Fri March 5th 2004 London, Shepherds Bush Empire

Well what can i say? after 26yrs of following Gary around we said 2 years ago that would be it, gigs sounded the same, same set, it was getting boring when we were travelling every where from Norwich, But after missing the last two year we decided to go to London for the gig,for a final fling, all i can say is im glad we did, what a fantastic gig, the sound from where we were was awesome, we stood upstairs at the back (dont like sitting at gigs)the accoustics up there sounds better than downstairs, we tried it at the 25yr gig and it sounded awfull, the songs were put in a brilliant order and starting with metal i thought HEY this is going to be good, the new songs i felt were alright but should sound great out of a studio, but i do think the whispering bits are old hat Gary , you done it on pure and i feel that was enough, he knows he can sing, so sing dont talk,(my only gripe, sorry).
when im a agent came on i went ballistic as its one of my favs, was gutted he didnt do CARS as that song makes a numan gig.
prayer for the unborn should be played at every gig he does because that sounds great live, i was surprised he finished with AFE, i was expecting another one after, but all in all it was afantastic gig and we are back so roll on the next one,

Cheers Gary HAYDN

a very good friend of mine and i travelled especially from germany (munich/frankfurt) to this gig...(for me it was the 6th time for a numan concert in the uk)

it was worthwhile every second...gary looked fantastic..performed very well and although the sound had its ups and downs we enjoyed it a lot...every time again we would travel again to see the man who influenced us like no other musician since 1979...

we are proud to be numans fans...

can't await the new album!!!!

numanhuman.stefan

an enjoyable mismash of a set
but with a crowd so quiet and seated that the night lacked atmosphere

chris godden

What a vast improvement on the last weekender. The sound was superb the songs outstanding. The 3 new tracks were Numan at his best. The best was haunted, but all 3 tracks will be welcome on the new album. Nighttalk was a surprise but well executed. Roll on the release of Jagged Halo and Garys next tour!

Dave Numan

Always enjoy the Shepherds Bush shows, but this was one of the best, set list was just right, good mix of old and new and the new sounded great. Gary looked great and the atomsphere was electric!

From where we were standing at back, Gary's voice sometimes was difficult to hear, but that could have been down to the number of people that continually talked through the entire show, why didn't they just go to the pub?
Can't wait for the new album!

Reggie

It's now Monday morning and my body has just got over Friday night.I just wanted to add my praises to what was the best Numan gig for a few years.I do think most people were a bit harsh on the previous gigs considering that Gary had just become a dad nevertheless Sheperds Bush was kicking on Friday.Does God Bleed and the Led Zep riff of I think Jagged being the highlights for me (and I hate Led Zep)but best of all NIGHT TALK was excellent.

More from Dance in future please Gary...........

Riptorn

All i can say is what a great night. Gary and the band were on top form. Thought the three new songs were excellent,and they fitted in nicely with the rest of the very good and varied set.
The atmosphere was fantastic and at one stage Gary seemed to be totally taken back by it. I took along my mates 20 year old son for his first Numan gig and he loved it.
After this show i can't wait for the release of Jagged Halo. Hope its not too long. Till the next time Mr Numan, thank you very much.

Paul S

Sound...7/10: Here's the surprise. I have read quite a lot about improved sound, and I admit that the music and instruments had a brilliant sound. But, from where we were standing, ground flour standing, just after the stairs, no way we could understand any word Gary was singing. I mean, we heard his voice but couldn't figure out what he was singing. Which was unfortunate, since we could clearly understand the voice and lyrics of the opener.

Atmosphere: 9/10

Back in Brussels on 05.00am Saturday morning.

Luc De Visscher
The Numan Factor
Belgium

Simply Perfect, Great Sound, Great Audience, Great Band, Awesome Gary.

Dead-Heaven

The atmosphere in O'Neils pub was improving by the minute as the time drew nearer. The place was packed as always with familar faces from AFEnet and everyone was looking forward to the gig.A lot of (lucky) people had already been to Nottingham and Cardiff and reports were excellant so it looked like it could be good.(We were not to be dissapointed).

'Exposure' became tonights intro and the band took to the stage amidst dry ice and superb lights.The atmosphere was brilliant, the venue being rammed once again with eager Numo's waiting to see if this would be an improvement on the last weekender shows in Manchester and The Astoria.
As soon as the first song 'Films' kicked in, you could tell that the sound was a huge improvement and that was evident on the faces of everyone (a kind of phew..relief, not another 2 hours of waste like last time).The sound engineer needs a pat on the back whoever he is..when Numan sang the quiet parts,he upped the volume (not rocket science is it but something that the guy before could'nt work out!).The reworking of second track 'Call out the dogs' really worked and was powerful.The vocals were clear, you could hear every instrument clearly and the synths sounded brilliant on every song.
It was a well thought out set with songs from the early days ('I'm an Agent' and 'Night Talk' both stunners and my favourites of the night) next to the 3 brand new tracks.
The 3 new songs were presented to us in the best possible way, clearly.'Haunted' sounded great and will be a great album track but the other two are far superior in my eyes.'Does God Bleed' was the best and has that classic hook of a Numan chorus..It's still stuck in my head now).'Jagged' was really cool too and could well be a single, very powerful with another big chorus, it was nice to hear this properly this time.
The time seemed to fly by too quickly and I have to say I was gutted when it was allover.'Are friends Electric?' was the final song and got the usual response with the Num army joining in.

Overall, Gary looked great, very skinny but not ill looking like the last weekender (he's caught up on his sleep now)..The band looked cool and relaxed but played very tightly.The sound was awesome (sometimes it seemed a tad quiet but we prefer quality to quantity) and the lights were excellant.It was probably one of the best Numan gigs I have been to in the last 10 yeas in all honesty.Well done to everyone involved.It had a lot to live up to and it did it with ease.
Thankyou very much Gary.

gArYcEe

In honesty I've not enjoyed the last couple of shows I've been to nearly as much as I used to, but last night's was different. I don't know if it was because I could actually hear Gary's vocals or because there was more new material, but I suspect it was actually because I was taking my daughters (12 and 14) to their first Numan gig. They said they loved it, and can't wait for the next one (though they could just be trying to make their old dad happy).

The set list was as follows:

Intro
Films
Call Out the Dogs
Crazier
Rip
Does God Bleed
Metal
My Jesus
Walking with Shadows
Down in the Park
Haunted
Prophecy
I'm an Agent
Desire
Jagged
A Prayer for the Unborn
M.E.
Nighttalk
My Breathing
Are 'Friends' Electric?

The highlights for me were Nighttalk, which worked surprisingly well along side the newer songs, and the new material, especially Haunted. The lights were good, the band tight (apart from screwing up I'm an Agent), and the crowd as lively and good natured as always.
A great night.

Dante

What a fantastic gig, great sound, the crowd were brilliant.

Loved the new songs especially Jagged. Gary put loads of effort into the songs giving it his best.

What about Night Talk, mind blowing.

Can't wait for the new album.

Wendy