Credits: Bowie van Loon (text) | Andreas Rentz – Getty Images (image)
First test for The Netherlands!” Chase B, Travis Scott’s regular tour DJ, shouts through a packed GelreDome. And then Travis Scott himself: “I see you. I hope this first show of this stadium tour sets the tone for everything that comes following.” Travis Scott tries to bring the immense crowd closer in all sorts of ways, as the director of the rage. That turned out to be harder than expected in this gigantic setup.
That first test wasn’t entirely true either. The young audience had already endured it on the forecourts of the GelreDome, where long lines formed towards each entrance. However, there was no movement in that. After the program had been delayed once before, a message also appeared online on the day of the show stating that the doors would open an hour and a half later than planned. Ironically, the lines for the golden circle and early entry – visitors who had to pay more for tickets than the normal standing places – were the last to dry up.
Moon landscape
Anyway; start at 20:30. That was completely in Travis style – see for example the chapters Appelsap and Rolling Loud Rotterdam from his career – an hour later. An hour in which hardly anything happened in the stadium. Deathly silence reigned. Every now and then some crickets chirped, while visitors shuffled to their places in the stands and people tried to get the best view of the field.
That also proved to be a challenge. The stage extended halfway across the field by means of a special catwalk in the shape of a moonscape. Fortunately, Travis had overcome that clumsy construction (“Where is he now?!) with a screen that was almost stadium-wide – and high. Also on the four pillars, with a bit of imagination depicting Circus Maximus in Rome, one might follow everything that was happening 360 degrees.
Swaying stands
And there was a lot of it. With almost every hard, 808-powered drop, the sound roared over the stands. Flamethrowers shot meters high into the air from that moon-like rock formation. Travis himself had energy for ten, he thundered over it with ease as if it were a track. He was the director of the rage that took place below him. From minute one, the audience had forgotten all the logistical herrès that preceded the show. “Greetings from Utopia. Before the show starts, open that shit up”a voice sounded from a computer board, from a spaceship that would take us to a completely different place for 100 minutes. The crowd obeyed, even when Travis took over from that robot.
Screams and tears, sweaty and naked male bodies and pure desire to explode alternated at a murderous pace around your scribe on duty. Moments of rest? They will come once outside the stadium. When the seething field was viewed from the stands, the crowd above might not stay behind. During the seven (or eight?) performances of FE!N the chair construction swayed considerably. It was already twelve years ago that JAY-Z and one of Scott’s mentors Kanye West pulled off a similar trick with their Watch The Throne-anthem. The new generation has a few more thanks to Travis alone. Not only FE!Nbut also three-stage rocket Sicko Mode-Antidote-Goosebumps made many run out of the mosh for a breath of air. And back once more.
Filter button to the left
It all looked spectacular – the aliens carved from stone, the smoke and the visuals, the weird-looking stage, from which a scissor lift also appeared, beautifully lit with lasers. But a show of this magnitude often has one major problem; the sound. The bass was often swampy, as if Chase B had permanently turned a filter knob to the left. It ensured that not everything came across as the intended sledgehammer blows. Vocally, there was little to criticize.
It’s great to see another hip-hop artist achieve ‘stadium status’. But dealing with the consequences is a less pleasant activity. The logistical and technical problems prevented the opening of the Circus Maximus Tour from being considered legendary. On the other hand; selling out a complete stadium tour in seven weeks is something few others in hip-hop land are given. The Dutch fans are ‘feinin’ for more’ in any case.
Fixtures
Highlight: The Dutch Travis Scott fans made the party and the craze
Low point: no decent supporting act
Wardrobe: lockers
Photography: no, we had to make do with images supplied by team Scott
Sound: swampy
Visitors: +- 30,000
Damage: from €62 (but if you want to go on Sunday, Ticketswap is your wallet’s best friend)
Rating: 7.7
Posted by bowie on June 29, 2024
