Leeds - First Direct Arena (Mar. 20, 2015) post-show

Post your info and reviews related to this concert in the comments section below. Other links (photos, external reviews, etc.) related to this concert will also be compiled in this section as they are sent in.


Setlist:

The Queen Is Dead / Suedehead / Staircase At The University / World Peace Is None Of Your Business / Kiss Me A Lot / Istanbul / Neal Cassady Drops Dead / I'm Throwing My Arms Around Paris / Irish Blood, English Heart / What She Said / Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before / Scandinavia / The World Is Full Of Crashing Bores / One Of Our Own / Trouble Loves Me / Everyday Is Like Sunday / Kick The Bride Down The Aisle / The Bullfighter Dies / Meat is Murder // First Of The Gang To Die

setlist (not in exact order) provided by Irregular Regular.



  • Photo by fralph1976 / Instagram. Link posted by docinwestchester. Full set by Frank Ralph (27 photos) - Flickr. Link posted by an anonymous person.

    leeds.jpg
  • TTY: Morrissey audience in Leeds, March 20th - Mar. 23, 2015
  • Review by Gary Ryan - NME
  • Review by Ryan Bell (9 / 10 stars) - Fortitude Magazine
 
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the crowd was slightly more animated than the last gig, but the world peace material, flattened it out.
world peace is the great flattener. crowd just stands around.
But it's not all about bouncing is it? The new songs command respect. Because the audience stands to take it all in, that doesn't mean that's a bad thing? His voice is perfection, beautifully clear and melodic, the lyrics are powerful, the music is great. I especially enjoy all of the Flamenco influence.
 
Glad to read you enjoyed seeing "the old poofter", as you so colourfully described Morrissey before show-time.



TrollFAIL! Thanks to Mozza220559 & the few others who actually attended for providing reports about 'cat's hair' banter and such. And thanks to those who collate feeds on Twitter and Instagram for those here who are unable to browse those platforms themselves! I suppose it fills the thread and gives the illusion of massive interest in the gig.

As this was the closest show to Manchester, and was on a Friday night, I'd have assumed it would sell out, though it didn't. However, looking at pictures of the venue, it wouldn't surprise me if people decided to pass. It looks hideous, more seats than standing and officious security in the seats it would seem. I expect Saturday night in Glasgow will be the main event of the tour, though Brum on a Friday could also rise above the 'flat' ambience that many report. Finally, where would we be this afternoon without CG's *explanation* of events? *rollseyes*. Please stop spamming live threads with your nonsense. Unless you've seen a sign that chicken was served disguised as Quorn? Is that what you're trying to communicate? If so, where's the evidence?

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I thought I'd give this site a rest and stick to Instagram and FB for updates on Leeds. Fantastic images from hundreds of people who had a great night, clear evidence that the show was well attended and that people were leaving with big smiles on their faces. And then I make he mistake of coming back here for the Brummie slagoffathon. And once again Morrissey is being held personally responsible for the lack of big screens *rollseyes*. Just goes to show that whilst you can be happy, there's always someone gleefully waiting to be the killjoy.
 
Personally I thinks its one of the best in the UK Brummie, apparently when it was designed they wanted to create intimacy whilst being able to house large numbers. They did this by ensuring the furthest distance from the stage was 68m rather than 95 to a 100m in the more traditional arena's. It can also be configured in a myriad of ways. If you look at the picture in the link, you can see the venue with the bottom seating area available, for Morrissey, James etc, they retract those to make a large standing area. If I were to guess in the Morrissey/James gigs it was about 75% standing and 25% seated

I saw James at both the NIA and Leeds last year and the atmosphere generated was far better in Leeds, unfortunately standing sold really quick for Morrissey so its the NIA for me.


