I was really surprised by how beautiful that the venue was. The concert took place in Homer, NY at the Center for the Arts of Homer which, based on the architecture of the building, I think was probably a church at one point. (See above photo.) I was also surprised by the size of the venue. There was a very large room with a drinks bar and a snacks bar, and, in fact, when I first entered that room, it was so big that I initially assumed that that was where the concert was going to be held (there was very little seating in there, but I have been to my fair share of concerts that were standing room only), but it wasn't because that was only one part of the building. The other part was the auditorium/theater where the show was going to be performed, and I had excellent seating. I was far to the left (my left, not left of the stage) which not only made me closest to where Scott Chasolen was positioned (which I only say because he was, in my personal opinion, the highlight of the show) but also allowed me a good angle of the rest of the band members due to where the stage was located in relation to where I was sitting. I didn't have to wait long for them to get started either. Two people who I assume were employees of the theater came on stage promptly at 8 p.m. and gave a very short speech before The Machine began their acoustic set, the set list being as follows:
I was quite honestly pleasantly surprised by the set list overall, although I was a tad disappointed that they didn't play anything from Pink Floyd's 1994 album The Division Bell, as I was especially hoping for "High Hopes." As I said, however, I was overall very pleased because they played several of my all-time favorites such as "Fearless," "Wish You Were Here," "Comfortably Numb," and "Shine on You Crazy Diamond." I was also overall pleased with the set list because I know that The Machine sometimes plays Pink Floyd albums in their entirety from front to back (as they did recently with the 1977 album The Wall), and I would definitely prefer a variety show especially with it being my first time seeing them. It allows you to enjoy a little bit of most everything which brings me to my next point regarding why I am overall really pleased with the set list. I remember chatting with my boyfriend prior to the show (with whom I sadly did not see the show because we live far away from each other) and the two of us agreeing that the show would likely be comprised mostly of songs from the band's most iconic albums such as The Dark Side of the Moon (1973), Wish You Were Here (1975), and The Wall (1977). There was a lot more variety than I had expected, however, and some of the cuts were deeper than I had expected, and my boyfriend said the same thing when I shared the set list with him after the show. "Wot's... Uh the Deal," for example is from Obscured by Clouds (1972) which lives up to its title because it is arguably one of the band's more obscure LPs. I was also surprised that they played a song ("Arnold Layne") from the Syd Barrett days, although that was also coupled by the mild disappointment that it wasn't something that was actually from The Piper at the Gates of Dawn (1967) which is my favorite Pink Floyd album (even though my favorite member, David Gilmour, wasn't yet part of the band).
Highlights included "Welcome to the Machine" (which I loved because Chasolen included a really cool, melodically haunting piano motif to it), "Fearless" (which Chasolen was really into as he played the accordion which I totally get because that song is a mood), and "Comfortably Numb" (which stood out to me mostly just because it is one of my favorite songs). The audience got the most excited, however, when they dove into the memorable opening chord of "Shine on You Crazy Diamond." As I said, Scott Chasolen was definitely the highlight because he had the most energy. He was really emotionally absorbing the music and was interactive with the audience, and he was also the most versatile member - playing piano, playing accordion, singing, etc. (I honestly can't remember the last time - if ever - that I saw a musician live whose talent was that versatile, and he was especially gifted on the piano.) Also appreciated was how they were respectful to the sound and legacy of Pink Floyd (part of me had honestly even felt afterwards like I had seen the actual band) while also putting their own interpretation on it at times. That is when covers and tributes tend to be best in my opinion - when they are not exact replicas but also don't change the sound of the originals so much that they are barely even shells of what they are supposed to be. (Seriously, if you're going to change it that much, then why even cover it?) Yet another thing that took me by surprise, however, was the length of the show. It ran for almost exactly two hours, wrapping up at around 10 p.m., when I had expected it to run until 11 p.m. due to the ticket having said that it would. This is not a point of criticism, however, primarily because I had nearly a 90-minute drive home ahead of me, so getting home earlier than expected was sort of a blessing. The Machine was absolutely incredible, however, so I am not saying that I would have been opposed to another hour of them. I was on such an emotional high after the show and would absolutely go see them again if they are ever in my neck of the woods again. (Also, check out my audio recordings of two of the songs played - "Echoes" and "Comfortably Numb.")
