Summer

Jun
17
2012
Oslo, NO
Norwegian Wood Festival

Fun and rock in the bathroom - Sting found the tone with The Police, and then sparks sometimes flew...


Sting has this undefined thing about him, a kind of eternal youth where he enters the stage in his characteristic T-shirt. It has nothing to do with age.


Sting radiates both healthy energy and buckets of self-confidence. The audience is packed. Expectant. He smiles. Tonight we get him in an almost small format. People either love him or they hate everything he stands for.


His social commitment and somewhat self-conscious nature create controversy. The man has the courage of opinions. That's okay. In addition, his intricate, often jazz-influenced pop songs have distanced him somewhat from the pure rock crowd.


Tonight he is with his own people.


Sting has more than enough good songs to take off, but it is and will be the songs from his time as a young rock star that have the most punch. It opens sharply with the trio 'All This Time', 'Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic' and 'Englishman in New York', the latter with full sing-along. Together they immediately display an energy on stage that is infectious.


Then it almost comes to an abrupt halt with 'Seven Days' from the album 'Ten Summoner’s Tales' from 2003, before the driving Police classic 'Demolition Man' increases the pulse again.


This year Sting celebrates his 25th anniversary as a solo artist, and it is also 26 years since the trio The Police disbanded.


It is no secret that it is the latter group that was the most potent and rewarding period. They were not punks, but formed under the guise of their flag. However, it is as a solo artist and songwriter that he has grown into a superstar.


Sting has a unique ability to attract eminent musicians, and so it is this time. For the undersigned, it is the old Zappa drummer Vinnie Colaiuta who stands out as the very engine and connecting link in the band. Even on the less exciting songs he finds a rhythm pattern that gives the songs extra power, which Sting's bass can hone in on and play against.


Guitarist Dominic Miller is a guitarist who knows how to give that little extra, the guitar solos are catchy and play up to his audience, who are on board with the music. Much of the same can be attributed to Peter Ticket's electric fiddle, which gives the music an exciting soundscape.


Veteran keyboardist David Sancious fills in, adds texture and gives the music depth. Finally, there is the backing vocalist Jo Lawry, who has both vocal power and flexibility.


One of the highlights of the evening is 'Driven To Tears', another Police song. Full throttle, here it really boils. 'Fields Of Gold' and 'Shape Of My Heart' show Sting's softer side. While 'Message In The Bottle' brings out the smile. They give even the less catchy songs much-needed energy, even if they don't save them completely.


This band has a flexibility that is worthy of respect. They are fully up to the task whether it is Sting's more jazzy side, his slightly soaring tendencies, or his more energetic youthful sins that are to be revealed.


I personally prefer the latter category, and to emphasize the point, Sting closes the set, first with the Arabic-inspired 'Desert Rose', and then three songs from The Police: 'King Of Pain', 'Every Breath You Take' and 'Next To You'. And thus he saves the evening in an excellent way.


(c) Aftonbladet by Svein Andersen


Old people can grumble - But they should basically leave that to those with teeth...


Everything was in place for a perfect evening with Sting. It was dry and Frognerbadet, the place where the music is always old and the audience is the same. So a tradition, and thus not to say that it means a boring evening. Just the way it is. But perhaps you have to expect it to be a bit tough at the beginning anyway, - things take time to warm up and get going.


Not for that, Sting is not exactly old in that sense - the vitality is not only to be traced in the toughness of walking in a t-shirt in a cold Norwegian June summer. He has the songs, of course, but also the experience to deliver.


Nevertheless, the undersigned was not convinced during the first few songs, not least because of how familiar and sing-along they were. Possibly because of the somewhat murky coherence in sound, perhaps it may have been that a couple of the hits, including Englishman, were run through relatively quickly and indifferently. As if to finish them off, not to set the mood.


It was probably because it was all a bit flat and tame.


The lovely twilight of the midsummer evening clearly helped the mood somewhat. The band on stage woke up a little – and dragged their audience along in cheers after each song. Old people can play, no doubt about it! With their shoulders a little more lowered (Sting must have gotten the heat from playing guitar and twisting verses out of himself), the songs also became rounder in their performance, things relaxed a little and the band never looked back before leaving the stage almost two hours later.


But my God, it's not that they're not good! But you just want more than a nice run-through of the hit list. This is the man who has ruled the world with its indifference and with his own desire for involvement. Then it would have been nice to have something more than a cuddle and a good time on a summer night.


When what's most disturbing is Kordama's insane solo, or the violin's savage beats, something is missing. It wasn't just the highlights where Sting didn't contribute much himself that were the most captivating.


And he himself was the most captivating as his former self - several of the songs were from his time in The Police - and he also ended the whole thing with the fierce Next To You


There's volume, but not punch. Perhaps it's because this is a festival and not his own concert. Sting on Sunday night might have done better stripped down and in a small, tight venue.


He wasn't there, so it's a wish.


(c) Nettavisen

Comments
0

PHOTOS

img
img
img