2013 - MIKA @ The Aladdin in PORTLAND, OR - 23 March - REPORTS/PICS/VIDEOS

I wouldn't be surprised if he did bail right after the gig - if for no other reason than the venue was small-ish, it was turning into a nightclub, and he wanted to hang out somewhere more hospitable than what I imagine was probably just a tiny dressing room I didn't see his mother or the band, either.

So maybe he came out and didn't see anyone. I mean he's not like us, he's not going to wait all night.

I'll admit, I was a little bummed about no meet'n'greet, but I was prepared for that, after reading the BC reviews. I wondered if it would have been more likely if we were in a line, rather than a mob.

It was like that in NYC in October. Total mob scene even though there were probably only 20 people there. I got caught in the middle of it and somehow ended up with an autograph (it was the day the album went on sale so I bought it at the gig). He left very quickly. It was such chaos that afterwards I found a cover from Live in Cartoon Motion that he'd autographed and someone just dropped on the ground. I never did find out who it belonged to and I still have it.

So maybe he came out and didn't see anyone. I mean he's not like us, he's not going to wait all night.

 

 

 

It was like that in NYC in October. Total mob scene even though there were probably only 20 people there. I got caught in the middle of it and somehow ended up with an autograph (it was the day the album went on sale so I bought it at the gig). He left very quickly. It was such chaos that afterwards I found a cover from Live in Cartoon Motion that he'd autographed and someone just dropped on the ground. I never did find out who it belonged to and I still have it.

This is the theory I am working on - came out quick, saw no fans and left and is now thinking that He has no "die hards" in Van ...

This is the theory I am working on - came out quick, saw no fans and left and is now thinking that He has no "die hards" in Van ...

I was wondering what he thought in the afternoon when there was no queue. But surely he saw you and Mana in the front?

I was wondering what he thought in the afternoon when there was no queue. But surely he saw you and Mana in the front?

One would hope - but v little eye contact.

I just feel a little deflated 0 but i was worried that would happen anyway as it was such a build up and wait !

One would hope - but v little eye contact.

 

I just feel a little deflated 0 but i was worried that would happen anyway as it was such a build up and wait !

Oh shame. The first gig on a tour always seems to be that way. He's too introverted.

You guys are so lucky could talk with him.

I never see him in real, He had a gig in HongKong once, But I was too young to attend.What a pity.Hope he will come to China again someday.

Oh shame. The first gig on a tour always seems to be that way. He's too introverted.

not always ( on the 2009 acoustic tour it was perfect ) but you're right that it can be. i remember belfast 2010, the gig felt weird and he didn't come out but had his manager tell the fans that he wouldn't. i think the reason was that he was busy re-working the show, maybe it was similar in vancouver due to lack of rehearsals. just that he left immediately. but also this has happened before, tho it's rare. anyway, the next gig after belfast, dublin, was perfect in every way - so you do indeed need a bit of luck too, there's no guarantee for a m&g. i understand the disappointment of the fans who were there very well though.

what i'm wondering, does he have a tour manager on this tour? i haven't seen thomas on any of the pix yet. usually his tour manager is sort of his bodyguard and plays the "bad guy" who tells fans to stay in line, maybe that no photos are allowed/no flash, takes care that mika won't get mobbed, and tells him to hurry. if he doesn't have a tour manager and maybe his mum does the organizational part, he doesn't have this backup at m&g's and might have to rely on the venue security - and the venue in vancouver didn't seem very cooperative, so maybe that's why?

not always ( on the 2009 acoustic tour it was perfect ) but you're right that it can be.

Maybe he felt that he had already gotten the worst of it over at the Roxy gig because he was very nervous for that.

i remember belfast 2010, the gig felt weird and he didn't come out but had his manager tell the fans that he wouldn't. i think the reason was that he was busy re-working the show, maybe it was similar in vancouver due to lack of rehearsals.

Yes they were kind of doing a post mortem on the show and Mika was complaining in those letters to Louboutin that things did not go well.

what i'm wondering, does he have a tour manager on this tour? i haven't seen thomas on any of the pix yet. usually his tour manager is sort of his bodyguard and plays the "bad guy" who tells fans to stay in line, maybe that no photos are allowed/no flash, takes care that mika won't get mobbed, and tells him to hurry.

Yes I am wondering about that too although Thomas did nothing to effectively control fans during the last shows here. It was a total mob scene in New York although people were better behaved in Chicago and sort of organized themselves into two separate lines along either side of a driveway. I was sure Mika was going to drive out and everyone would swarm the car but he walked out and people more or less stayed where they were and let him come to them. But generally I find the crowds in the US really hyper and I think there will be a lot of mob scenes (with Mika leaving ASAP) if it's not controlled.

Thanks everyone for your posts about the gig. I can't wait to hear the new music.

Oh. My. God. Best. Gig. Ever.

