Alt-J live at the Mission Ballroom on 11/29/2023

Alt-J – An Awesome Wave – 10th Anniversary Tour

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Alt-J brought An Awesome Wave back to life for its 10-year anniversary tour, an extended celebration of their breakthrough album. With a stripped-down stage production similar to their second US tour supporting AAW, they jumped into the set at the Mission Ballroom with the same inward emotion and unbridled creativity that carved out a cult-like following for the masses early in their career, à la Radiohead and Porcupine Tree. Maybe the only disappointment of the night was the loud VIP section that was clearly there for the social points and booze, chattering through some of the more intimate moments of the album. As referenced by Gus’ heartfelt message to the crowd, the band is clearly appreciative of Denver for being early adopters of the critically acclaimed album.

A band that overcame the early departure of primary songwriter Gwil Sainsbury, the band marched on through a time that would cripple many early acts. Their performance filled out as if they were a three-piece all along, continuing to build on their original sound and unconventional path forward. 

After ripping through AAW, they continued the set with a jarring performance of “Chicago,” a song that brought audible gasps from many patrons not expecting the drilling bass and electronic feel. A perfect punch landed to launch out of the shadow of the Wave. In this set, I found more connection to their early tunes than I previously had experienced. With those songs now becoming staples, their sound has evolved while still capturing the core of who Alt-J is. That is, until the encore where they finished with the bizarre Hard Drive Gold and the intentionally pop anthem Left Hand Free; two songs they clearly love and I still fail to understand. For a band with incredible remixes, I thought we’d finally hear some of those renditions live, but they stick to their album versions, the script they’ve perfected.

 

Setlist A:

Intro (An Awesome Wave)

Interlude (Ripe & Ruin)

Tessellate

Breezeblocks

Interlude (Guitar)

Something Good

Dissolve Me

Matilda

Ms

Fitzpleasure

Interlude (Piano)

Bloodflood

Taro

Hand-Made

Setlist B:

Chicago

Deadcrush

U&ME

The Gospel of John Hurt

Every Other Freckle

In Cold Blood

Encore:

Hard Drive Gold

Left Hand Free

 
Photography, graphic design, PS, LR

Having picked up my first camera in 1998, a Sony Digital Mavica MVC-FD5, (yeah, the one with floppy discs), I'm proud to be considered one of the early digital adopters in concert photography. Back then, professional photographers were anti digital photography and it was near blasphemy to call yourself a photographer if you were shooting digital. For me, digital was the only way I could afford to learn to shoot because the cost of film and processing were far too expensive for a 14-year-old. I was lucky enough to ride the waves of change and ultimately witness digital photography gain legitimacy, and ultimately prevail. These days, I'm honored to be one of the primary "house photogs" at the historic Boulder Theater and Fox Theatre in Boulder, CO and as well as shooting at some of the largest venues in and around Denver such as Red Rocks, Ball Arena, Mission Ballroom and many more. After spending nearly a decade on the road working a relentless tour schedule, I started a family, joined my family business, and expanded my photography skill set. While further exploring landscape, commercial, architectural, wedding, and many other various types of photography, my passion remains firmly entrenched in documenting live music. In 2023, Target Audience Magazine added me to their concert coverage lineup and I look forward to growing with our fantastic group..

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