In a venue with a closed roof you are able to use the lighting more effectively than outdoors. That was something that was very noticeable last night in Strawberry Arena in Stockholm compared with Helsinki, where it was naturally light the whole night (which is normal that far north). For starters, it was totally dark as the band walked on stage and then (Bam!) Bruce was standing in a beam of light. It made the opener Into the Fire even more dignified, cohesive and beautiful. The song, which is a tribute to first responders during 9/11, was most probably a comment on the recent attack on Trump and on that note Springsteen also later presented Long Walk Home as “a prayer to my country”.
I normally love the “rusty” rendition of Reason to Believe but the distorted vocal sound effects on some of the lyrics last night were too much for me. It was unpleasant to the ear even though I was wearing earplugs.
Essentially it was a really good show. I was celebrating my 40th Springsteen concert and I was standing in the middle with some German friends (Oliver will rejoin our tour for the second Stockholm show) and we had a great time, although it was really hot. I was happy to hear Land of Hope and Dreams in the Born in the USA slot. Due to the Swedish concert age regulations (13), there weren’t any small children up front, so the harmonicas and guitar picks were given out more evenly through different age groups. The “I don’t want to go home-shtick” is still funny as Bruce and Stevie find ways to vary it. At the end Springsteen thanked Stockholm and said it was great to be back.
This Hard Land (which would have been a tour premiere) and Letter to You were on the printed setlist but omitted, whereas Prove It All Night and No Surrender were added.
Next show: Stockholm (again!)
Setlist:
1. Into The Fire
2. Lonesome Day
3. My Love Will Not Let You Down
4. Prove It All Night
5. No Surrender
6. The Promised Land
7. Hungry Heart
8. Reason to Believe
9. Youngstown
10. Long Walk Home
11. Workin’ On The Highway
12. Darlington County
13. E Street Shuffle
14. Nightshift
15. My Hometown
16. The River
17. Last Man Standing
18. Backstreets
19. Because the Night
20. She’s The One
21. Wrecking Ball
22. The Rising
23. Badlands
24. Thunder Road
25. Land Of Hope And Dreams
26. Born To Run
27. Bobby Jean
28. Dancing In The Dark
29. Tenth Ave Freeze Out
30. Twist and Shout
31. I’ll See You In My Dreams
Stray Bullet 
Leave a comment