enigma

1 hour ago, silver said:

I think all the national entries have been chosen now, so please post videos/comments.

 

I can't say I'm wildly impressed by the UK entry (but then I didn't think much of Sam Ryder's song and look where he ended up )

 

 

 

She's the kid from the Grace Kelly video isn't she?!

In 2010 I travelled from London via Cyprus to Beirut and then on to Baalbeck, and was sitting in these grounds waiting for the gates to open and Mika's gig to start.

In 2020 I have travelled 3 metres from the sofa to the table,. and am waiting for Mika's virtual gig to start!!

7 minutes ago, holdingyourdrink said:

Did you get first row too?? Amazing!! We‘re so lucky 🤣

Yep! For the first time ever we are ALL front row! Livestream may not be as good as an actual gig, but hey - every cloud...

Woohoo! Front row! 🤣

6 hours ago, silver said:

 

Sucked in again .......

Yes. I fear it may be a slippery slope now 🤣... but so much has happened since my Mika-travelling-days... most of it sad... and Shepherds Buch was SUCH fun, I just have to do it again!  

Me BEFORE the Shepherds Bush gig: I'm getting too old for all this, I'll go for the seated section 😐.

Me AT the Shepherds Bush gig: To hell with that, I'm standing, and going down the front 🤣

Me BEFORE the Shepherds Bush gig: This is the only gig I'm doing. Too old to travel all over the place like I used to 😐

Me TODAY: Books Eurostar, hotel, and gig ticket for Lille... 

This song is SO mellow! It just transported me from the office to a lazy, warm Italian evening....  

On 5/25/2019 at 8:14 PM, mellody said:

Ah, so it's not Mika who talks about Bercy, but the Journalist? If this concert-france website is right, the concert in Bordeaux is in December, not November - so it's still not sure what to believe. Anyway, I hope for official tourdates in the next few days, would be nice to be able to plan.

Thanks for the translation!

After so so long, ANY flipping dates are a start! Even if they do all appear to be in France! Can't wait for some proper links to click on 😃. Had thought I might be in a old peoples home by the time he toured again...

I'm probably moving house to somewhere much smaller, and I have WAY too much stuff! I'm putting some nice Mika items on Ebay, all for a 99p start price, if anyone wants to add to their collection! Some were things I had duplicates of, so have never been worn... I listed a few things today and will add more soon. Here's a link (hopefully) to one of the items, then you can just click on "see seller's other items" to view the other things...

 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/332437468150?ssPageName=STRK:MESELX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1555.l2649

Adding my bit… finally...

Absolutely loved the show. Like I was hoping, it was more of a gig, and less of an extravaganza than Paris, AND he did Promiseland (yay!). AND Ordinary Man which is the first time I’ve seen him do that live – brilliant! As has been mentioned, there were no French songs, so maybe someone took onboard the negative comments about them after the last London show (although I personally don’t mind him including one or two - please God not EMD though!).

Now the pros and cons of seated venues. Pro is obviously that you don’t have to queue from stupid-o’clock, and you don’t have the stand in a crush for ages before the main artist takes the stage. Con is that it feels a bit restrictive staying in your row. I am therefore going to invent a new style of seating which would allow people the freedom to arrive at a sensible time, then sit down, wander about, get drinks, etc. without losing their place, and then disappear into the floor the second the artist comes onstage. I think it’d be a total winner .

As for this gig – there’s a big part of me that still yearns for the simpler times of the early days when Mika just wore jeans and t-shirt, ands the emphasis was on the music only, rather than the set. It was the music I fell in love with, along with his exuberance and giggly self-depracation, his bonkers stories, and all the mistakes he used to make. Now it feels less chaotic, more like a slick machine and a lot of the fun has disappeared, although he did still ramble quite a bit with his stories. But then things can’t stay the same, I do realise. He’s not going to be playing to 30 people in a grotty basement venue in Digbeth, and he’s not going to be doing the ICA anytime soon. He’s in his thirties now, and I’m well over a hundred, so it’s a different era. It’s probably always the case when you discover (or stumble upon) an artist at the very beginning of their career and watch them evolve – somewhere along the line, they either become successful and change, or worse -  they don’t make it and give up. It’s a bit like discovering an amazing out-of-the-way unspoilt holiday destination, only for thousands of other people to later discover it too, and turn it into a resort.

It’s a different era on here as well, I kind of miss the – er – debates (arguments?!!!) of the early days when I knew who most of the people on here were, getting tickets for TV appearances, and having ridiculous late-night conversations about New Year’s Eve playlists, baguettes, and grey underpants  . I rarely post here now, there are thousands of people I’ve never met, and I’m quite annoyed that I had to rush off at the end of the Palladium gig so never saw any of the people I actually DO know! The only person I did see was Mrs P, who greeted me like a long-lost friend, bless her!

