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Toronto, Ontario CANADA - The Opera House - April 5, 2013 - REPORTS / PICS / VIDEOS

guylainem123

By guylainem123
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guylainem123

guylainem123

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Ok my Toronto friends!!! :canada:

 

Let's hear about your gig experience!

We want to hear everything! EVERYTHING :fangurl:

 

0e0a8bbc9e6811e2bd6422000a9f12df_7.jpg

Thanks for the picture Christine! :swoon:

 

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REPORTS

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Christine: http://www.mikafanclub.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3895931&postcount=8

 

 

 

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PICS

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VIDEOS

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REVIEWS

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http://www.theneonmix.com/2013/04/review-mika-toronto-april-5.html (blogger)

http://bandspace.com/concert_reviews/19365 (+ pics)

http://www.weraddicted.com/the-magic-of-mika/

Edited by mari62
adding links - post 35
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Christine

Christine

Posted
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Okay I'm going to get the bad out of the way first because it was really bad. :aah:

 

I know people think that these no-barrier small gigs are always great but the problem in some venues is if you are too close to the stage then all the speakers are behind you and you cannot hear ANYTHING coming out of them because the sound is being projected away from you. That's exactly what was happening here and it really sucked :(

 

The one good thing in this instance is there wasn't a lot of noise and chaos like you have at a normal gig so at least there were times when I could hear Mika singing very clearly without the amplification from the speakers. I was just as close to the piano as I was at the points gig and he didn't need a microphone then either, although obviously with the size of the room and everyone in the audience singing, etc. it was not as clear as that.

 

But when he wasn't at the piano and came to the front to sing he was literally just inches away so then I could hear him singing for real and of course it was phenomenal :mf_lustslow: He did that for Underwater and Stardust which are two of my favourites so that was really amazing!

 

He didn't do Bonnie & Clyde and not even Century Man. I guess it was at that point in the setlist that I saw him turn to Curtis and clearly enunciate LO-LA a couple of times and then they started playing Lola. I guess it was a good thing in retrospect because again he came out from behind the piano and sang at the front of the stage and interacted with the audience a lot more. He was giving the microphone to people to sing their parts in the whole "lo-la lo-la" thing and then started moaning that no one could sing. A friend of mine was in the balcony and said she thought that was really weird. We paid to hear you sing Mika, why are you moaning that the audience can't sing? :naughty:

 

He was very chatty but I could barely hear a thing. It was worse than the sound with the singing because of course he's not projecting his voice as much when he's just chatting. I understood less than gigs I've been to where he's speaking French. :aah:

 

I remember in one of the other gig threads that Mika spoke to someone who had been queuing since 7 am or something and mentioned that she had a terrible view because she was on the far side of the piano. So he tried to engage some girls in the Toronto audience in the same conversation but of course no one in the front row could hear what he was saying. So he was like oh, you've waited here since 2 pm and you can't see anything and you can't hear anything. Great. :freak:

 

He was saying something about Hia Leah and I think he said it was a "little song" and he was only going to do it on this tour. When he came out someone said they liked his shoes and I think he was pretending to be a bit miffed, like oh you're supposed to say you love me but you just love my shoes :shun:

 

But honestly I could barely understand what he was saying most of the time. :aah: Miraculously though I understood one story and I'm very happy I did because he was talking about me and 3 other MFCers in the audience! :teehee:

 

He started talking about the last time they were in Toronto when they were getting ready to tour North America in 2009. He said they didn't have any show so he came up with this idea of being an astronaut, etc. and Yasmine went out and got some balls that they needed to paint to turn into planets. I did miss part of the story at this point because I don't know what he said into the lead up to the next bit (although I suspect it was maybe something about them not having enough time or people to put the planets together). He said some fans were hanging around outside the rehearsals because they were nosey.

 

Of course the nosey part was very true but thankfully he left out some other details about the whole incident :teehee: Anyway he said he got us to put the planets together for him and then said that we were there tonight and pointed to the four of us in the front row.

 

It was such a special day for all of us in 2009 and we reminisce about it all the time so it was incredible to hear him reminiscing about it in public like that and giving us a shoutout. :fangurl:

 

Anyway I am really looking forward to DC now because I don't expect these sound problems and this show is so different to any I've seen before.

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kath

kath

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Thanks Christine for your report. I know exactly what you mean about the sound as that is how I felt at Arthur's Day .... Sometimes you can be just too close :wink2:.

Glad you enjoyed it apart from that though.