I was in the very front row of standing room (basically on the stage) and DIRECTLY in front of Mika. We did hate quite a bit of eye contact, I must say. I was the girl with the 'Yo MIKA! Call Me, Maybe?' sign in the white shirt and red trousers. I certainly hope someone near the front row got Big Girl on video because he got on his knees DIRECTLY in front where I was standing. I, being the MFC'er I used to be, waited by his bus after the gig and managed to scream NO CHICKEN TONIGHT loud enough to manage to strike up a bit of a conversation between him and I. I got him to sign the (INSIDE, as we established) of my Call Me poster.

When I get to a computer, I shall write a formal report. Other than the terrible people next to me during the gig, I had a great time! Great people. Great music. Great interaction. Perfect first Mika gig for me!

One would hope - but v little eye contact.

 

I just feel a little deflated 0 but i was worried that would happen anyway as it was such a build up and wait !

in 2009, he spent alot of time with his eyes closed in Montreal

Ok, it's picture time! I'd almost forgotten how to post photos on a fan forum. I need to come back more often, LOL!

His name on the marquee. Squee!

Excited Mika fans, waiting in the cold!

The boys in the band opened with an interesting set of song clips.

Mika was lookin' GOOD!

I love it when his mouth is wide open.

"Dear Lord, help me remember the chords."

I will pretend that he's looking right at me.

The guys played tap dance rhythms during "Stuck in the Middle", as Mika had originally intended for the song.

Then they all played piano at once. That was pretty rad.

Mika called this young man on stage to sing the English lyrics to Elle Me Dit. Um, he did not sing. He just dance dance danced. LOL!

Mika was a good sport, though.

He took a seat on the piano during "Hia Leah". It sounded like a song about young love, when you're poor, and love is all you have to give. I recall the lyric "The money is spent, can't pay the rent." Very sweet little tune.

Yes.

Goodnight! Or is there more....

He made my 6 year dream come true, and closed with "Over My Shoulder"!!

Oh, that sweet dissonance...

Mika was in good spirits as he signed a few autographs, and gave a few hugs. As you can see, it was a mob situation, and did not last long before the gentleman on Mika's right led him away.

And... here is the photo of the night, LOL! Some of you may know that I have been trying to get a photo with Mika ever since I first saw him in LA back in 2007. I've talked to him several times, received autographs, drawings, and even danced as a Big Girl in 2009, but there is no photo of the 2 of us where you can see our faces. The legacy of "Mika and the back of my head" continued, when my friend shot this photo.

Here's the setlist. No "Bonnie and Clyde", and "Relax" and "Celebrate" were switched around.

His name on the marquee. Squee!

Hey! Look! There's me in the red pants with the brown bag! So funny to see myself in a picture! I can see the back of my head in a few of the gig pictures too! Weird!

How fun! It is a little strange to see yourself pop up in a random photo. Haha! At least you look good.

Okay! I'm here to write a little bit of a report! I'm sorry if I talk about myself a lot, but I am seriously still on Cloud 9 about the whole thing.

Okay. So, I got to the venue at around like 12-2. I don't have the exact time. We pulled into a little lot RIGHT by the venue, and guess who I was parked side my side with? Mika himself. I was seriously shaking. We were around 5th in line, and no one showed up behind us for about an hour. About 20 minutes after getting in line, my friend was walking back to our car and passed by a gate that lead to the building and guess who she could hear? Mika and the band doing what sounded like a sound check kind of thing, but was pretty informal. She called me over, but by the time I got there they were finishing up. We were pretty lucky because the theater was right across the street from a gas station, so we had an accessible bathroom and food source. Well, in my case coffee. They seriously had the best gas station coffee I have ever had. So, we waited about 7 hours in this growing line, and tensions were high. The people ahead of me were pretty cool. I wasn't too terribly fond of one of them, simply because she told like 3 people that Mika went to rehab for drugs, but the other one ended up to be pretty cool. We all exchanged Tumblr URLs.

At about 6:50 they opened the willcall (is that what it's called?...) window and there was a huge crowd at the front of the line. I already had my ticket, so I was afraid that these people who had only been in like for like 2 hours were planning on staying up front, but they moved back right before the doors opened. At a little past 7, the doors opened and everyone rushed in. I ran to the stage and got a place RIGHT on the stage, RIGHT in front of the piano. So the PERFECT place! The 'show' started pretty late. Like 45 minutes late. It opened with Max and Curtis doing a little (sorry, it was REALLY) dumb little DJ gig that no one seemed very fond of. I was standing next to some very nice girls, and some not very nice couples, who were both smashing into me so hard I could pick up my feet and hang in between them! That was a bit annoying, and they did slam me into the stage pretty hard a couple times, but it was worth it!

When Mika ran out, you could feel everyone rise at the same time! It was amazing! At this point, I will admit, I was crying like a baby. I just couldn't believe he was real! He. Is. So. Good. Live. Like, hello falsetto.

In between one of the songs (I can't remember which) I held up my sign that read "Yo MIKA! Call Me, Maybe?" He very obviously read it, and I held up the 'call me' sign, and he did a little 'maybe' shrug. It was wonderful! All of his songs are (in my opinion) muuuuch better live. When he said "This next one is called Only Lonely One" I screamed OH MY GOOOOODDDD and he turned and looked at me and said "It looks like someone here is a fan!" and let me tell you one thing. I never thought that song could get any better. It did. He pulled up a young man to sing the English lyrics to Emily and he was seriously a riot! He danced and danced, then went back to his spot and started making out with his boyfriend. He was seriously a little ball of energy! He did what all of us have wanted to do for years, and that is run his fingers through Mika's hair and gave him a kiss!

