Customer Reviews

Pandemonium Live

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm a huge fan of the PSBs, to put it mildly. If they put their name on a product, I buy it. And sometimes that means buying 8 songs I already have just to get the 2 that I don't ... always great products, but not always a great value. But I don't really mind, because the way I see it, if people are still buying their products, they will keep producing!

Well let me tell you that this double disc (one CD, and one DVD) package is fantastic and well worth the $s. The Pandemonium concert DVD is filmed beautifully; sounds and picture are great (looked almost as a good a Blu Ray in my opinion). Since I did not get to see this concert in person (which absolutely killed me), I was quite thankful that they made the concert video available so quickly. The set list is excellent - enjoyable for the true long-term fans for sure.

The DVD also has plenty of extras ... the latest videos, some extra cover songs from the concert, AND last but not least, the phenomenal performance at the Brits last year. Again, quality and sound (considering the live performance) is excellent - WAY better than watching on YouTube!

Finally, the CD is packed to the brim with the best songs of the concert. I enjoyed the live CD MUCH more than the last live CD that the PSBs put out (Concrete). The songs are fun, there are remixes and mashups, and it makes turns listening to old favorites into a new experience.

In summary, this combo package will be sure to entertain you at home or in the car - do not hesitate to pick this up, because it is a FANTASTIC value - if you like the PSBs, you won't be disappointed!

The Pet Shop Boys have never been gone away despite the fact that many Americans (specifically, Untied States Americans) thought they broke up after their big 80s hits like "West End Girls" and "It's A Sin". Hardly. They've been recording studio albums (always filled with excellent material for their b-sides) as well as other projects including tours, soundtracks, musicals and working with other artists. But with "Yes", they enjoyed their biggest US debut in years with perhaps their most "pop" sounding album ever. The Pandemonium Tour was not all that different. While I didn't see the show in person, this DVD/CD combo makes it like I was there. It not only includes a great deal of songs from the "Yes" album, but most of their biggest hits, plus other great "pop" PSB songs. The reason I keep using the term pop is because in 2003 the Pet Shop Boys released a double CD greatest hits set called "Pop Art", dividing their huge collection of hits into the categories of "Pop" and "Art". Songs like "Always On My Mind" and "Go West" were Pop (due to not only their sound, but the supposedly "lighter" writing) while more introspective (perhaps, "smarter" songs) like "West End Girls" and "Left To My Own Devices" were deemed art. Newer hits like "Love, etc." and "Did You See Me Coming" would probably be considered pop as well. The show starts off very danceable and fun, front loaded with these upbeat and much loved "Yes" tracks. In general, the show is definitely a big fan's dream. A lot of the better "Yes" songs, smash ups combining two or more songs (in order to include more tracks and keep things interesting) and most interestingly, choice album tracks (and in the case of "Do I Have To?", a b-side over 20 years old). The show presents fascinating visuals (the most stunning are the flashing colored lights that make up a New York during "Two Divided By Zero"). White and multi-colored squares (cubes...although interestingly their last live DVD was called "Cubism") are often used as props in the background as well as being worn by the dancers and background singers (Neil and Chris actually wear them as well during the opening number....it's strange, but very PSB). The show has some interestingly heartfelt moments, like showing two dancers representing a broken relationship during the songs "The Way It Used To Be" and "Jealousy". The most poignant moment is Neil singing the haunting "King's Cross". One of the most fun moments is Chris dancing with the "skyscraper people" during the great post disco album track "Why Don't We Live Together". The interesting mix of "Domino Dancing" (which only include a few lines of the song repeated over and over again) with Coldplay's "Viva la Vida" is a cool experiment but not all fans loved it (although the crowd enjoys it). While "It's A Sin", "Being Boring" and especially "West End Girls" have become concert staples, the new way they perform the tracks (although "Being Boring" is a bit standard just Neil and Chris, but with funny hats!) shows they still have a lot of enthusiasm for the standards.

