Veteran rock band Journey has been in the headlines quite a bit in the past few years or so, both for good and not so good reasons. From legal issues to a new album this year, the band has kept music reporters quite busy. On Friday, the band gave those reporters even more to stay busy with the release of its latest live recording, Live in Concert at Lollapalooza. The band’s fourth live recording and first since 2019’s dual release, Escape and Frontiers Live in Japan, this new offering’s set list focuses very heavily on Escape. This will be discussed shortly. The band’s performance of the set list makes for its own interest and will be examined a little later. The overall production that went into the recording, which is available on separate DVD/CD, CD, and Blu-ray platforms, is also a positive worth noting. It will also be examined later. Each item noted here is important in its own way to the whole of the recording. All things considered the collective items noted here make the recording an interesting late year addition to this year’s field of new live recordings.
Live in Concert at Lollapalooza, the latest live recording from Journey is an interesting new offering from the veteran rock band. The recording’s interest comes in part through its set list. Spanning 20 songs, (technically it features 17 songs minus the instrumental interludes), the set list is very limited in its overall reach. It reaches as far back as the band’s 19878 album, Infinity and as recent as the band’s 1986 album Raised on Radio. Considering that the band’s catalog spans 15 albums from 1975 all the way up to this year’s latest release, Freedom, that makes for a very directed set list. What’s more, as noted, the set list leans very heavily on the band’s 1981 album Escape, with a total of six songs being lifted from that album for the set list. Infinity (1978) gets the next highest number of nods at just three songs. Evolution (1979) gets two nods. There are also songs featured in a pair of movie soundtracks, and both of those soundtracks were from movies released in the 80s. Simply put, the soundtrack is essentially a collection of the sings that really helped Journey rise to fame in its heyday. To that end, it is an element that will appeal to the band’s most devoted audiences since it is not exactly what one would consider career-spanning. It is not enough to doom the recording, though. The band’s performance of the set list is of its own applause.
The Band’s performance of the set list is of note because it shows the band putting in its best effort in each song. For a band that first rose to fame more than 40 years ago, the energy from this current lineup is full on from beginning to end. Front man Arnel Pineda keeps the lighting staff and photogs on their toes as he makes his way back and forth across the stage while guitarist Neal Schon keeps the audience engaged through his expert work on his instrument. Even in a calmer moment, such as in ‘Faithfully,’ the band in whole keeps the audience fully engaged, their hands waving in the air as they sing along. It shows the simple approach that the band has taken all these years still works whether in the more high energy moments or the more reserved ballads. Overall, the band’s performance here is everything that audiences have come to expect from Journey. To that end, the group’s performance of the set list is certain to appeal to the noted most devoted Journey fans.
The production that went into Live in Concert at Lollapalooza does well to capture the expert nature of the band’s performance at what is one of the most famous festival concert events in America. The edits, the sound, and the general cinematography to give those devoted fans something to enjoy, too. It puts audiences at home right there on stage and in the crowd with the rest of the fans who were there in person thanks to the positive overall general effect that the production generates. Considering this alongside the band’s performance, those noted audiences who are among the band’s most devoted will find even more reason to take in the concert recording.
Live in Concert at Lollapalooza, the latest live recording from Journey, is a presentation that is certain to appeal to the band’s most devoted audiences. That is due in large part to the concert recording’s set list. The set list is very limited in its reach, focusing more on its most well-known singles than on its overall catalog. The band’s performance of those singles will appeal plenty to the noted audiences because the band clearly puts in its full effort in each performance. The recording’s overall production creates a positive general effect that will appeal to those audiences in its own right, too. Each item examined is important in its own way to the whole of the recording’s presentation. All things considered they make Live in Concert at Lollapalooza a presentation that is an intriguing late year addition to this year’s field of new live recordings.
Live in Concert at Lollapalooza is available now through Frontiers Music s.r.l. More information on the recording is available along with all of Journey’s latest news at:
Website: https://journeymusic.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/journey
Twitter: https://twitter.com/journeyofficial
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