Erasure At Sound Academy Concert Review: Wear no disguise for me, come into the open.

Us at Erasure

I realize that i've neglected blogging and I do apologize, but life gets in the way and every time I want to sit down to write, something else comes up.

Anyhow, i'll try and recap some highlights of the last few months. Remember how excited I was about going to see Erasure? Well that night was crazy, but in a good way. Sound Academy was jam-packed with fans, everyone from the flamboyant gay men who were dressed up for a night out at Studio 54, to the more subdued groups who sang Erasure songs with true conviction and wore the band former tour t-shirts with pride. You also had a lot of people who fit somewhere in the middle.

The venue itself was basically like a gigantic club. Nothing special, to be honest. Everyone piled in and headed straight for the bar. In the middle was a big sound system area and then towards the front, there was an area sectioned-off for the VIP's and probably close family and friends. They had a few tv screens up towards the doorway and then at the very back, there were some couches and the area where you could buy Erasure memorabilia.

We went right up to the front of the stage, patiently waiting for the concert to begin. It was hot and sticky being squeezed between hundreds of people but I made conversation with a couple near by from MI and it didn't seem so bad. There were also gargoyles on stage, so i was in my glory! However, when the music started blaring out of the speakers (we were right near the speakers) I realized that i'd be deaf by the end of the concert. So, we high-tailed out of that area and found a cozy spot at the very back where I could still see and hear. I was happy to have air to breathe and not be squished like a sandwich, as people rushed the stage like maniacs.

It was a wondeful concert experience going to see Erasure with Bill since he's a total 80's fan, just like I am. I sang along to every Erasure song and we danced till our feet and back ached (minus the few times we sat down because standing for that long - my body was telling me to take a break!)

The playlist was plentyful with all my favourites such as: Always, Sometimes, Drama, Victim of Love, A Little Respect, Chorus, etc...  My emotions were high and yep, I managed to shed some tears! LOL I don't think I can go see a concert and not cry. I don't know, Erasure really holds a special place in my heart and hearing Andy sing and the memories I have with certain songs, it was pretty intense.

Vince looked very dapper in his outfits and showed off his subtle yet still eccentric personality, but as usual, he didn't draw quite as much attention to himself. On the other hand, Andy Bell was a super star! He looked absolutely incredible!! I don't know what vitamins he's been taking, but when he took off his top, he looked like a chiseled God-like being! His fashion sense is always something to be admired and his playfulness and charisma on stage just translated so well with everyone. The encore was awesome with  Oh L'Amour and Stop.

The opening band was FrankMusik. Yep, who? I had no idea who they were at all but once Vincent came up on stage and started singing, WOW...great electropop Brit band! With a mish-mash of 80's songs along with their own music, we were totally impressed with how good they were musically, their unique style and levels of energy!. No I.D. and No Bueno (originally done by Nadia Oh -- why i'll never know because personally after listening to it, she has zero appeal to me as an artist, nor is the song any better, but somehow Vincent turned it into a masterpiece!) were my two favourites and i'm still humming those tunes today.

Thanks to a guy we met named Shaun, he took our photo. So all hot and sweaty, we managed a great photo together!