Los Angeles (USA), May 26, 2003

By RJ

Ticket image by KERI

All other photos by NICOLE

Let me begin by saying that I've been hoping to see Silverchair live for a very, very long time, and when I heard about tour dates and things being cancelled due to Daniel's condition I became pretty worried that I might not be able to with their new album either. Luckily, this was not the case.

I will tell you right now - after all these years of waiting, Silverchair does not disappoint. I was absolutely stunned.

First of all, it was the first time I had been to the Henry Fonda Theater, and I was really enthusiastic about it once I got there. It was a small venue, and it was coloured in a way that seemed to me to fit the new Silverchair sound that Diorama put forth. My sister, girlfriend and I all sat up on the balcony, with a great view of the stage. The opening band, The Red West, had a 30 minute set, but it was pretty impressive. It was nice to see an opening band get such good lighting treatment, for one. I had heard their album before, and my girlfriend had gone on at great length about how good they sounded live, and I have to admit that they were one of the best opening bands I've heard. There's definitely talent there, and it'll be interesting to see what happens with them.

Now, onto the main attraction, Silverchair. Their performance is near indescribable, but I will try.

From what I remember, the setlist went something like this (sorry if anything is out of order):

1: After All These Years
2: World Upon Your Shoulders
3: Emotion Sickness
4: Without You
5: Luv Your Life
6: Tuna in the Brine
7: Across the Night
8: The Greatest View
9: Ana's Song
10: Miss You Love
11: The Door
12: Anthem for the Year 2000
13: Israel's Son
14: Asylum
15: The Lever

Daniel opened with "After All These Years," and it was listening to him sing this song that all my fears about whether Daniel really sounded as good live as he did on the album were allayed. It was so good, that my girlfriend, not really a huge Silverchair fan (she was mostly interested in the concert to see the opening band The Red West) said to me that the song was absolutely beautiful just as it ended. The entire band then broke into "World Upon Your Shoulders" and I was completely blown away yet again. This continued as they played "Emotion Sickness," one of the greatest songs ever written, and for as long as it went on (a good ten minutes, at least), I was enraptured by it. I cannot say enough about how great Daniel's voice sounds.

I was overjoyed to hear them play "Tuna in the Brine," as it is one of my favourites off of Diorama. Daniel's voice sounded incredible, as did the entire band. The same goes for "The Lever," as it seemed to me one of the more underappreciated songs off the album (to people I've showed it to here in the States, anyway). Anthem for the Year 2000 was extremely fun to hear, and my sister was extremely excited about it, as it's her favourite song. It was awesome singing along to it (back and forth with Daniel). Hearing Ana's Song live also gave me new appreciation for it, as it's definitely more powerful live than it is on Neon Ballroom.

I suppose I could go on about every single song, but in order to be concise I will just say this. Every single song was beautiful beyond description. The show has given me a great newfound love and appreciation for the band and their artistic ability, as well as their ability to put on a killer show.

Daniel seemed to be having a great time up on stage, which brought a smile to my face. He joked around with the crowd a lot, sang in some interesting ways, and made fun of Canada. The three of us couldn't help laughing when he said, "I treat my women like I treat my afro... if you don't sit right, I'll cut you!" He also did some fun tricks like playing the guitar with his teeth, which was incredible, and treating the audience to some fun bits
of dancing.

The band sounded amazing. They hit every note, and Daniel did things with his voice that impressed me to no end. Ben's drumming was top notch, and what I was really pleased with was the lovely thickness of the bass drumming. It was so deep and delicious, and I was definitely very pleased with it. Also, the drums sounded so great and loud and BIG that they sounded something like orchestral drums, which was awesome. Chris on bass guitar was fun to watch - I had seen the Luv Your Life video, and it was interesting to see the animated Chris come to life in concert. His guitar was also very shiny and reflective, so he had his own personal spotlight that he was shining the crowd with throughout the show. Wonderful.

In closing, the show was unbelievable, and easily one of the best performances I've ever seen live, if not the best. GO SEE THEM IF YOU CAN.

Can't wait to see you next time around, Silverchair. Thank you for a truly magical night of music.

By JEN

I had the privilege to see Silverchair for the first time, on the Monday May 26th add-on show at the Henry Fonda Theatre. Where do I start? AWESOME, is one way....another would be to say that from the first moment that Daniel Johns vocalized, I was mesmerized. I could not believe the clarity of his voice! This may sound cheesy, but I literally had to check a couple times to make sure that I was actually awake and not just having a very realistic dream. Daniel Johns voice and writing have evolved extraordinarily!

His voice has become the most beautiful blend of emotion and tone, delivering the most wonderfully crafted songs. His voice is unparalleled. The drums were HUGE! I wish that every drummer that I've ever met could have heard those drums, that night. Unfortunately, I didn't focus a lot on the bass...I usually don't, vocals are more what my attention averts to. But it sure was a pretty bass.

The two guys in the background on synth/backing vocals were great and looked like they were having a lot of fun. The sound in the club was top notch. The dynamics of the set list was perfect. Perfect song placement, taking us to all the right places at the right time.

The stage set was simple which only accentuated the gorgeous light show. To me this says a lot about this band. They focus primarily on the most important part...THE MUSIC!! I was happy to hear that they ran the orchestral track so that all of the CD dynamics were present.

