Photos by Merideth C. & review by Dave G.
The first word that comes to mind when I think about the 2012 Honda Civic Tour is “WOW!” When the line-up of Linkin Park, Incubus, and Mutemath was announced, I knew this was going to be an awesome and memorable show. In the past, seeing Linkin Park or Incubus meant going to DTE Energy Music Theatre, but with the 2 bands together, The Place of Auburn Hills was the more fitting venue for the August 21st show.
Some bands are able to record a brilliant record; some sound just as good live. Few bands manage to do both. What made the Civic Tour so special is that all 3 of the bands sound just as good live as they do in the studio.
Mutemath
The first to perform was Mutemath. These guys are so fun to watch live. None of them are capable of standing still or playing only one instrument. Lead singer Paul Meany moved between keyboard, keytar, drums, and a weird synth/guitar that he handed out into the crowd during one song to let the audience add to the music. Drummer Darren King, who was wearing his trademark headphones gaffers taped under his chin and over his head took his drum kit apart and moved to the center of the stage where he played standing on a keyboard bench. Mutemath is so talented and exciting to watch live. I was really glad to see them on the Civic Tour so that more people will be exposed to them.
Incubus
The second band to perform was Incubus. There are few lead singers capable of combining effortlessly powerful vocals and lyrics with smooth sensuality the way Brandon Boyd does. He is truly mesmerizing on stage. It is very difficult to not get drawn in. And all of that is before he takes his shirt off! Incubus may be one of the best opening acts Linkin Park has or will ever have. They could just as easily have headlined the tour (as they did in 2002). The band played a 65-minute set that consisted of some of their best-known hits like “Wish You Were Here,” “Drive,” and “Megalomaniac,” fan favorites like “Sick Sad Little World” and “Aqueous Transmission,” and new hits like “Promises, Promises” and “Switchblade.” Oh, and I would be remiss to not mention the snippet of “Hello” by Lionel Richie that was tacked onto the end of “Made for TV Movie.” Fans got a little bit of everything that they love about Incubus, including some hilarious banter between Brandon Boyd and Bassists Ben Kenney when Kenney’s pants started falling down. Boyd first told Kenney to just take them off because “Pants are so 2000,” and followed by asking “Can you get arrested for taking your dick out onstage?” Kenney responded by holding his guitar between his legs!
Linkin Park
It really is hard to top an Incubus set, but from the reaction of the crowd, Linkin Park might have done just that. Fans went nuts shouting and jumping up and down as the band took the stage, which had several ramps and platforms for the band to walk around on and (what looked like) Microsoft Kinect’s which captured computer representations of band members and displayed them on the big screen throughout the show. I was amazed at how tight Linkin Park sounds live. They never seemed to miss a beat. Something about their music makes it perfect for live performance. Maybe it’s the high-energy combination of heavy guitars from Brad Delson and the beats from Joe Hahn. Maybe it’s the effortless way that vocalists Chester Bennington and Mike Shinoda play off of each other. Whatever it is, it makes for a really exciting show. I haven’t seem many shows where the band played such an balanced set with almost the same number of songs from each of their albums. Some of the songs included “In the End” and show closer “One Step Closer” from “Hybrid Theory,” “Breaking the Habit” and “Numb” from “Meteora,” “Bleed it Out” and “What I’ve Done” from “Minutes to Midnight,” “The Catalyst” and “When They Come for Me” from “A Thousand Suns,” and “Burn it Down” and “Victimized” from their latest album “Living Things.” And if the songs themselves weren’t enough to get you excited, several songs included showers of sparks and large balls of flame exploding behind the band.
The Honda Civic Tour has been touring annually since 2001 and has brought in some amazing acts, but this year seemed to be above and beyond anything that we’ve seen in recent memory. It was a very balanced show with some of the most talented bands around. If you missed the Honda Civic Tour in Auburn Hills, do yourself a favor and buy tickets to one of the remaining cities. You will not be disappointed.
Don’t forget to “like” us on facebook and follow us on twitter for live updates from shows and to see what shows we’ll be covering next!
Set Lists
Download songs from these set lists by clicking the iTunes icon!
Linkin Park
- With You
- Faint
- Given Up
- Victimized
- Lying From You
- Somewhere I Belong
- New Divide
- In My Remains
- When They Come for Me
- Waiting for the End
- Breaking the Habit
- Leave Out All the Rest
- Shadow of the Day
- Iridescent
- The Catalyst
- What I've Done
- Burn it Down
- In the End
- Numb
- Bleed it Out
Encore:
- Lost in the Echo
- Papercut
- One Step Closer
Incubus
- Adolescents
- Nice to Know You
- The Warmth
- Megalomaniac
- Wish You Were Here
- If Not Now, When?
- Made for TV Movie
- Hello (Lionel Richie Cover)
- Anna Molly
- Smile Lines
- Drive
- Promises, Promises
- Switchblade
- In the Company of Wolves
- Pardon Me
- Sick Sad Little World
- Aqueous Transmission
Find out more about the Honda Civic Tour
- civictour.honda.com
- Enter the sweepstakes to win a custom Honda Civic or CBR250 motorcycle
- Twitter: @hondacivivtour