24, 25, 26 March 2022 | Genesis live in LONDON | reports

i went last night via last min ticket resale on axs, the pretty loud bass was tight for me not boomy, i guess its from me sitting at the corner near the corner speaker-stack, maybe if your inbetween speaker-stacks it can boom. i brought my compact camera a recorded 9 videos on it, im going tonight, gonna try bring my mirrorless camera

Said both before but as it's come up again. I get really irritated by people who think "I'm at a gig therefore I must drink as much as possible". It's like it's some sort of rule, especially at rock gigs. As has been said, it leads to constant upping-and-downing to get the drinks and to piss them back out. As I said in another thread the other day: people - what a bunch of bloody idiots.

The other repeated comment is the story I told of an acquaintance who attended a gig (not Genesis) with a friend. It involved a hotel stay and the friend was intent on getting as much drink down him in the hotel as possible, sat in the room boozing resolutely. My acquaintance was impatient to get to the gig so left the boozer to it and said he'd meet him at the show. No sign of him then after the gig, back at the hotel room he found the tosser passed out on the floor, having drunk himself unconscious and missed the gig. Good. Serves the fuckwit right.

100% agree. We were at the concert last night which was great but I was amazed at the number of people who seemed more interested in their drinking, eating and toilet breaks. I found it hugely disrespectful to the musicians on stage. People got up time after time during some of the most poignant moments of the show. I will not go to a gig of this size again or to the O2. We see lots of music at the De La Ware Pavillion in Bexhill including Steve Hackett a few months back and this was not an issue. Everyone seemed to be there to listen to the music rather than drink all night. Last night there were some huge fans like us around us who seemed just as frustrated as we were by the attitude of other people at the concert. A lady next to me said "it is just how people are now" after she had told two guys off for chatting throughout the first hour of the show and showing no interest in the band or their performance. I saw Genesis numerous times in the 80s and 90s and my memory is that everyone sat in their seats and gave the concert their full attention. I do not recall this drinking and eating culture.

Just to say finally, despite this I had a great time. Genesis were brilliant and as it looks like this is it can I just say that they went out on a high. They were magnificent and Phil was a revelation. He was so much more engaged and enthusiastic compared to the 2007 tour.

Agreed re drinking at gigs, and also on planes. At a gig - annoying. On a plane - potentially fatal.

I think it's easier for ladies to tell these a---holes off. They're less likely to get a punch in the face, so my advice: Go with boredatwork, who told someone in front of us off at a Steve Hackett gig some years back for constantly chatting. She walked away unharmed!

Totally agree. I was going to say "shut up" but I feared they would go for me. When she told them off they just looked shocked!

Have a great show tonight everyone.

I'm looking forward to it.

Despite being in possession of Y chromosomes I do ask people to be quiet. After giving them a few minutes to possibly settle down and chat out, I politely ask them to be quiet. If required I become more terse and am prepared to be downright insulting if needed. No fisticuffs so far (though that did happen with someone who blatantly barged into a general admission queue, which we'd been in for hours, for a Radiohead gig).

I use the above approach in theatres, I see a lot of plays and have encountered in-show talkers (which is worse as the performers will often hear them). It generally works but I was once told to fuck off. As with most offenders it was a middle-aged middle-class-sounding person.

Tonight Tonight Tonight…

I went to see Muse at the 02 on the last tour taking a disabled lady with me who couldn’t stand up, selfish so and so’s in front of me stood up early in the performance with arms flaring. I after seeing this ladies back for four numbers asked if they would kindly sit down so we could see. I stressed that my friend couldn’t stand up and therefore couldn’t see. These ladies sat down for all of two songs then stood up again for the remainder of the concert. How I kept my cool I don’t know but i was progressively getting more and more annoyed with this selfishness !. An expensive evening looking at two women I can tell you!.

I do agree that people seem to spend more time going to the toilet and buying hotdogs and pints of beer ruining others evenings by supping to much.

Quote from kb1977

100% agree. We were at the concert last night which was great but I was amazed at the number of people who seemed more interested in their drinking, eating and toilet breaks. I found it hugely disrespectful to the musicians on stage. People got up time after time during some of the most poignant moments of the show. I will not go to a gig of this size again or to the O2. We see lots of music at the De La Ware Pavillion in Bexhill including Steve Hackett a few months back and this was not an issue. Everyone seemed to be there to listen to the music rather than drink all night. Last night there were some huge fans like us around us who seemed just as frustrated as we were by the attitude of other people at the concert. A lady next to me said "it is just how people are now" after she had told two guys off for chatting throughout the first hour of the show and showing no interest in the band or their performance. I saw Genesis numerous times in the 80s and 90s and my memory is that everyone sat in their seats and gave the concert their full attention. I do not recall this drinking and eating culture.

