Free is Free

Alright, this picture looks really gay - but hey, it is Depeche Mode, after all.

Catching up on blog entries here....a few weeks ago my wife won a pair of free tickets to see Depeche Mode and a meet-and-greet prior to the show.

It was a typical cold, dark, and blustery Chicago evening so we were definitely on the fence about going to this one. It's funny being in your late 20's - it's no longer a no-brainer that you will go out on a weeknight, but nor is it clear that staying in and getting a sensible eight hours of sleep is the preferred option.

Anyhow, we did end up going and making the trek to the burbs. It was an interesting cross-section of scoiety to say the least - goths, yuppies, the elderly, the handicapped, townies, white trash, gays, lesbians, etc. - Depeche Mode brought out all of them!

As for the meet-and-greet, it was pretty lame - very military-like in nature. We were ushered in three groups of varying numbers and were instructed to shake each of the band members' hands and to move on. There was no time for words and barely any time for eye contact. We then took the obligatory "group photo" with the band and then it was all over.

I will say that I had no expectations of the show but I'll give credit where credit is due. These guys put on an entertaining and inspired performance. I hadn't heard much of the new album before but the tunes were good. They did a number of hits from Violator - "Policy of Truth" and "Personal Jesus" and a couple from Songs of Faith and Devotion - "I Feel You" and "Walking in My Shoes" and ended the set with everyone in the arena singing along to "Enjoy the Silence."

In the end it was a good show and I am glad we dragged our old twentysomething bones to the free concert.