http://www.firstdirectarena.com/venue-information/seating-plans/

I've never been there but it looks like 75% seating. And others on this thread are complaining at the lack of visuals so those in the back can't see Morrissey's facial grimaces. 68m is a LONG WAY to squint at a performer without side screens. Most arena shows provide that as a given. Why doesn't Morrissey? Too mean to hire it in? If it was designed for shows, why are people also complaining about terrible sound? Presumably because Morrissey was too lazy to soundcheck the venue correctly? That wouldn't be a first. Morrissey didn't sell out standing. There were tickets available on reseller sites, some of which were direct from the venue/promoter. They do that, claim an area is sold out in the venue to try and rape customers on their resale sites then if they can't they sell them at face value or at a loss. Many artists are in on these scams. I've no idea if Morrissey is but there were tickets available in standing hours before the gig. Here's the evidence:

View attachment 33923

Birmingham Barclaycard Arena's just had a £26 million refurb. If you get there early and are down the front it will be a fun Friday, but beyond the first few rows it will be pretty dull without side screens. I can't see how Morrissey coming onstage at 8:30pm on a Friday night works. Most punters have day jobs so either they commute home/change or go in their work duds? Is it a scam to get all the boozing done in the venue at inflated prices? Probably. Brum doesn't even wake up till midnight on a friday night so it will be a dead hour after the gig till the party on Broad Street starts. Brum's arena works because it's dead centre of a major city's nightlife. The 02 is a horror story stuck on a deserted peninsula of the Thames. Cardiff and Belfast drew the short straw. Who wants to try to get to an 8:30pm gig start on a weekday? He'd have had a much better response if he'd have done them on a weekend. Ditto Dublin.

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I've never been there but it looks like 75% seating. And others on this thread are complaining at the lack of visuals so those in the back can't see Morrissey's facial grimaces. 68m is a LONG WAY to squint at a performer without side screens. Most arena shows provide that as a given. Why doesn't Morrissey? Too mean to hire it in? If it was designed for shows, why are people also complaining about terrible sound? Presumably because Morrissey was too lazy to soundcheck the venue correctly? That wouldn't be a first. Morrissey didn't sell out standing. There were tickets available on reseller sites, some of which were direct from the venue/promoter. They do that, claim an area is sold out in the venue to try and rape customers on their resale sites then if they can't they sell them at face value or at a loss. Many artists are in on these scams. I've no idea if Morrissey is but there were tickets available in standing hours before the gig. Here's the evidence:

View attachment 33923

Birmingham Barclaycard Arena's just had a £26 million refurb. If you get there early and are down the front it will be a fun Friday, but beyond the first few rows it will be pretty dull without side screens. I can't see how Morrissey coming onstage at 8:30pm on a Friday night works. Most punters have day jobs so either they commute home/change or go in their work duds? Is it a scam to get all the boozing done in the venue at inflated prices? Probably. Brum doesn't even wake up till midnight on a friday night so it will be a dead hour after the gig till the party on Broad Street starts. Brum's arena works because it's dead centre of a major city's nightlife. The 02 is a horror story stuck on a deserted peninsula of the Thames. Cardiff and Belfast drew the short straw. Who wants to try to get to an 8:30pm gig start on a weekday? He'd have had a much better response if he'd have done them on a weekend. Ditto Dublin.

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Agree, there are 6 of us heading down from Manc mid afternoon, probably by train so we can have a nice early evening session on the lash and not have to worry about driving back the day after. Have standing tickets so should be a good atmosphere.

Brummie, it's clear you like to diss everything Morrissey but I can assure you when I tried to book standing in Leeds, there were non available, you may be right. The NIA is the same, last week there were no standing available, I know as another mate wanted to attend, guess what now there are some available and he managed to get one this morning?

On the scenes thing, i have no idea, actually I can't recollect ever seeing him with screens. Saw New Order at Jodrell Bank in 13 they had screens and used them to great effect

Here is a pic of Leeds from the stage when James played, gives an indication of the more standing layout, school down to the Leeds shot

http://www.wearejames.com/blog/
 
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You going to the Birmingham concert Brummie? I'll be there heckling and screaming "Milk Is Murder!" during the quiet moments of MIM.
 
Thanks for the footage of the black curtains in the clip (is it really such a small arena ? )

I guess you're all gonna be busy defacing Leeds/Bradford today, off you go Simple Steven says so, just make sure you do it in broad daylight there's no need to be shy about it.

