Thom-yorke * Notes *
Thom Yorke and Atoms for Peace played two shows at the Fox Theater in Oakland, before heading off to Santa Barbara and Coachella this weekend. I am often at a loss about what to make of the music young people listen to or the lighting displays at such events as these. Thom Yorke has a pretty voice and an oddly graceful stage presence. Despite amplification, he was most audible when only accompanied by his own piano or guitar playing. The band played together and was very loud.

* Tattling *
The audience was rather excited at the Thursday performance I attended, and a small number of people in the front mezzanine chose to stand up instead of taking their seats. One can only imagine this blocked the view of the audience members behind them. An usher in this area stood in aisle, and I crankily mentioned to him that I hardly came to this show to stare at the back of his head. He told me that I would "catch more flies with honey," but did make efforts to get out the way. A young woman behind me thanked me for saying something, as he was in her sight-line as well.

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9 responses to “Thom Yorke at the Fox Theater”

  1. John Marcher Avatar

    I’m wondering what drove you to attend this show? Yorke’s forays into classical? Radiohead puts on fantastic show, btw, and if you liked Yorke (which you don’t really tell us), I heartily recommend seeing them the next time they tour.

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  2. sfmike Avatar

    From this vantage point, you are definitely in the “young people” category yourself. Do you mean to say that the audience consisted of teenyboppers and infants?
    As far as the lights and music, go to enough rock concerts and the tropes become as familiar and stylized as anything in a Handel opera.

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  3. Not For Fun Only Avatar

    Did the “lighting displays” include a laser light show?

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  4. The Opera Tattler Avatar

    Sometimes I just enjoy hearing music I liked as a teenager, like Radiohead and The Brandenburg Concertos. I did hear Radiohead at Outside Lands, but wasn’t too excited by the performance, sadly.

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  5. The Opera Tattler Avatar

    Indeed, I’m just being silly, there were lots of people at this concert that are my age. My peers!
    I just really want to see a laser light show in a Händel opera someday. Don’t you think PBO should do something like this?

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  6. The Opera Tattler Avatar

    It was not clear to me if lasers were involved, though I certainly hope they were.

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  7. sfmike Avatar

    The PBO definitely needs a laster light show in their next Handel opera production.

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  8. The Opera Tattler Avatar

    We should suggest it to them!

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  9. Rigoletto Avatar

    have you heard Thom Yorke’s solo album The Eraser? It’s lovely. I agree it’s nice to branch out occasionally, and Thom has a stunning voice. Pretty differnt to opera tho 😉

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