David Bowie/London,UK 6.2.1997

The best closed-room club gig album is here. This work includes the “London performance on June 2, 1997”. It is a secret gig prior to the “EARTHLING TOUR”. First, let’s imagine the position of the show from the overview of the “EARTHLING TOUR”. May 17: Dublin June 2: London [This work] June 3: London June 5: Hamburg {Main tour starts} June 7-August 14: Europe (46 performances) September 6-October 23: North America (29 performances) October 31-November 7: South America (5 performances) This is the whole picture of the “EARTHLING TOUR”. There were 80 performances in the main tour, but there were four warm-ups before that. This work is a show in his hometown of London. The greatest thing about this work is the closed-room audience sound that makes you feel like you’re in front of Bowie. The Hanover Grand, where the event took place, is a very small club, with a capacity of about 300 people. At the time, it seems that there was a fierce battle for tickets between enthusiasts, as they could see Bowie in such a small venue. The sound of this work is amazing, with a sense of closed room and closeness in such a small space. Although it is a recording that has been released in the past, this work is the ultimate CD made directly from the original DAT master. In fact, while the thickness of the musical sound is line-class, it would be disrespectful to the sound source to call it “like a sound board”. Although the details are detailed, the taste of the audience recording is certainly absorbed, and the feeling of “Bowie right in front of you” is overwhelming. If you have ever seen a live performance in the front row of a standing venue, you will understand the feeling that “it seems like you can touch it if you reach out” and “it’s right there”. Such a sense of closeness blows out the original DAT sound as it is. The cheers further enhance the feeling of being in a closed room. After all, the fierce warriors who won the battle from all over Europe gathered together, and each one has a different “feeling”. That was already clear from the start. Bowie was welcomed with a furious cheer, but as soon as he started to sing “Quicksand” gently, everyone joined in the chorus. This is really amazing. Everyone in the club must have been singing. It’s not just that the volume of the singing is loud, but you can’t hear any voices other than Bowie and the chorus. Even the smallest voices are absorbed into the club, but despite that, it’s obvious that no one is saying anything other than the chorus. Moreover, each voice is clearly flushed and filled with joy and excitement. The show continues with “V2-Schneider” and “Battle For Britain (The Letter)”, and then snowballs into “Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps)”, but here too there is a ferocious chorus. The “Oh, oh, oh” singalong in the second half is so moving… It’s a real goosebumps thing. What emanates from this work is a dense air that condenses such heat into a small space. It’s a sound that seems to flow out of the speakers together with the dusty smell that is unique to clubs. Writing like this, you might imagine a screaming audience recording, but (never!) that’s not the case. On the contrary. The audience here are all serious fans, so they are also very interested in the “new Bowie sound” that boldly incorporates drum and bass and jungle. They can’t help but want to witness it quickly and be immersed in it all over their bodies… that’s the kind of enthusiasm they have. So, although the club is filled with full-power applause between songs, when Bowie moves on to the next song and starts singing, it quickly changes to concentration. In fact, in the new song, there is a very small amount of conversation during the performance, but even that exudes the excitement of sharing the new sound in front of you with a friend. It’s an audience album with that kind of mood. The sound world of “EARTHLING TOUR” that unfolds in such an atmosphere is also the best. The show on this tour is largely divided into two parts, with Set 1 (17 songs) being a regular style concert, and Set 2 (7 songs) at the end featuring drum and bass. Perhaps because this day was a warm-up, three songs, “V2-Schneider”, “The Last Thing You Should Do” and “O Superman”, were played in both sets. In any case, the realism of being in a club with Bowie and his core fans. The happiness of being in a space where Bowie is right there and spinning new sounds. This is a masterpiece that brings out that sense of happiness with the highest peak sound from the original DAT. Not everything can be recorded directly and superbly in a club, but this work is a great example of a great success that was recorded extremely clearly. Live at the Hanover Grand, London, UK 2nd June 1997 TRULY PERFECT SOUND DAT MASTER Disc 1 (73:33) Set 1 01. Intro 02. Quicksand 03. Member Introduction 04. V2-Schneider 05. Battle For Britain (The Letter) 06. Scary Monsters (And Super Creeps) 07. I’m Afraid Of Americans 08. Seven Years In Tibet 09. Fashion 10. Outside 11. Little Wonder 12. Looking For Satellites 13. The Last Thing You Should Do 14. O Superman 15. Hallo Spaceboy Disc 2 (74:51) 01. The Jean Genie 02. Queen Bitch 03. Fame 04. Stay Set 2 05. Intro 06. I’m Deranged 07. Pallas Athena 08. V2-Schneider 09. Dead Man Walking 10. O Superman 11. The Last Thing You Should Do 12. Is It Any Wonder? David Bowie – vocals, guitar, saxophone Reeves Gabrels – guitar, backing vocals Gail Ann Dorsey – bass guitar, vocals, keyboards Zachary Alford – drums, percussion Mike Garson – keyboards, backing vocals