Sometimes, track can be cheesy, but this was absolutely not. My question is...why the hell have they not broken in the US yet?!?! I can't believe that this CD has been out for over half of a year and NO RADIO PLAY!?! Yet we are certainly treated to the likes of Linkin Park and Blink 182 on a consistent basis. I bought Diorama the day it came out and was blown away by the emotions that it struck in me. The rest of the world has already figured out how amazing Silverchair is, what is wrong with the US music industry?? A band with this incredible amount of talent is playing the HENRY FONDA THEATRE? Don't get me wrong, I feel so lucky to have been able to see them play at that venue, but they should be playing a much bigger house.

The diversity of the crowd said it all. There were Marilyn Manson types, rockabilly types, jocks, prissy girls, Betty Page types, intellectual types, old people, teen age kids, I think that I even saw a guy in a chicken suit! Just kidding. More people need to know about Silverchair and Diorama, and if their label won't push them, we need to do whatever we can to let other people experience them. If I could, I would buy a copy of this CD for every person that I know. Short of that, all that I can do is tell them "GO BUY THIS CD!!"

PS- Did I hear it correctly? Did Daniel Johns say that they are going to now be based out of L.A.? Hmmm

Thank you for a great show!!

By NICOLE

Absolutely amazing. I couldn't believe I was actually there. I flew out from Indiana just for the 2 shows. I turned out to be a wonderful vacation. My friend and I arrived at the theater around 10:30 and got our place in line. We were 6th and 7th so I was happy. We had to wait hours and hours before the doors finally opened but it was well worth it. Right before they started letting people in, I was lucky enough to get a pass that allowed me to go anywhere in the theater, including backstage. I couldn't believe it.

Finally, the doors opened and we ran to the front of the venue. I got a nice place and waited and waited. I decided that during the opening band (The Red West), I was going to venture my way backstage. Keri, a friend I made while waiting in line, got a pass aswell so she went with me. Neither of us had a clue where to go so we just wondered around a little. We took some stairs down to the basement. The next thing I know, we're walking by the dressing room where Chris and Ben were sitting. I knew I was never going to get the chance to meet them again so I asked them if they didn't mind to sign a few autographs for us. They were really nice about it. I felt bad because I knew we were bothering them. They probably hated us for it but like I said before, I'm never going to get the chance to meet them again. I had to do it. So, we ended up getting pictures with the guys and autographs. We talked to them for a little bit. It was all too unreal. I had dreaming about that moment for over 7 years. I never thought it would actually happen.

Ben and Chris went back into their dressing room then we see this guy walking towards us. This is where things start to get ugly. Neither Keri or I had any idea who this man was but he turned out to be the most rude person I had ever spoken to in my entire life. I don't think he had a polite bone in his body. He started going off on us. He told us we weren't authorized to be backstage .. yet we had passes? Yeah, could someone explain that? Jackass.

Anyway, he kept going on and on about how we were going to be kicked out if we didn't give him our passes. "blah blah blah" .. that's really all I heard come out of his mouth. I wasn't about to keep my mouth shut. I didn't fly across the country to see my absolute favorite band to be kicked out of the venue, before the concert had even started. Honestly, if that man would have asked us nicely to leave the backstage area, I would have been ok with that. But no, he threatened us over and over, being as rude as he possibly could. By now, I really hope that got out whatever was up his ass that night.

We ended up having to give him our passes. I wasn't happy about that at all. Right as I handed him my pass, he starts in on me about my camera. He said I was going to have to give it to him because it wasn't allowed in the venue. Yet, every security guard that worked at the theater saw it and said it was ok? Hmm again, could someone explain that one to me? I wasn't about to hand over my $400 camera to some crazy man on a power trip. He told the security guards to excort us out of the backstage area and that I had to put my camera in the car. That sure didn't happen! :) HA! We shared a laugh with the security guard about how much of a jerk that guy was then went back inside. It was pretty exciting. How many people can say they've been thrown out of the backstage area at a silverchair concert? Well, maybe some can but how many can say they've been thrown out for doing absolutely nothing wrong? :)

After all of the drama, I got right back in front for the concert. Keri and I shared our little adventure with the people around us after The Rest West played. They were a really great band. I go to a lot of concerts and usually the opening band isn't too great. I loved The Red West though. I bought their CD and listened to it the entire flight to Indiana. :)

Finally, silverchair came out. I felt like I was dreaming. Daniel walked across the stage and sat down at the piano that was right in front of me. The show opened with After All These Years. It sounded great. Every song did. I was so impressed with how well they performed. The entire show was filled with so much energy. My absolute favorite part of the show was when they played Emotion Sickness. It lasted so long. It was unreal! They are so talented. I really couldn't believe my eyes.

Daniel was pretty entertaining during the entire show. He sure knows how to shake his ass. It was hilarious. He also joked with the crowed a lot. I've read many reviews of how he jokes with the crowd but I didn't think it would actually be as funny as it was that night. My favorite quote from him during the concert has got to be, "Don't call me BIIIIITCH!!" haha!

I don't remember the set list, yet I did take a picture of it while I was backstage. Here is what it said, (yet it says Freak but they didn't play that either night)..

1. After All These Years
2. World Upon Your Shoulders
3. Emotion Sickness
4. Luv Your Life
5. Tuna in the Brine
6. Across the Night
7. The Greatest View
8. Ana's Song
9. Miss You Love
10. The Door
11. Freak (didn't play)
12. Anthem for the Year 2000
13. Asylum
14. The Lever

This entire trip felt like a dream. Meeting Ben and Chris and finally getting to see the band I have loved for so many years was been a dream come true. They are so amazing live. I really hope they continue to tour. I would love to see them again. And I would definatly fly another 3,000 miles if I have to.