Benny-the-British-Butcher

good eye benny. they had them packed like sardines in the front but thats because they closed off half the venue. show sold poorly
 
I thought I'd give this site a rest and stick to Instagram and FB for updates on Leeds. Fantastic images from hundreds of people who had a great night, clear evidence that the show was well attended and that people were leaving with big smiles on their faces. And then I make he mistake of coming back here for the Brummie slagoffathon. And once again Morrissey is being held personally responsible for the lack of big screens *rollseyes*. Just goes to show that whilst you can be happy, there's always someone gleefully waiting to be the killjoy.

Who else would you hold responsible? Morrissey hires a production company to stage his gigs and decides on the budget from the promoter's guarantee/ticket sales. For an artist who used to micro-manage fonts on singles releases he's become extremely cavalier about the live consumer experience, even as he enjoys the ramp up in admission prices to £50-£70. If he can see the empty seats at the back of the venue he can also deduce that punters in those areas who look like matchsticks to him see him as a faraway matchstick as well. I recently saw Kraftwerk in Amsterdam and they spend 3 days perfecting each venue's acoustics and sight-lines. They bring in their own custom made sound system to augment/replace the venues. And the end result is simply stunning. A different genre but there's no reason whatsoever why Morrissey can't commission some decent graphics, side screens and decent sound. Other than the fact that he's a flake and is arrogant enough to assume that his mere presence is enough to gouge £50-£70 from his audience.

It's curious he didn't return to Manchester Arena this time after 2012 when EXACTLY the same complaints of poor sound, sightlines and capricious early start were made on this forum by paying punters. The reason being that he wouldn't have sold out the venue to repeat customers who complained at the amateur staging last time. I'm sure a sizeable minority of casual punters who went to this show out of interest and compared it to other arena shows they casually attend would describe it as a rip-off and not return. We'll see how many years before he trys this scam again at British arenas. Even the Death's Door Cancer Trolling didn't shift the tickets.

You seem to be describing the experience of The Cult and The Fan whereas I am discussing The Audience. Whilst it may be a great show if you have the time/patience to queue with The List, for those who have jobs/a life/no trust fund, they have to get home from work, organise the babysitter, park and then be subjected to amateur hour visuals, sight-lines and sound, it's hard to see how these shows are Value For Money and not a Rip-OFF. . Not to mention having their food choices dictated.

Morrissey appears to have been on live show auto-pilot for years now. However, he is also careful to throw in a few botched versions of Ye Olde Smiths Classics in lieu of a reunion just so the remaining casual punters are duped into attendance. If he thinks WPINOYB why doesn't he play it from start to finish and only play his own greatest hits? Because without the pull of The Smiths legend he wouldn't get half his audience. And he knows it and resents it bitterly. Every time he plays a Smiths song badly he admits his failure to create his own audience, inventing ever more absurd conspiracy theories about the BRITS and record companies to explain his failures. And that is priceless fun to watch.

I suppose you've also complained about CG's Chicken-tastic interpretation of the gig? Thought not. You ignore her beserk ramblings yet feel moved to complain about my meta-analysis which is on-topic, pertinent and of interest to any unsure punters who might be thinking of going to Brum or Belfast. Please piss off back to Twitter and Instagram along with the rest of the herd/sheeple 'fans'. As long as this forum allows critical debate you haven't got a leg to stand on. By complaining about my supposedly 'killjoy' contribution to this thread whilst ignoring CG's utterly dysfunctional ramblings you expose yourself as a troll who wishes to police free speech and ensure the mythology of Morrissey evades scrutiny under such troubling topics as value for money, live show expertise and other such fripperies. The EXACT behaviour of a cult member.

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Who else would you hold responsible? Morrissey hires a production company to stage his gigs and decides on the budget from the promoter's guarantee/ticket sales. For an artist who used to micro-manage fonts on singles releases he's become extremely cavalier about the live consumer experience, even as he enjoys the ramp up in admission prices to £50-£70. If he can see the empty seats at the back of the venue he can also deduce that punters in those areas who look like matchsticks to him see him as a faraway matchstick as well. I recently saw Kraftwerk in Amsterdam and they spend 3 days perfecting each venue's acoustics and sight-lines. They bring in their own custom made sound system to augment/replace the venues. And the end result is simply stunning. A different genre but there's no reason whatsoever why Morrissey can't commission some decent graphics, side screens and decent sound. Other than the fact that he's a flake and is arrogant enough to assume that his mere presence is enough to gouge £50-£70 from his audience.

