Gary Numan reached a significant milestone recently with his 998th, 999th and 1000th gig. At first I didn't bother obtaining tickets. If I am completely honest, the 'industrial' Numan sound that he has developed over the past 20 years or so now is not what equates to Numan for me so much. That is of course a completely personal view point as an acolyte of the '78 to '80 era material. That said, I fully appreciate the appeal of the revamped Numan and I for one could not be happier for the man. Anyway, I digress.
I took a ticket off of a friend who in the event could not attend. This was for the Thursday night (gig number 998) and I am glad that I did. I have been seeing gigs at the Electric Ballroom in Camden since the mid 1980's and it is a great medium sized venue. A strange choice for marking such a milestone, but given the fact that possibly the bigger event for Dad at least was the fact that his daughter was supporting. As such, the Ballroom offered her the opportunity to play to a supportive, good size audience without shattering the girl's nerves!
This gig certainly had better prospects for enjoyment than the last one that I saw Numan play at the venue in 1991. That was a gig very reflective of his years in the musical doldrums!
Unfortunately, but not unexpectedly, the venue was heaving such that I struggled to find a good vantage point, even upstairs, not being fussed to fight my way through to the front. The gig though was very enjoyable. Don't get me wrong, I like much of the new material, but I loved 'That's Too Bad' and 'My Shadow in Vain' more!!
The following posts will include recordings of all three gigs.
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