What I would say is that the packed Palladium, and the reaction from the audience, proved that the UK deserves a couple more gigs. If I was French I could have sat there when the dates were announced and chosen which to go to. In the UK, it was a choice of one. My circumstances now mean I can’t whizz off at the drop of a hat any more to Russia, Lithuania, Beirut or other far-flung places. Some pre-Christmas UK gigs would be a good idea, mixture of standing ones and seated ones (if I haven’t finished my new-seating-invention by then!), small venues, pared back set… a bit like Unplugged from the ‘olden days’ if anyone can remember that far back! That would be perfect .

Until then, yes, Sunday night’s gig was absolutely good enough to be going on with, and actually much better than my pessimistic self was expecting. And yes he played a lot of the songs I wanted. Not all, I would have made a couple of substitutions, but then I realise he is doing a Mika show, not a What-Enigma-Wants-To-Hear show .

Hello everyone

This was one of my best Mika gigs ever.

I feel heart felt sorry for those that queued for hours, particularly those that had a really bad entry experience, and then chose to go right down to the front. Having been at PDP all those years ago i didn't think that going to the front was the best option. I queued with Blue Sky but didn't stay with her when we got in as three or four back is no good for me.... I feel claustrophobic..... I need to be either on the barrier or at the back. So i went around from the end of the runway and just managed to get 'half a spot' on the barrier just around the corner. Turned out to be just where the piano popped up and where Mika Spent the majority of his time. It was an amazing spot and in a venue of that size, with that amount of people and only having queued about three hours I felt amazingly privileged.

I found the show to be fantastic. I thought his voice was in brilliant form and came across fantastically. To go off mic even briefly in a venue of that size was awesome. He played to the crowd really well and had a lot of interaction. I was happy with the set list. I know that us purists would probably like a bit more variety but that's unlikely to happen. I was even lucky enough to get a special moment in Stardust when Mika spotted me and sang to me. always a massive bonus and totally unexpected in a venue of that size.

It's a while since I have been to a 'proper' Mika gig, one that wasn't a festival/ theatre or orchestral gig. I didn't get to any on the Heaven tour other than the Adelphi where I was seated in the balcony so it's quite some time since I have had this sort of experience. I didn't know if i was going to be able to make it to the gig this time, and on Thursday with the travel problems and rioting in Paris I was having serious doubts. But I am SO glad that I went.

As ever it was lovely to meet up with MFCers.

I do hope that there is a DVD of this show eventually.

Haha! I've given up on stupid-o-clock queueing so strolled in at 8.45pm, thinking - I'll work my way down the side to somewhere near the front. No chance as it was packed. So, I got about halfway down and decided to stop right there… which was excellent as the "middle" stage was right there! Result  . Loved the gig, even if it was fairly OTT in terms of the amount of stuff going on! Imagine the Palladium will be very different, after all that set wouldn't even fit in the building, so I'm hoping for more of a "gig" in London than an "extravaganza"!

Good to briefly see you and Blue Sky in Paris, see you in Londres   

Firstly, what a great set - good mix of old and new, and OMS   - LOVE that song!

Secondly, I was in purgatory, i.e. the dress circle. NEVER AGAIN! For the first third of the show no-one stood up. I mean, how can you SIT during BG, for goodness sake? Eventually when everyone did get up (forgotten what song it was), they all sat down again at the end of the song leaving just four of us standing, at which point the person behind started 'tut-tutting', so we had to sit again. It was indeed purgatory for me until towards the end of the show when the rest of the dress circle finally discovered that they actually had feet and stood up (especially when I could see lots of people I knew in the stalls having a much better time ) 

And finally, I can't believe anyone is moaning about him doing a song in French. Most people in non-English-speaking countries have to attend concerts by artists who speak English all the time, and I don't hear them complaining. It wasn't like he did the whole gig in French - just the one song!

And now, all I want is another gig! Anywhere I can stand up and dance. And afford to get to. Not much to ask!    

Due to Eurostar journey from hell and work crisis I'm a bit late posting, but like others have already said, Paris was fabulous. I arrived just before he went onstage (not one for queueing these days!) and made my way to front and far side, got a good spot :-)

You all know the setlist by now - it was great to hear the songs from the fourth album (which I've barely stopped playing since I got it) - first time I've heard them live and they sound wonderful. In fact I'd have liked him to include a couple more of them, and hopefully he might in the UK? I can happily live without ever hearing Boum Boum Boum or Elle Me Dit ever again (especially when he has such a rich catalogue of great songs to choose from), but the French crowd obviously love them, so...

Other than that I thought it was a really well-thought-out set, and Last Party is a superb closing song.

Other random observations:

1. The glowing balloons throughout the audience looked fantastic…

2. Mika clearly has far too many jackets and seems determined to demonstrate the entire collection during the show...

3. But he clearly only has one pair of trousers...

4. His dancing is much less self-conscious these days than it was in the very early days...

5. The merchandise is expensive and not particularly spectacular (and Allegra - no albums on sale as far as I could see)...

