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Madonna - Wembley Stadium 2008

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venue

impulse buy

If you’ve listened to any UK radio station in the last few weeks it’s highly unlikely that you escaped the fact that Madonna was playing Wembley Stadium on the 11th September. It’s one of the most hyped up concerts of the year and like most things that get hyped up, it was a bitter disappointment.

I’ve been to many a concert at Wembley Arena but this was my first at the new Stadium. That said I thought I knew what to expect. I knew the traffic would be bad, I knew parking would be expensive, and I knew that my seats were far away from the stage so my view of Madonna would be less than person. However I had no idea just how bad it all would be. I wouldn’t normally comment on the transport aspect of a gig but seeing as it totally gridlocked and affected a vast number of people attending, it seems allowable. It took me three and a half hours to get to the venue. It should have only taken 50 minutes. I didn’t have the option of using public transport and still getting home before 6am so I had to drive. I’m glad I prebooked my parking because when I finally got there at 8.45 there were still car queuing around the block trying to park in the multi-storey.

Having reached my vertigo-inducing seat in the upper tiers I proceeded to wait until 9.15 for Madonna to finally grace the stage. I have to admit that the view of the audience was amazing, especially when they all started taking photos of the empty stage. But that was the only good thing about the view. There was the obligatory long intro video sequence projected onto static screens on either side of the stage and moving screens on the stage itself and then, about 5 minutes later, Madonna appeared to an almighty roar. And that was when we realised the sound was awful. The bass echoed around the stadium at the frequency that made me feel physically sick. The melody was lost and the vocals only just discernable. It was through a mix of lip reading and looking at the videos accompanying the songs that I managed to work out what any of them were, usually about half way through. Singing along was pretty much out of the question.

So bad was the sound quality that I couldn’t put together my own set list notes. Luckily they’d been posted on the internet and so I can tell you what was allegedly played. Lots from the new album, naturally, and a few updated classics. Some people tried to make the best of a bad situation and got up and danced in their seats but this didn’t help to make the experience any better for those of us who wanted to sit in the seat we’d paid for and watch the show as best we could. People can be extremely selfish at concerts, especially when the ticket prices are high. If I’d wanted to stand, I’d have forked out for a standing ticket.

There’s no denying Madonna’s ability to put on a show. I’m sure the people in the golden circle had a fantastic time, watching her strut her stuff up and down the runway and on the circular stage at the end and from what I saw on the video screens she still has the moves. It was a shame that she had so many costume changes because during that time all that we got were videos and the odd dance routine. Nothing spectacular and certainly not what we’d paid our money for. There were four such interludes.

There’s only so much I can take and after about 45 minutes I left, fed up with the awful sound quality and lack of view. Given that Wembley is so prestigious and has ample experience of putting on music events I’d have expected them to be able to cope with the sound and maybe think about those of us in the upper tiers and put up a few extra screens. It’s telling that we weren’t the only ones who left early and there have been many complaints on various radio stations and forums. Of course there are a few people who had a fantastic time but I think they’re in the minority. Letters of complaint have been written to Wembley in their hundreds asking for refunds but I don’t expect Wembley will be big enough to take responsibility and admit they could have done better.

I had been looking forward to the gig immensely and feel it was a total waste of time and money. I certainly won’t be going to Wembley Stadium for anything ever again and I doubt very much that I’ll ever be tempted to try and see Madonna again either. If you went, I hope you were more fortunate than me. Without a doubt the worst concert I’ve ever been to anywhere.

“ bitter disappointment ”

Setlist: Candy Shop / Beat Goes On / Human Nature / Vogue / Into The Groove / Heartbeat / Borderline / She’s Not Me / Music / Devil Wouldn’t Recognise You / Spanish Lesson / Miles Away / La Isla Bonita/ Lela Pala Tute / Romanian folk interlude / You Must Love Me / 4 Minutes / Like A Prayer / Ray Of Light / Hung Up / Give It To Me

Written by Vikki Roberts - September 2008
Read more: Gigs, Live Music, Pop, Madonna