily enough, I havnae been to any, been disappointed with the same set lists, but not really performances.
Edinburgh 86 was fuckin awful, and that was even touched upon by the band the night after in Glasgow....they blamed the crowd :D
The second set at the Hac (3-12-85) was very lacklustre as well, but if you listen to the first set you will be blown away.
That'll do for now.
Barney Army wrote: Mine was Warrington '86. I was that pissed I thought the support act were New Order so was the only one moshing, and spent the real New Order gig face down in a hedge.
And by all accounts I just missed out on a kicking from Blackburn yoof.
Vodka
:(
Spent much of the gig scrappin' then retired completely fucked after Blue Monday. Thinking there was no encore, can't remember if the lights came on or not, we got off and missed the debut of Shellshock!
the worst gig that I attended was Brixton Academy in Dec 83, Barney was completely out of it and along with his petulant outbursts and abuse of Gillian the following night at Bournemouth, spelled the end of New Order for me (at least until their emergence at Bradford the following March).
I can't comment with the wealth of gigging experience that others here can but I thought the 1998 Temptation NYE gig at Alexander Palace was a bit of a mess? The whole Bez gurning through Blue Monday and a few forgettable renditions earned it my lowest marks. But I was fairly trolleyed so perhaps somone else can set the record straight?
:\pimp3:
Solitude wrote: the worst gig that I attended was Brixton Academy in Dec 83, Barney was completely out of it and along with his petulant outbursts and abuse of Gillian the following night at Bournemouth, spelled the end of New Order for me (at least until their emergence at Bradford the following March).
Sounds Fantastic! Bet Mike will agree as well. 
Solitude wrote: 'piss off back to England if you don't like it' - Quote from helpful Adelaide Brits forum
Are those inbreds giving you a hard time over there, Sol?
For shame.
:\pimp3:
I was fairly bored by the 1993 tour. All that publicity and we got ONE mainland gig. And all the setlists were the fucking SAME except for one performance of 'Special'. It was all getting routine, sob.
[orange]depthcharge[/orange] wrote:
Solitude wrote: 'piss off back to England if you don't like it' - Quote from helpful Adelaide Brits forum
Are those inbreds giving you a hard time over there, Sol?
For shame.
:\pimp3:
nah, it's not the inbreds but the fcukin' Brits who do not appreciate anyone who do not share their same blinkered view of (b)adelaide as some kind of paradise (they must have have had it really bad in the UK). I have long since avoided the web-site as it is crowded with Stepford Wifes!
back on topic for a moment - the other crap gig was Margate Winter Gardens in 84, pity as that was part of an otherwise excellent mini tour but they didn't seem very inspired that night.
oldmonkey wrote: Ah yes, forgot about Margate. Or at least tried to.
I was at Gloucester the night before and Chippenham a couple of days later and I just remember Face Up being the second song at both of them and what a bloody relief it was to get that out of the way! (Dodgy vocals, even on the studio take...)
That was one of the better songs at both those two gigs though! I rather liked the embryonic Face Up, far better than the flat thing they churned out after Low Life was recorded, anyway.
That whole August 84 tour was a tremendous experience, the likes of which we will never see again, for sure. More's the pity.
new york was great if only because it was new order. otherwise the salt pillars standing around really pissed me off. especially that fuckhead i was standing near (no, it's not who you think). he became very irate at our pogoing and told us to go elsewhere. he would've been better off at lincoln center or carnegie hall than the hammerstein ballroom.
AgentWood wrote: new york was great if only because it was new order. otherwise the salt pillars standing around really pissed me off. especially that fuckhead i was standing near (no, it's not who you think). he became very irate at our pogoing and told us to go elsewhere. he would've been better off at lincoln center or carnegie hall than the hammerstein ballroom.
After all the griping about ticket prices you'd think a few more people would've been up for getting their moneys worth? S novom godom agent wood
Liverpool Royal Court was horrible....freezing cold and a gig and night that I had been looking forward to for ages.
Sheffield City Hall was shite...and so were the band
Bradford St Georges was equally as nasty.
As lots of people mention Wembley was bad...Didnt like the NEC but the setlist was better than London.
Moan,moan,moan !!!:(
Paul Trowell wrote: Liverpool Royal Court was horrible....freezing cold and a gig and night that I had been looking forward to for ages.
Sheffield City Hall was shite...and so were the band
Bradford St Georges was equally as nasty.
As lots of people mention Wembley was bad...Didnt like the NEC but the setlist was better than London.
Moan,moan,moan !!!:(
Not a lot to argue with here though I enjoyed the royal court, short,sweet and JD tune in the days when it was a rarity! City Hall dire, bradford mediocre but saving grace I could walk home.Wembley,wembley,wembley we've all been there.
I didn't care for '87 Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre show. It was a bit predictable because they basically played Substance in order! They played a few JD songs for the encore though.
I suppose everyone has their own take on things, but:
Wembley - I thoroughly enjoyed (perhaps because my brother managed to get tickets in the second row in front of the stage, slap bang in the middle)
Alexandra Palace - I loved the gig until that Happy Mondays cnut got up and spoiled it - the journey home on the night bus wasn't too good either - a 60 year old vegetarian lesbian in an orange jumpsuit puking lentils and alcohol all over the bus and the other passengers... at 4am and I remember thinking if she puked again I'd do the same. The g/f at the time complaining like fcuk and getting home (eventually) around 8am.
At least I saw New Order again...
