TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke brought his Anima world tour to Scotiabank Arena in Toronto last night (Sept. 27th) in what can be best described as a rave meets a rock concert.
The album, which Yorke released in June 2019 via XL, and his performance, encapsulated the essence of his solo work: sweeping electronic landscapes, mixed with haunting piano numbers, on top of lyrics about the dangers of technology, alienation, dystopia, and anxiety.
A large video screen that featured abstract projections created by Tarik Barri made Yorke’s set visually stunning with how well it complemented the frantic beats and loops that burst out of the speakers. Featuring everything from bold splashes of colour to ink blots, it took the music to another level as it sucked you in from the very first note.
If you’ve ever watched the Radiohead video for “Lotus Flower”, you would have seen Yorke’s unique dance skills, and if you’ve ever craved more of Thom Yorke dancing like no one is watching, this performance had it as he swerved and weaved his way through a 20-song set.
While Yorke refrained from playing any songs from his day job in Radiohead, his performance grabbed tracks from all three of his solo albums that he managed to seamlessly blend together into a continuously engaging soundscape that sounded it like it would fit right in at next year’s ULTRA Festival.
By contrast, Yorke’s set did have its quieter moments with a haunting piano version of Anima cut “Dawn Chorus”, along with Suspiria ballad “Suspirium”, that effectively showed the wide-ranging spectrum of his talents and proved that he isn’t only about big beats and loops.
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 27: Thom Yorke performs at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on September 27, 2019. (Photo: Curtis Sindrey/Aesthetic Magazine)
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