It's curious he didn't return to Manchester Arena this time after 2012 when EXACTLY the same complaints of poor sound, sightlines and capricious early start were made on this forum by paying punters. The reason being that he wouldn't have sold out the venue to repeat customers who complained at the amateur staging last time. I'm sure a sizeable minority of casual punters who went to this show out of interest and compared it to other arena shows they casually attend would describe it as a rip-off and not returen. We'll see how many years before he trys this scam again. Even the Death's Door Cancer Trolling didn't shift the tickets.

You seem to be describing the experience of The Cult and The Fan whereas I am discussing The Audience. Whilst it may be a great show if you have the time/patience to queue with The List, for those who have jobs/a life/no trust fund, they have to get home from work, organise the babysitter, park and then be subjected to amateur hour visuals and sound. Not to mention having their food choices dictated. Morrissey appears to have been on live show auto-pilot for years now. However, he is also careful to throw in a few botched versions of Ye Olde Smiths Classics in lieu of a reunion just so the remaining casual punters are duped into attendance. If he thinks WPINOYB why doesn't he play it from start to finish and only play his own greatest hits? Because without the pull of The Smiths legend he wouldn't get half his audience. And he knows it and resents it bitterly. Every time he plays a Smiths song badly he admits his failure to create his own audience, inventing ever more absurd conspiracy theories about the BRITS and record companies to explain his failures. And that is priceless fun to watch.

I suppose you've also complained about CG's Chicken-tastic interpretation of the gig? Thought not. You ignore her beserk ramblings yet feel moved to complain about my meta-analysis which is on-topic, pertinent and of interest to any unsure punters who might be thinking of going to Brum or Belfast. Please piss off back to Twitter and Instagram along with the rest of the herd/sheeple 'fans'. As long as this forum allows critical debate you haven't got a leg to stand on.

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You know what I don't understand about you Brummie? Sometimes you can engage in quite coridial conversation on here and then all of a sudden you become this god awful bile spewing individual.
 
it seemed more a social event than a concert, with the great majority of punters simply engaging in conversations throughout the concert, primarily during the new songs. flamenco is not such that it will incite a crowd.
another 75 minute day at the office for old mozz.
 
You know what I don't understand about you Brummie? Sometimes you can engage in quite coridial conversation on here and then all of a sudden you become this god awful bile spewing individual.

By the way he did return to the MEN in 2014
 
You going to the Birmingham concert Brummie? I'll be there heckling and screaming "Milk Is Murder!" during the quiet moments of MIM.

If I go I will be 'having words' with PETA at their stall about the menu choices dictated by The Supreme Leader. I might be tempted to throw some mouldy old camembert onstage but I'd be cautious about shouting out your screen-name if I were you. Remember, Morrissey does not tolerate dissent and ejects hecklers/protestors/visitors from consensual reality who prick his bubble of censorious nonsense. I'll decide on the night. Getting a ticket at the last minute is hardly likely to be an issue. I don't expect to pay more than half-price. And Buffy might be worth it. I hope she's not scanning this board as hardly anyone's mentioned her. It makes me conclude that the campaign against Kristeen Young was motivated as much by malicious misogyny as it was by musical taste. Buffy is 74 so assumed to be no sexual threat/competitor by the likes of CG. I notice CG has remained entirely silent about Buffy. No doubt if an 'inappropriate' photo of her and Morrissey cuddling backstage emerges we will get another disturbed onslaught. Which will be ignored by the Thought Police here as they concentrate on their insipid attempts to silence the likes of you and me. Your screen name is genius as was your re-working of the lyrics of Meat Is Murder. If I go I'll just watch some vegan footage on my i-device and ignore that meretricious drivel.