6. Melachi and Amira are my new BFFs...

7. I still can't understand French...

8. I have not booked to go to enough shows...

That's all from me. Enjoy the rest of the tour everyone! x

Hello. After the concert could you please check if there is the official merchandise stand?

I would like to know if, in the venues of the european tour, we can buy something, the vinyl disc for example.

Thank you and enjoy the gig.

Will let you know, although I can't promise a complete itemised spreadsheet with prices! 

I'm SO looking forward to this gig 

I've been counting up all Mika's UK shows on this tour. Since there is still only a grand total of one, I'm off to Paris to be French for a day…     

So we have to go through it all again on Friday then risk not being able to sell our dress circle tickets. Being a Mika fan really IS hard work isn't it.

 

I know We have been through all of these debates a thousand times before and I am not having a go, at all , at our wonderful mods... Because I know that they do their upmost to get us the best deal but it is just so infuriating.

 

It would be far better if we had to enter a code.... And preferably IMO , it just be for MFC.... Or at least a certain allocation.

 

No one ever said life was fair of course and I have nothing at all against fans from other countries buying tickets. But there seems to be something seriously wrong if fans from countries who are getting multiple gigs are able to buy tickets ahead of fans from a country that only gets one gig in three years.

 

And I also realise of course that many people who have tickets today that they may be less than happy with won't be in a financial position to buy more tickets on Friday

Yes, I really don't get the concept of "pre-sale" Wednesday, general sale Friday. Why not just say "tickets are on sale Wednesday" because there really is no difference between the two. ANYONE, including tickets agencies and touts, can follow Mika on Facebook and access the link there, and in fact ANYONE can join MFC and access the link here. Don't know how it could be made fairer, but I suppose the good news is that the Mika team might realise there's more interest in the UK than they thought (even though half the people coming seem to be from outside the UK!), and extra gigs will be added. 

I didn't get any ... 

I managed to get one - far away in Row N  , and then they were all gone . That was SO quick I'm sure lots of touts got hold of them, boo. Hope you get something on Friday in the general sale. x

Fantastic news! Although on 18.10 I will have a 3 - 3,5 month-old son (I have 9 days left till due date) as of now I'M SO GOING! Will be hunting my ticket tomorrow from 9❤️ And can't wait to see all the MFCers again - it's been a while! My last Mika show was 13.12.2012 at the Roundhouse!

That was my last Mika show too, seems SO long ago! I will be poised to click "BUY" on the dot of 9am tomorrow  

First UK gig in I don't know how long, AND in my home city, and he picks the day I'll be on a plane!

Can't believe he filmed this half an hour from my apartment, and on the film set where my ex used to work. Fabulous!

Back and had some much needed sleep! Not much to add to reports already done, which summed it up pretty well...

Hadn't seen Mika in a long time (last time was The Roundhouse) so it was great to have this odd gig between the US trip and the Far East trip. Like others have said, took me a while to find Le Phenix as it didn't seem to be where it was on the map, and for some odd reason appeared to be called Le W instead (eh?) but as it was a lovely hot sunny day, and Bourges is so pretty with lots going on everywhere, strolling around the old town was very pleasant, and I didn't bother to queue at all.

I went in just after doors and was front row far right - perfect view. Quite enjoyed Melissa Laveaux, also Jamie Cullum, but Benjamin Biolay was so godawful I went outside the venue to escape while he was on! It was all very relaxed there, so people could go out and re-enter no problem. How civilised!

Mika went down well (doesn't he always in France?!). People from age 3 to about 70 were there, and I left my position and had a good wander round towards the end of the gig and the reaction was great, right to the back of the venue.

I still feel that Mika with the old band seemed better (so I'm relieved I've been around since the start and saw the early days and watched him grow as an artist), and I still have a problem liking a lot of the newer stuff like Lola, Elle Me Dit, Celebrate, etc., as I don't feel those songs are up to the standard of his other compositions musically. But having said that, he's still one of the best live entertainers around IMO, and you can't really fail to come out of a Mika gig without a big smile on your face!

I didn't hang about afterwards so didn't say hello to anyone, but then my hotel was SO flipping far out of town I wasn't sure how I'd ever get back to it and taxis were like gold-dust with so many events going on...

Anyway, good to have had a Mika-fix to keep me going for a while!

Unfortunately I am now unable to go to this.

 

Please PM me if you need a ticket. Thanks.

Aww! Was looking forward to seeing you there!

Everyone check your email inboxes - the priority ticket link email just arrived from Mikasounds

Support group is Lilly Wood and The Prick. As names go, I'm not sure that one was a wise choice

France? FRANCE? That's a surprise. He hardly EVER plays there.