+LIVE+ deliver with Reunion World Tour

After raging on the floor in 2006, but having kept fairly sedate in our seats for the unplugged walk-through of Throwing Copper, I was very happy to be back on the floor this time. Looking up at the grandstands at the people parked in their seats - I couldn’t think of a worse place to be to experience these legends first-hand.

Photography by Sean Brand

Upon entering the GrandWest Arena, we saw a tiny chick dominating the stage with a big guitar and bigger voice. Cape Town alternative rock band The Sweetest Resistance had the honour of opening for the main act. And in the I'm-so-tired-I-could-be-drunk haze of the morning after, I can’t for the life of me remember the name of the Audioslave track they covered, but she did an incredible job taking on the song. Watch this band, folks.

A quarter of a century’s worth of material

Soon after clearing and resetting the stage, Mr. Kowalczyk and his band of brothers took over and started us off with All Over You. With a quarter of a century’s worth of material, it was hard to keep track of the tracks, but they treated us to a little of everything. Some of the songs they played off Throwing Copper were I Alone, Selling the Drama, Iris, White, Discussion as well as the special tribute to his hometown with Shit Towne and he may have flipped us the bird during T.B.D. Tracks from Distance to Here were Dolphin’s Cry, The Distance, and They Stood Up for Love; tracks off Secret Samadhi included Lakini’s Juice and Rattlesnake, along with the title track from Mental Jewellery, among others.

Photography by Sean Brand

After the band disappeared off stage, the crowd roused the call for more and solo Ed appeared with his acoustic-electric guitar. He launched into Heaven, but had us in hysterics somewhere around the second or third verse when, without missing a beat, the lyrics melodically came out as something along the lines of “And I can’t remember the words to this fucking song that I wrote!” before catching up with the chorus once again. Lead guitarist Chad Taylor joined him halfway through the next song and the rest of the band joined thereafter. The opening bars of Run to the Water were suddenly cut short and Ed came back to the mic to apologise “Sorry guys! Do you mind if we start that again?” he asked us. “I fucked up. Someone must have done something to my Jack Daniel’s," he laughed, “coz that was my fault. But at least you know we’re actually playing!” Thanks for always keeping it real, guys.

Chatty showmen

Ever the showmen, they kept us entertained between songs with stories of their childhoods together and their observations on the country and world at large. Early on in the show, we were treated to their cover of Johnny Cash’s Walk the Line. One of the last songs of the night was a tribute to the late Chris Cornell and I immediately recognised the first strains of Audioslave’s Highway and they totally did it the justice it deserved.

Photography by Sean Brand

As my friend and I discussed halfway through, the band had not yet played Lightning Crashes and reckoned there would be a lot of pissed off fans if they didn’t. Well. For those of you who left at intermission or just after, you missed the epic finalé as they closed with the legendary track.

After 25 years, +LIVE+ still do what they do best live (if you'll forgive the pun). And it’s no wonder they’re touted as a global concert juggernaut. Thanks again for a spectacular evening out. Until next time.

+LIVE+ play at Sun International’s Sun Arena at Time Square, Menlyn Maine, Pretoria on 10 November. Tickets available via Computicket