A few weeks ago, when it was announced that George Michael’s Perth concert had been moved from M.E. Bank Stadium to The Burswood Dome, you could almost hear the collective groan from the 15,000 or so people who had already purchased their tickets, thinking they were in for one of those magical Perth outdoor gigs at a venue that has proved itself over and over again as a brilliant place to see and hear a performance. I’ve seen some amazing shows at M.E. Bank Stadium over the last couple of years. The Police were probably the best, closely followed by Pearl Jam’s show last November. The Who, Eric Clapton, Fleetwood Mac, Roger Waters, Billy Joel… All incredible shows, all outdoors. Pity they switched venues, ‘cos it was such a beautiful night outside last night.
As any Perth concert-goer will tell you, the Burswood Dome is the worst concert venue in Perth, and possibly the world. Especially in February. I guess that’s why no refunds were offered: The promoters must have quite rightly guessed that half of their punters would demand their money back the moment the change of venue was announced.
The whole thing was badly handled from the start. Everyone had to go to one of just three outlets in Perth to exchange their old ticket for a new one before the show, and those who didn’t get their tickets swapped in advance had to queue up for hours yesterday to get into the Dome. I’m told that’s why George Michael’s show started late, and of course due to the infamous Burswood Dome Curfew it still had to finish on time.
How very Perth. For Christ’s sake, It’s SATURDAY NIGHT! Surely a bit of music belting out of the Dome for an extra fifteen minutes or so wouldn’t have made the sky collapse. I’ve always been amazed by people who choose to live in an area near a stadium and then complain about the noise. It’s a big country, go and find somewhere else to live and let the rest of us enjoy the show! Furthermore, if there was a fine to be paid for George Michael doing a second encore, the promoter should have paid it. I think it’s the least they could have done to make up for the inconvenience of the ticketing fiasco.
There are a couple of other things about the George Michael concert experience which have left me flummoxed. Has anyone else ever seen a performer do an entire concert without thanking or introducing his band? I haven’t, well, until last night.
Another thing I have never seen before is a stadium performer taking a twenty-minute break in the middle of a show. I thought that stuff was only supposed to happen in theatrical productions and rugby league games. What little momentum had been built up had disappeared completely by the time George returned, and what exactly were they thinking the punters could do during that twenty minutes? Grab a beer and get back to your seat in time? At the Dome? Good luck!
It wasn’t all bad though, not by a long shot. George Michael’s voice was superb, and you could tell that he really was singing live all night. The band were tight, the graphics were amazing (especially during “Outside”) and George did his level best to rev up the lethargic Perth crowd, although his habit of holding the microphone out for the audience to sing the words became very annoying after a short space of time. (I’m one of those punters who always thinks to himself, “It’s your job to sing, mate, not ours!”)
The biggest problem with the show itself (forgetting the horrendous venue and the ticketing clusterfuck for just a moment) was the setlist. I don’t know if George is taking advice from anyone about what songs he should and shouldn’t be including in his set, and more importantly the order in which they should be played, but it’s about time he did take some advice on this matter, and I therefore offer the following, free of charge: Start with I Want Your Sex, drop the cover versions, and finish with Freedom ‘90. Replace one of the ballads with Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go (not my favourite Wham! tune, but it would have made the place erupt) and if the show starts late, please, George, if you would be so kind, be a little bit adaptable and cut your twenty-minute break in half to give yourself time for a two song encore. And most importantly, under no circumstances finish the concert with Careless Whisper. It’s just a bummer.
If you’re reading this and feeling distressed because you have tickets to George Michael’s Sydney or Melbourne shows, the good news is that most of what was wrong with last night’s show was specifically Perth related. So many times I have told myself that I will never again bother seeing a concert at the Dome, but this time I really mean it.