Chris Nash wrote: I suppose everyone has their own take on things, but:
Wembley - I thoroughly enjoyed (perhaps because my brother managed to get tickets in the second row in front of the stage, slap bang in the middle)
Alexandra Palace - I loved the gig until that Happy Mondays cnut got up and spoiled it - the journey home on the night bus wasn't too good either - a 60 year old vegetarian lesbian in an orange jumpsuit puking lentils and alcohol all over the bus and the other passengers... at 4am and I remember thinking if she puked again I'd do the same. The g/f at the time complaining like fcuk and getting home (eventually) around 8am.
At least I saw New Order again...
I didn't know MIKE was on the bus.And it is a SHIRT!
Newcastle Mayfair 1986. Geordies throwing pints off the balcony, pretty poor performance.
Dublin 1993 (only saving grace about the gig was they were back, just wish we had NOOL back then, I spent all day on a solitary pub crawl around Dublin - leathered).
NEC 1989, just didn't match the previous night.
oldmonkey wrote: That was one of the better songs at both those two gigs though! I rather liked the embryonic Face Up, far better than the flat thing they churned out after Low Life was recorded, anyway.
That whole August 84 tour was a tremendous experience, the likes of which we will never see again, for sure. More's the pity.
Tim, did you go to all of the 'tour'?,guess you did. I only managed three dates doh!
Margate/Chippenham : playing Chosen Time and Senses back to back at both gigs struck me as being lazy (different set lists please!).
Brighton 86, another boring gig.
NEC 1989, just didn't match the previous night.
The SECC was better, though I lost me shoe when they opened with Mr Disco.
Montpellier(France)89 wasn't a very good one.Maybe the worst gig i've ever seen...It was a little bit strange for the fan i was since 1980 and for my first"physical" meeting with the group...U can read it in my review on WIM
Diggy Mike wrote: I don't visit the Darkside ( World in Motion )
why ?
u should take a walk on the dark side, too
Chris Nash wrote: a 60 year old vegetarian lesbian in an orange jumpsuit puking lentils and alcohol all over the bus and the other passengers
i'm impressed you got a close enough look to see what, exactly, she'd been eating that day.
Solitude wrote:
oldmonkey wrote: That was one of the better songs at both those two gigs though! I rather liked the embryonic Face Up, far better than the flat thing they churned out after Low Life was recorded, anyway.
That whole August 84 tour was a tremendous experience, the likes of which we will never see again, for sure. More's the pity.
Tim, did you go to all of the 'tour'?,guess you did. I only managed three dates doh!
Margate/Chippenham : playing Chosen Time and Senses back to back at both gigs struck me as being lazy (different set lists please!).
Still got the poster for that tour - '3.50 all concerts except Chippenham 4 quid' it says. The extra 50p would be for the drum solo before Age of Consent while they were figuring out why the bass wasnt working probably...! Never figured out why they played Gloucester then Margate the next night then back over for Chippenham a couple of days later. They were good in retrospect - Sunrise was up and running and Sooner Than You Think too with better lyrics than the studio go - gave me a bit of faith there was life after Confusion.
For me, the worst gig was DUBLIN during the Crystal tour when they supported Chilli Peppers. What a bollocks day that was. No one liked them and we were all fucking fenced out with those stupid steel stadium barrier nonsense.. Cologne supporting Williams was excellent for me as I think I was one of the few NOOLs down the very front going mental with all the Robbie fans looking at me as if I had 3 heads. NYE Ali Pali was brilliant for all the Heart & Soul and countdown to transmission but the biggest downer was A.....it is miles from anywhere but Al's house and B. you COULD NOT get near the bar. It was about 12 deep. Absolute shambles.
:bag:
Doggy wrote: For me, the worst gig was DUBLIN during the Crystal tour when they supported Chilli Peppers.
I knew you were gonna say that as saw as I saw your name appear!! Yeah, shit gig indeed, but thought day out was a larf all round. Worth it just for Glas Vegas jetting in from Scotland only to decide he couldn't even be arsed going to the gig, and stopped in Temple Bar drinking instead!
Unfortunately, I've never been to a NO gig. The last time they came to Colorado was '89 w/ Sugarcubes & PIL. I was in junior high school w/ some older friends who were going. I asked my parents if I could go. They wouldn't let me because it was a school night.
i have only been to three NO gigs, and they were all great. i have a few dogy ones on disk, but i am sure i would have enjoyed them just for the experience.
MENA 98 was the worst I've seen, but the last night in Brixton (the one with the drunk wanker shouting and punching people who then collapsed unconscious in the pit) was fairly blah.
MENA 98 felt like them saying "Well, the Apollo was great, let's do it again in a big place", and it didn't quite work.
Wembley 87 and GMEX 88
You're having the proverbial tin bath here aren't you? First up: went with a long-time Orderite mate from Bradford and had a corking night. Right across from me on the other side of the arena was the bloke I only ever saw when they played Temptation. God only knows what he did during the rest of their sets because he only became apparent during Temptation, which was partly down to him being stripped to the waist during it and giving it loads. Tout outside was offering tickets for "Warsaw". It was the first time I'd heard them play LWTUA live. Magnificent and even better than the Albert Hall the previous year.
Following year: living in Leeds, picked up aforementioned Bradfordian and drove the M62 in a thick blizzard with only one wiper working. Top gig with the Mondays and ACR on the bill. Lasers, brilliant setlist and the sequencer even worked for Fine Time, the current single. Happy fucking Christmas!