While I'm not 100% in love with the way that audio on the CD sounds (the female background singers could be a tad lower when singing along with Neil, especially on the first few songs) the song arrangements are very good. Also, a big bonus is that they chose the right tracks! They cited choosing only 17 tracks (although in some cases, it is several songs combined) was a time restraint issue. When Madonna does similar releases like this (including her upcoming "Stick and Sweet" set), she chooses even less songs and it clearly is not about time! Those discs also always feel choppy when she and/or Warners chose the wrong songs (often leaving songs that should be on the CD off). But the way that most of the songs here merge into each other makes it feel like a real live disc. The omissions aren't terrible ones. "Building A Wall" is not a fan favorite (although it is interesting visually) and the arrangement of "The Way It Used To Be" makes you miss the much better produced album version (no problem with the female vocalist....if anything, it would have been interesting to make it more of a full on duet). Maybe cutting the newer songs made sense in order to keep the hits that would interest non-fans.

As for the DVD bonuses, they make for an even more full "Yes" experience by including all the videos released from the album (although to see the very weak camera work and visual quality of the live show as it is presented in the "All Over The World" video is not very impressive at all). I think it was wise to not include "My Girl" and "It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas" in the full show DVD and leave them separate. The latter makes it seem too much like a "Christmas" show (and this song was added only for the Dec dates) while "My Girl" (a Madness cover, not the Motown song, they did live before as a tribute to a friend that has now become a studio track) is a nice bonus but definitely non-essential but fun encore material.

Considering the large catalog of released original PSB songs (not even including material they have written and/or produced for others), they made some really good and interesting choices here while also including a majority of their biggest hit singles. The materiel is very strong and any minor weaknesses can be forgiven because overall the show is a great feast audio and visually for hardcore Petheads but even those that know a few songs that might be interested in seeing more. They'll be won over by "Pandemonium".

The attention to detail in this tour was second to none. Very tight with many surprises!
Alas, Neil's voice may now be lacking the range he enjoyed as recent as the Cubism tour (which I saw and enjoyed).
I got the import version and it only plays on one of the dvd players I own. Region 0.
Highly recommend!

I attended their concert here in Lima at the Explanada del Estadio Monumental on the 20th of October 2009 and I must say this concert was one of the best experiences I've ever had. This DVD captures really well what it felt like to be there in the audience and also it shows some parts that I missed due to the fact that I was mesmerised looking at Neil Tennant and listening to his great voice. The man sounds incredibly well live!

The show is divided in sections with costume changes and colourful screens/cardboard boxes which work really well; besides, the 4 dancers/singers did a great job and the part where Chris Lowe jumps into the center of the stage and starts dancing during Why Don't We Live Together was absolutely fabulous! Although here in Lima they didn't sing What Have I Done To Deserve This, the performance of that song on this DVD is one of the best I've seen. Also, the image is really clear and the colours are superb.

When the show ended in Lima with West End Girls, Neil threw her hat to the audience; I thought he had done it in every show but here on this DVD he doesn't. Nice treat for all the Peruvian fans, who had been waiting for so long for them to perform here.

The CD offers 17 songs performed live during the concert, which is really nice: DVD+CD in one single package. The audio commentary during the concert is quite interesting, revealing facts which happened backstage. There are also 3 videoclips (Love, etc. - Did You See Me Coming - All Over The World) and two songs they only performed in London: My Girl and It Doesn't Often Snow At Christmas.

What else can you ask for? Buy it soon before they're sold out!

When the Pet announced their Pandemonium Tour, I read in more than one place that they had plans to cover at least one country in Central America. I was invaded with illusions thinking that they would cover Costa Rica, as it is the country with the best platform to support their act. However, my partner's plans and mine were to attend the tour in any country of the region, unfortunately they did not include the area on their Latin American leg of the tour. Around January this year, I was hoping they would release the DVD when the news came out on their webpage: Pandemonium was to be released first in Europe and almost one month later in America. The day it was available in my country, my partner and I drove one hour to the record store and back, in one of the most memorable days of music amusement in our lives.

Even though the track list of Cubism is more impacting than the Pandemonium, this last offers incredible surprises. The stage montage, the concept of the show, the dancers and the visuals used on stage are simply awesome and the coordination of these elements is outstanding. When we started watching the show, we realized once more how strong Pet Shop Boys are right now, after a carrier of more than 25 years, they are still part of the elite.