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krysady

krysady

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Thanks,Christine! I'm sorry about the sound thing,we got the same in Istanbul,and we wasn't even close to the stage,we couldn't hear his voice at all :aah: And I'm so sorry about Hia Leah,I was hoping for a recording version....

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superstar

superstar

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Christine! Thanks for the report!

 

The sound is a real bummer--that's why we go to these concerts...to hear him! :naughty: That being said, it sounds like he's in a great mood on this tour and in top condition vocally. I hope you have luck in DC! And you can stop by for LPR if you want.... :fisch:

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Christine

Christine

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The sound is a real bummer--that's why we go to these concerts...to hear him! :naughty: That being said, it sounds like he's in a great mood on this tour and in top condition vocally. I hope you have luck in DC! And you can stop by for LPR if you want.... :fisch:

 

Yes!! There are so many other things Mika has going for him that make these gigs special - especially back in my Mika fever days. :naughty: But when this first happened to me at a Vancouver show in 2009 I realized that there is no magic if the music is not loud and clear. It's like food can have all kinds of other properties like visual appeal that also make it appetizing but if you've lost your sense of taste they all become meaningless.

 

I can enjoy a gig regardless of the set and props and costumes. I don't care if Mika grows old and bald (or even if he wears ugly hats :mf_rosetinted:). As much as I love his energy I can still enjoy a gig immensely if he is just sitting quietly at a piano. But if the sound sucks it kills the whole vibe and you just can't experience it the same way.

 

It is tempting to come to LPR because you can literally sit on the stage and the sound will be phenomenal. It is still in my top 3 gigs and I don't know if many will ever top it. Although there are other problems with the venue I do not want to deal with. :aah: all I can say is make very good friends with security and ask them to help you out.

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Christine

Christine

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Thank you for the report Christine :thumb_yello:

I feel sorry that you couldn't hear his voice so good, as you said that's the most important thing :aah:

 

Thanks. There's always next time so it's not that big of a deal. :wink2:

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Christine

Christine

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Here's a review from a blogger. My favourite bit in bold. :naughty:

 

http://www.theneonmix.com/2013/04/review-mika-toronto-april-5.html

 

mika is every homo's dream (top AND bottom). he's suave and has got genius like talent - hell, i'd like a go at him. the acoustic set, cheekily titled the dirty laundry tour,*sold out the opera house last night in toronto as every gay and his best gal pal were in attendance. it's been a while since he's been in our city and he's always had a soft spot for us; the last time he was here in 2009, torontonian fans crashed his rehearsal and ended up helping him build his solar-system stage from scratch. he playfully told the audience not to mention to montreal that we were the better of the two cities (ruckus roars of approval followed).*

 

there's a real showmanship to mika and how he approaches music. his set could have easily doubled as a musical; there is real story and a lot of heart behind his lyrics. before the show even started, a*voice over of mika*played, asking the audience not to film the show in hopes of keeping the set special as it changes in ever city. a funny thing happened - people actually listened. unlike most artists who tend to play their biggest hits as encores, he opened with his infamous track*grace kelly, immediately revving up the crowd and starting the set of right.

 

he himself looked and carried himself like a 1950s movie star and despite him being labelled as a pop act, there was nothing overproduced about him. every song had a story and he would give personal anecdotes to the inspirations behind his creations, allowing the crowd to partake in a rather lighthearted intimacy with him - you wanted to laugh when he laughed and wanted to be serious when he wanted to be serious. knowing the stories behind the songs made them that much more powerful and authentic.*

 

set highlights included billy brown, love you when i'm drunk, underwater, stuck in the middle, big girls (you are beautiful), emily/elle me dit (both the english and french versions), relax, happy ending, celebrate and love today. the 20+ song featured songs from his latest release, origin of love, from his past albums and brand new ones (hence the disclaimer at the beginning).*

 

like every great*performance*of the stage, the show ended with a complete black out, standing ovation and a final bow.

 

class. just pure and utter class.

 

Follow Sarah on Twitter: @SarahMoteelall

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tiibet

tiibet

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Thanks for writing your report, Christine! :thumb_yello: Sorry to hear about the sound... Didn't have this problem at the gigs I saw in California/Vegas at all, the sound was perfect, but as Krysady said, in Istanbul we couldn't hear his voice all the time and I guess quite often the sound is better a bit far away from stage (and not front row). But it's beyond amazing to hear his "real" voice, isn't it... Must have been so special he mentioned your planet painting session :wub2:

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