Just to say finally, despite this I had a great time. Genesis were brilliant and as it looks like this is it can I just say that they went out on a high. They were magnificent and Phil was a revelation. He was so much more engaged and enthusiastic compared to the 2007 tour.

The bigger the band, the bigger the venue, the more "diverse" (not in the good sense of the word) the crowd gets. You have TONS of people who are there just to say "that they were there". It could be Genesis or any other band for that matter. That's the real downside of becoming commercially successful (with an inordinate amount of upsides too, obviously - like those multiple mansions). The worst is stadium shows - constant jabbering and up/down. The funny part is that Genesis, certainly in the '70s, was major "weed" band. You might not like weed but it doesn't lead to people using the urinals every 10 minutes!

Grimly this 'eating and drinking' culture is all UK arena shows now.

They let you take your drinks to your seat and you can eat your cheeseburger there too.

Stella Artois at the O2 costs £7 and cheeseburger and chips costs £17.

At the door, before you come in, the kind doorman will take away any plastic drinks.

It is an enormous rip off.

Quote from BassAnd12Man

The funny part is that Genesis, certainly in the '70s, was major "weed" band. You might not like weed but it doesn't lead to people using the urinals every 10 minutes!

Dag, you beat me to the comment! Lol. Every time I saw Genesis up through the Mama Tour the weed was plentiful in the audience. I knew times had changed when at the IT Tour show at RFK Stadium in DC the preppy girls sitting two rows in front of us freaked out when they smelled it. I swore off the stuff a long time ago now, but hey, it was a different era back then.

Great show tonight.

The sound is insane.

Was a fantastic experience.

So grateful.

I did have a Gulpy McBeerFace next to me tonight but apart from exuding an intense fog of lager he didn't actually bother me. In fact, he seemed to use an alternative route to and from his precious beer which didn't involve shuffling past me.

Quote from bromleybruce

Stella Artois at the O2 costs £7 and cheeseburger and chips costs £17.

Ahead of the final gig my sister and I are having a nice big meal near Waterloo before the quick journey over. I noticed there's also a collection of streetfood stands under cover near the O2 which look worth a try.

Eating at the various chains surrounding the arena is oddly dispiriting so I now avoid it. Today I ate at the very good Brasserie Blanc (or 'Ray White' as I call it) where I stuffed myself from the pre-theatre menu for £20, three courses.

Quote

At the door, before you come in, the kind doorman will take away any plastic drinks.

You put in my head an amusing image of an O2 red&gold-uniformed top-hatted doorman genially confiscating plastic bottles.

I really hope Phil decides to truly give it everything he can vocally for the final show. I mean... why not? It's not like he has to try and "preserve" his voice for any more shows after this. No holding back.

Quote from choccy

The sound is insane.

This! I couldn't believe how powerful and raw the sound was when I saw them in December. It was aggressive in a way I don't associate with Genesis. I loved it.

Hi all, first post here.

That was bloody superb. Got quite emotional during Afterglow and in The Carpet Crawlers. An unexpected highlight of the set for me was I Know What I Like, it blew the roof off the place!

Phil's voice was great, particularly in the first half. It did get a tiny bit more strained towards the end but he was still hitting all the notes. I think he forgot the words to one of the verses in Domino which gave me a laugh.

A fantastic night and an honour to see what is likely to be Genesis' penultimate gig.

Unfortunately I did come back with a second mortgage though. £15.50 for a burger. Give me strength

And then there was one.

Quote from thewatcher

This! I couldn't believe how powerful and raw the sound was when I saw them in December. It was aggressive in a way I don't associate with Genesis. I loved it.

I think Domino was actually the flattest of the set sound wise, at least at the beginning.

Phil just paused on one verse in Domino which was funny, lost his way a bit and came back In later.

I recorded full version of Mama. Second Home by the Sea & the End from TTT onwards.

Rest, just did little bits on most but not all, as wanted to savour the experience.

Also have bad flu so I was struggling for energy at times lol

Phil though sounded great and when you watch live, it's totally different experience to some of the videos on you tube.

O2 arena..... £4 for water.... shame on you.