In a combination of classics and new songs such as "Heart" and "Did You See Me Coming" (number 1 in my country almost one year after its release), the first part of the show invites everyone to dance. This invitation takes a retro turn when the Pet perform a marvelous set with a taste of the 80's dance club tunes, including two songs form their first album "Please": "Two Divided by Zero" and "Why Don't We Live Together", and the biggest surprise of the show is definitely in the middle of this last song: inspired by Madonna's "Dress You Up" choreography of "The Virgin Tour", Chris comes out from behind his keyboard, and in the middle of thousands of fans astonished by the unusual practice, he joins the dancers in the middle of the stage in a glorious ten seconds dance. I found myself shouting in my living room because of this and I had to replay it immediately: being Chris so quite and shy, I realized that it is not only me, but millions of fans around the world, that feel real appreciation and love for him. He doesn't take the stage since the 1995 tour "Discovery", but millions of fans would love to see him doing it more often. To close this session of the concert, the Boys perform the anthems "New York City Boy", "Always On My Mind" and a mix of "Closer To Heaven" and "Left To My Own Devices" which is a regular on the track list of their previous tours.

At this point, a "nice for a change" comes up and the Boys delight the audience with a soft set made up by the B-Side "Do I Have To?" (it's Melancholic Mix is just great), colored by pieces of "We All Feel Better In The Dark" (another awesome B-Side), the "Yes" cut "King's Cross", "The Way It Used To Be" and "Jealousy".
More retro feelings come up later with songs like "Suburbia" and "Se A Vida E" among others, but before the performance ends with the iconic "West End Girls", we enjoy a marvelous rendition of "Being Boring".

The extras are a huge attractive of the album, since they include the three videos of the "Yes" alum, and the memorable performance at the Britt Awards.

This is definitely a must have that shows how the Pet Shop Boys are back for good, wish I could have seen it live, but maybe someday...

I do not understand why this is listed as a Audio CD. Yes there is a Disc that is the Audio CD, however there is also a disc that is a DVD. Everywhere else except Amazon.Com it is listed as a DVD/CD. I Would have purchased this long ago if it would have been listed as a DVD. Anyway back to the review Great 5 star DVD/CD by the best pop duo ever. DVD has a great live show in London and the CD has all the great audio as well. Well worth the money.

I've seen PSB live several times, and Pandemonium is a treat for all fans. Continuing the cube motif from Cubism, the Boys put on a great show.
The big hits are all here, some in new versions. The real treat are the "never before performed" songs like 'Two Divided By Zero' and 'Why Don't We Live Together'. The DVD brings back all the memories of seeing the live.
Also, the bonus footage is great with the Christmas encores. Alot of fun!!!

The Pat Shop Boys are indeed back. As a "diehard" fan of the boys I was pleased by this cd/dvd combo. The concert was awsome. Just that they didn't do 2-3 songs that would've made it complete, but then again their catalog is huge so I can forgive them for leaving out some their their hits. Just wish the boys had more hits over here in the states than they have.

I just listen to the CD and watch de DVD and it's was awesome "fantastico".
The sound is clear, perfect images and all the emotion of the live concert i strongly recommend this item

This new live concert Pandemonium is a strong come back for the Pet Shop Boys. Their best live concert performances since 1994 when they did the Discovery Tour. Brilliant, lively, and they brought back some old songs that although not well known, nor commercial, are seminal in their discography, Do I have To?, Kings Cross, Two divided by Zero, all from the early days, are brilliant masterpieces that only hard core fans will recognize. Very glad to see that they skipped songs from their dark ages, from the 2002 'Release' that made me believe that the Pet Shop Boys were on the path to oblivion with that awful recording.

Back with full force and an amazing audiovisual show which is their trademark.
This is a concert cd that you should definitely add to your collection if you don't have any live performance CD and DVD yet, if you already have the others, Concrete, Live at Savoy, etc... this one will surprise you.

This is an instant classic, and a demonstration of why they were awarded the Brit awards to their contribution in music over the last 25 years.