Big Girl and Lollipop were seriously AMAZING! Like, wow! I was so excited for those. He even got down on his knees right in front of me during BG, and I got a bit of an accidental crotch shot. It's such a good thing that he did a lot of stuff from his old albums, because I was under the impression that a lot of the people there were old fans. He did play Over My Shoulder, which I was not expecting, but was very openly welcomed! It. Was. AMAzING!!! He is seriously talented. Definitely something I will never forget.

After the gig I rushed to buy a shirt, then ran to the bus, which was right by my car. By the time I got there, there was a fairly large crowd growing in a big circle, so I was a big disappointed that I wouldn't be able to get close to him. It wasn't long before he came out, and everything heated up. I will admit to weeding myself through people a bit (not violently!) to get to him, but I was still about 2 'layers' back. He began to walk away, so I panicked because HELLO MIKA I HAVE A POSTER FOR YOU TO SIGN AND IVE WAITED FAR TOO LONG FOR YOU TO JUST WALK AWAY! So, out of being desperate, I shouted at the top of my lungs, "NO CHICKEN TONIGHT!!!!" You could just see his eyes shift! He looked up at me and said, "I don't even know what that meeeeeaaaannnnsss," obviously a bit embarrassed, but still laughing. I was like, "Yes you doooooo, Mika!" and he responded with, "Okay. Yeah I doooooo. But how did you know that....." and reached over and grabbed my poster. Basically, I had the best Mika experience. Like, ever.

He seemed to really enjoy Portland, even with our weird obsession with 'the mountain'. (His WHATS WITH THE F*CKING MOUNTAIN?!?! bit really made my mother's night) I really saw him in his element, and I couldn't have been happier. One of my favourite parts of the evening was probably when he was explaining how our entire generation developed ankle fetishes through watching Looney Tunes.:aah:

I did take some pictures and videos, but I don't think he would really appreciate me sharing those of the new songs. My mother had a better camera, so I might be able to get some pictures from her to share!

All in all, his gig was amazing. Great people. Great music. Great interaction. Great everything. Century Man was as great as I was hoping (I have been dying to hear that song since I became a fan. No. Joke.) and leah was also so adorable! Everything he does is so easy to relate to.

Okay! I hope my 'report' (I don't even know if I can call it that because it wasn't really very focused) was adequate! I only have a few pictures handy, but I think I can get some more in the future!

And finally, my friend Lizzie and I at the beginning of our 7 hour wait!

Sorry for the giant pictures.

Nice report ... Huh t shirts at Portland - really?

Okay! I'm here to write a little bit of a report! I'm sorry if I talk about myself a lot, but I am seriously still on Cloud 9 about the whole thing.

aww thanks for your report, it really made me smile! i love it when you can feel someone's excitement about mika's gigs while reading their reports. and LOL @ the "no chicken tonight" conversation, that's hilarious! i would have loved to see his face.

thanks also damango for your report and fab photos! good to see you here again!

He did what all of us have wanted to do for years, and that is run his fingers through Mika's hair and gave him a kiss!

seriously?! LOL! how did mika react?

Thank so much for your great pics and reports it sound like an amazing show *sigh* I think I'm gonna die and never will see a show like that live

Micah, thank you for your lovely report and pics. Really enjoyed reading it and glad you had such a good time.

Thanks a lot for lovely photos, with explaining lyric - DaMango!

Love,love

me

Thanks Micah for your great report - and lovely photos - sooo happy for you all ...

Love,love

me

He took a seat on the piano during "Hia Leah". It sounded like a song about young love, when you're poor, and love is all you have to give. I recall the lyric "The money is spent, can't pay the rent." Very sweet little tune.

 

Love the way you described Hia Leah. I'm sure it must be a very beautiful song.

Thanks for the photo report DaMango:thumb_yello:

Micah, you must have been standing right behind me after the show, because I totally heard you shout "No chicken tonight!" and it made me giggle. LOL!

There were some really lovely t shirts there, but I didn't get one, because they took cash only. The venue had an ATM, but it couldn't read the worn out strip on my debit card. That'll teach me to skip a trip to the bank before a concert! Fingers crossed that the extras eventually show up in his web store...

Micah, you must have been standing right behind me after the show, because I totally heard you shout "No chicken tonight!" and it made me giggle. LOL!

 

There were some really lovely t shirts there, but I didn't get one, because they took cash only. The venue had an ATM, but it couldn't read the worn out strip on my debit card. That'll teach me to skip a trip to the bank before a concert! Fingers crossed that the extras eventually show up in his web store...

Ill bet I was! It seemed like a few people understood, but most people seemed pretty confused. XD Someone next to me was like, "Woah! Blast from the past! 2007!" But I don't know who it was.