The Fray came on stage and we all went absolutely mad. ABSOLUTEly mad (see what I did there :P) I wish I could list each song in order, but unfortunately, I don’t remember the order, it turned in to on beautifully long song with a bit of chatting in between.
At first I just absorbed everything, I was completely focused on Isaac, I had never seen a live show of theirs before and his stage persona caught me off guard, I did not expect it to be that wonderful. I was close enough to see that underneath the rockstar that he was, he was a regular man, who put his heart in to these songs and was as appreciative that we loved it as a unknown musician would be. I was close enough to see that when he sings he taps his right foot on top of his left foot. That he pulls on his clothing a lot and often needs his handkerchief to wipe his head. Sure, I sound like a stalker, but I am not, I love reading in to people’s body language and the ticks that make us unique. Whether you’re a nail biter, or something who grinds their teeth, I love noticing it. And I loved seeing this, it made him so real, so unrehearsed.
Aside from his emotions and whatnot, the man is not afraid of his fans, he sang right in front of us, touching hands all over, he walked through crowds, and appeared all the way at the general standing section, giving them a golden circle experience, even just for a few minutes.
The emotion he puts in to his performance makes it obvious that it is the same emotions he felt when writing the songs. These songs are not based on what will sell, it is genuinely based on their stories. It made me feel justified for getting emotional listening to their music.
Once I was able to look around, I was drawn in by Joe, Ben and Dave. They were so focused on their crafts it was hard to split my attention between all the amazing sights. Even the crowd was something to look at.
Naturally, as a fan, I enjoyed every single song, but as a human, a few songs stood out above others. “You Found Me” was obviously one of them, and no, of course not, it was not just me who got excited, when the intro was played, people lost their shit and sang along. But not everyone, some fans were new, some were old and some weren’t even fans when they arrived, although, I am sure they were fans when they left… “Hurricane”, “Keep on Wanting”, “Wherever this Goes” were amazing, duh. But if I keep listing, I will list everything. Go on, dare me.
What took us by surprise, was Joe taking the lead and singing “Ungodly Hour”, if it has always been sung by him, I am sorry, I did not know that, shame on me for never hearing the difference, but nonetheless, it was beautiful and perfect and I wanted to save the song in my brain and replay it for the rest of my life. I always think it’s very kind for a lead singer to allow another band member to take the lead. Also, don’t assume Isaac was just sitting around twiddling his nervous thumbs, no, he was proving to us that no human being is more talented than he is by showing off his amazing piano skills.
The next soul elevating moment was, as you all were waiting for… “How to Save a Life”, I stood there fighting back tears, thinking of Scrubs and Dr. Cox and perfect songs, and this was and still is a perfect song. I am 100% sure of it, because it was the only song that the entire stadium sang together. It was glorious.
They then closed the show with “Love Don’t Die” and it cheered us all up and we were singing and dancing and I was holding out my poster just wanting them to know how I felt. Joe walked by, looked at my poster, pointed and laughed. This was already, good enough for me. But to make it all better, Isaac stood on the stage in front of me, pointed, made the sweetest heart shape – heart gesture and mouthed things to me because the music was so loud, I think I made it out to be “Thank you, means a lot”. I then screamed at my husband like a child who just found a secret jumping caste. And last but not least, Ben came over and took a photo of me and my poster and the very next day, look what I found on The Fray’s Instagram: When they walked off stage my night was made, they liked me and my poster and made a fuss of it and I was in love, with all of them.
As usual, the audience has never had enough (thank goodness), so we shouted encore until they came back up for a few more, a few more beautiful songs, “Never Say Never” and “Be Still” which are also in my top whatever, it was wonderful. Wonderful. I can’t say it enough because there aren’t many words that mean wonderful.
When the show actually ended, I bolted out the door, ready to go home and just absorb everything and of course, rest, having been at the Grand Arena for more hours than a normal person should sleep at night. Unfortunately, I missed the meet and greet and naturally have great regret, but I was a broken woman, and to be honest, I still am. I am also suffering from a serious case of PCDS and have no idea how to cure it.
To summarise: I loved it.
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Charli XCX