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But it's not all about bouncing is it? The new songs command respect. Because the audience stands to take it all in, that doesn't mean that's a bad thing? His voice is perfection, beautifully clear and melodic, the lyrics are powerful, the music is great. I especially enjoy all of the Flamenco influence.

If it's all about the new songs, why does he publicise these gigs with 9 year old photos and sprinkle in Smith's karaoke? Because if it was billed as 'Morrissey presents "World Peace Is None Of Your Business" NB: No songs before his solo career will be played, then half the audience would stay at home. Perhaps Morrissey might show some 'respect' to his new music by bothering to soundcheck properly and match his band dynamics to each venue. And get them some guitar lessons if they insist on playing old Smiths songs.

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- - - Updated - - -

Sorry I was wrong, he was rumoured to be playing the castle field bowl but it never happened

You are often wrong. That doesn't stop you and I've no doubt you will continue to prosecute your fantasy scripts about Morrissey whilst trying to shout down anyone who differs. He didn't sell out MEN in 2012 and wouldn't now.

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You know what I don't understand about you Brummie? Sometimes you can engage in quite coridial conversation on here and then all of a sudden you become this god awful bile spewing individual.

Unlike Morrissey? I'm not sure that I accept your point. Unlike CG, I didn't spam this thread with Chickens, didn't interrupt the flow of reportage but once I begin to offer perfectly valid comments which haven't mentioned the C-heese world, I get the usual trolls on my case. Problem for them is they ignored CG, thus conclusively proving that all they care about is if someone is sticking to the party line. If that includes bonkers chicken montages, that's fine. But anyone who notes the several complaints about start time, sound, sight-lines, flat atmosphere made by others is just a 'killjoy'. Even when I appear angry I'm amused at the temerity of The Cult who try to insist that only vapid fan comments are valid. It appears lots of people thought this was an indifferent gig and others had a great time. I fail to see why examining that on a web forum is controversial.

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it seemed more a social event than a concert, with the great majority of punters simply engaging in conversations throughout the concert, primarily during the new songs. flamenco is not such that it will incite a crowd.
another 75 minute day at the office for old mozz.

If I go to Brum next week I'll be keen to observe how Morrissey reacts to these changes in gig protocols. It used to be that folk went to see the artist, now it seems, as you say, to be a strange event that mixes a chat in the pub with humblebragging on social media about being there and how wonderful it is. Strange that many find the time to fiddle with sending their updates to Twitter is the gig is indeed so engaging. There's lots of balding, greying men like Morrissey on Twitter photos of these gigs. It seems to be a swan-song situation for both performer and artist. The sight of middle-aged accountants reaching out to touch a man who publicises the event with a 9 year old photo certainly suggests elements of nostalgia are the main spur to spending £50-70 for the ticket. Plus £20 parking and £4.50 for a beer. £3.60 for a cheezy panini. Have we topped a ton yet? Ah, yes. Petrol and babysitters for the grandkids.

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Interesting review. Others remark that 5 WPINOYB songs at the outset is a bit much! Morrissey has had lots of singing lessons, he might think about paying Johnny Marr to give guitar lessons to his backing band if Morrissey wants to Carr On Karaoke covering Smiths songs. The horror of "This Charming Man" has not been forgotten or forgiven.

Why is the arena good? It looks monstrous, endless tiers of seating with a small floor space is hardly conducive to a Friday night piss up and karaoke singalongaMoz. I feel for you Mom. She exhibited good taste in walking away from the gore-fest.

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Five of the new album in a row wasn't ideal but Kiss Me A lot, Staircase, Word Peace and Istanbul are fine. Smiler with Knife and Not a Man really were buzzkills at the O2. At least WPINOYB was handled early and didn't lull the latter middle.

Arenas are horrible places for music but its a much better venue than 02 or M.E.N. as the standing space is quite small and doesn't go on for miles. I wouldn't have liked to be sitting several miles back
If Morrissey insists on playing areas then Leeds is best of a bad bunch.

I'd love to see Morrissey'd band tackle Some Girls are Bigger Than Others, that would be a total car crash on guitar.
 

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