Tindersticks live in Vienna 2022

Disclaimer: It's been over 2 months of war in Ukraine as I'm writing this. I still feel the guilt and shame that I'm safe here while people are dying in my home country. I am not sure I should do any fun things anymore, but I still decided to write about some of the important things for me just to keep track and have them as memories. Glory to Ukraine!

Tindersticks
Akzent Theatre, Vienna

April 23, 20:00

Tindersticks are one of my all-time favourite bands. And not just "one of those", they are right there in the pantheon of those truly special artists that I will love no matter what. I became a fan early on, some time in 95-96, and it stuck with me forever.

Yet, I have never seen them live. I saw everyone (of the still existing bands) but for Tindersticks. I lived most of my life in Ukraine and there was no chance for them to come there or for me to even go anywhere to see them play. Then I moved to Canada and they hardly ever come to North America as well. So finally now, when I live in Europe, I decided that I will definitely see them live next time. I bought my tickets to their Vienna show back in 2019 and then Covid struck. My tickets were not cancelled as the show was rescheduled. And then it was rescheduled again. Finally, in 2022 it looked like it would definitely happen. And then russia attacked Ukraine starting a war. I thought I would not be able to go, I did not really want it that much any more, but then with time passing, I started contemplating on going. I would have definitely passed on someone else, but this is a special band, the last band that I have never seen live. 

In 2019 the concert was billed as just a regular show to promote No Treasure But Hope. But then, the concept changed to a 30th anniversary show with string section and special guests. Vienna became the first stop of the tour and I was really excited. It was fun thinking over the potential setlist and all the old songs and surprises they may play. 

In 2020 I was supposed to go to Ostrava first and then take a Czech train to Vienna. But now there is a cheap direct train from Katowice, so I had an early morning bus ride there and then 4.5 hours train to Vienna. My hotel was really close to the train station and just a short walk from the venue. I loved Akzent Theatre it is a small classy theatre not far from the Belvedere. Even though it's close to the train station and the street leads to the Karlskirche, it's a really quiet space, next to a small park. There is an outdoor café right at the entrance and lots of concert-goers were enjoying their pre-and post-show drinks there. I did not have the ticket, only the purchase confirmation, so I had to collect it from the ticket office. 

Tindersticks started their tour in Vienna. My show was the last one of the three shows within 2 days. All in the same theatre. All billed as anniversary shows with string orchestra and special guests. A corresponding release is a best-of compilation, so I was very excited about the setlist, trying to guess what can be played. I promised myself I would not look into the setlists of the 2 previous shows, but I still inadvertently saw bits and pieces of the song names played. 

Finally I got inside. There was no opening band. In fact, it did not even resemble a rock/pop concert, it all felt like a theatrical performance. I heard bells signaling the show is about to begin. I had a seat very close to the stage. The theatre was full with a much older and very-well dressed crowd. It was all very classy and bohemian.

The first song of the night was Willow, now re-recorded for Past Imperfect with Stuart's vocals. He was right in the center of the stage, wearing a funny hat that he had bought in Vienna. His voice sounded amazing. First few songs were quiet, and then gradually more players started appearing onstage. I was a bit puzzled, as I had an idea that there should be 2 distinct parts of the show - just the band and then with the string section. But this idea is also cool. It was especially touching when the great Terry Edwards entered the stage for the trumpet part in Sleepy Song. It gave me chills and I even shed a few tears. It was one of the highlights of the evening for me. 

The whole setup sounded simply superb. I loved every second of it. Even the songs that I don't care that much for, were much better live than on the record. The cellos and the trumpet really augmented the overall sound of the band. However, with that being said, I was slightly disappointed with the choice of songs. It got clear that Tindersticks tried to stick to the the tracklist of Past Imperfect - their new best-of compilation. But even in this case some of their old songs were missing. It's especially tragic for their classic albums - we only got Her from 1993 eponymous and Another Night In from Curtains. But then there were a few from their 1995 masterpiece, which I firmly consider my second favourite album ever (after Disintegration by The Cure). But I knew that the bandmembers were just hitting their stride and still deciding on the best songs to be played during the tour. Still, it was not enough of the old songs for me. I was especially upset about Can We Start Again, Tiny Tears and For Those which they had played during an earlier show. But we still got My Oblivion and that was simply otherworldly. 

My favourite moment of the night was the start of the encore when I recognized My Sister. I had no idea they would play it, as it's such a non-standard song which must be hard to play. I never hoped I would hear it one day. Other highlights were She's Gone, Were We Once Lovers and especially Black Night that I was unfamiliar with previously. It's a cover and it is much better than the original. 

I hardly took any pics and did not shoot any videos. It was not that kind of a concert. But it did not matter, I was simply enjoying the songs, the sound of cellos and vibraphones, Stuart's voice. It was all simply perfect and I'm over the moon that I was there. It was worth the wait and the long bus ride home. It looks like Tindersticks may play in Wroclaw very soon and I'm thinking of going there again.