So, here it was, my first concert of the Dream Tour. I was expecting a lot after having read the setlists of the Spanish shows and the first French shows, and I can say that I enjoyed the show a lot. The sound was very good, light show and mixing were excellent also, but the audience was unexpectedly too quiet.

I am used to those French concerts where an excited audience shouts and screams at every word Robert says, I am used to feel how the audience respects and enjoys every song the band plays, and I must admit I was really disappointed by how the audience (at least people very close to the stage) appreciated songs like the snakepit, shake dog shake or end, wondering if the cure were covering some other bands, I was also very disappointed by how the German security staff was so very rude with people : this was a concert, not a wrestling show …

So, the whole concert was really good, very well played, very well enlightened by a perfect light show, the pictures used as scene background are beautiful and fit perfectly with the songs. The Snakepit was very brilliant, Robert playing the flute was a very high peak of that concert, shake dog shake was brilliant also.

The encores were great, especially the very last one, with Faith and its couple of extra lyrics. That was obviously not everyone’s idea , as people kept on going to the bar probably trying to make their party just get better and better…

In conclusion, I can say that the show was technically perfect, but was emotionally below my expectations, and I am so very much looking forward to the French dates, especially both evenings in Paris…

See you there !

My second dream tour show, a little unexpected, as I only decided to go to Rotterdam at 5pm. I bought my tickets in front of the Ahoy to a reseller. It was my first concert in Rotterdam,and I was not disappointed at all. Even if the audience was really quiet, most probably because of the pot ...

So, the show was really good, and the highest peaks were The Kiss (when Simon had to ask Robert to start singing!!!), the Snakepit (Robert on the flute, two concerts in a row makes anyone badly addicted) and Sinking, which is absolutely wonderfully played and the little camera on Robert's microphone makes it even more beautiful…

There were only two encores and the concert was a little short, and Robert still enjoys walking on the stage from left to right during Plainsong, trying to salute all the audience.

Rotterdam was a very good concert, a little short though, and I was expecting much more for the Lille venue...

So, here it was, The CURE playing almost home. I immediately felt the audience was very hot when it started shouting at the support band (Ekova, which is absolutely lovely, even if a little noisy). It was the day Robert was supposed to party for his Birthday, and many fans had prepared little flags with Happy Birthday written on it. When the light turned off, everyone started shouting, and pushing. It was really great.

The first songs of the concert were the traditional OOTW, Watching me fall, Want, Fascination Street and Open...The first very good surprise of the show was Pictures of you. The second one came real fast, and it made the crowd get completely mad : Shake dog shake. The audience started singing Happy Birthday a couple of times, and it obviously seemed that Robert was highly emotive that evening.

The encores were exactly the same than in Rotterdam, and the last very good surprise of the show was Faith, with Robert trying to find new words which he unfortunately never found, he though couldn't hide his tears at the end of the show....

Le Zenith, where The CURE recorded their Live Album Paris was sold out for weeks. And it seems that everyone was expecting a lot for those two shows. As usual, Ekova opened the evening, and was better Welcome than in Lille.

The show started once again with the same songs, and the first unusual song was The Snakepit, which was truly brilliant, Robert playing the flute is definitely a must of this tour! The show reached rapidly a even higher level when the first notes of Siamese Twins were played. All the audience went mad, and the first part of the set ended with 39 and Bloodflowers.

The first encore was a dream come true, Robert saying something like 'a very Curious choice' in French or something supposed to be French...and history began : Cold, Figurehead, and Pornography.

The second encore was a little deja-vu, but it is still a real pleasure to see how Robert teases the audience on Plainsong.

And for one of the first time this year, they went a little 'poppy' with Boys don't cry and A Forest. The concert was over, the lights turned on, and everyone had mixed feelings : sad it was over, and really looking forward to seeing the second gig...

The first part of this show was almost perfect with A Strange Day, Shiver & Shake, Pictures of you, The Kiss and Where the birds always sing. We all were impatient to hear Robert announce the encore songs, and when they started All cats are grey we all knew this evening would be history again...

They played The Drowning Man and Faith, and the last encore was absolutely wonderful. The audience was totally crazy when they started 10.15.

I just realized that I forgot to tell you how loud they did play those both evenings. It was the very first time I see the CURE play so loud, and it is not a surprise at all as Robert, Simon and Perry kept asking the crew to turn it up song after song...

So, that was it, two crazy evenings in Paris...

Strasbourg - April 30th 2000 - Le Rhenus

Out Of This World, Watching Me Fall, Want, Fascination Street, Open, If Only Tonight We Could Sleep, Maybe Someday, Shake Dog Shake, Like Cockatoos, Edge of the Deep Green Sea, Inbetween Days, Last Day of Summer, Sinking, Prayers for Rain, 100 Years, 39, Bloodflowers

1st encore : Cold, A Strange Day, Pornography
2nd encore : Plainsong, Disintegration
3rd encore : M, Play for Today, Just Like Heaven, A Forest
4th Encore : All Cats Are Grey, Faith.

Before going to Strasbourg, I was really wondering if it would be worth it...The evening started as usual : a the careful audience listened quietly to Ekova, and then the show started with the classic Dream Tour songs.

The very first high peak of the evening was Cockatoos, and the show ended on 39 (which is on my point definitely much better live than on the album) and Bloodlfowers.

The first encore was simply as magic as in Paris : '3 songs from Pornography' announced Mr Smith, and some lines of Pornography are still in my head (one more day like today and I'll kill you...must fight this sickness...). It was absolutely magic !

The second and third encore are now classics in this dream tour, and everybody thought having attended a terrific show after the last notes of A forest, but the lights didn't turn on, and The Cure came back on stage for a 4th encore ! Incredible, Never-seen before...They started All cats are grey, and Robert came out from nowhere and started singing. They finished with Faith, and its traditional extra lyrics.

We all knew we once again had a wonderful evening. Thank you to The Cure for this dream tour. I will now attend a couple of shows in California before attending a couple of festivals...See you there...