Old Ideas album tour of 2012. At 78, Leonard Cohen doesn't have much voice, but he sang with emotion and tenderness. He usually starts a song kneeling down. He holds the mic so close that his lips touch it. Most of the time he slouches when he sings or recites a poem. Whether new or old, all bleak, sometimes, with cracks where the light comes in (as in his lyrics). Same old style, similar tempo, melancholy, short melodies with small range of pitch + variations. Cohen was very courteous when speaking. He took off his hat whenever introducing a band member, each was given sufficient chance to demonstrate his virtuoso. They are all very talented. My favorite is the guitar guru from Barcelona. All strings in the band wear black hats like Cohen does. All in black suit, including the 3 girls on vocal. No modern and fancy lighting or apparatus. The concert started 15 minutes late. Not bad. People can go in and out throughout. 2 encores at the end that lasted ~25 minutes. At each finish, Cohen sort of leaped off stage. Over 3 hours of standing. So much energy for someone who's almost 80.
It wasn't a full house. 200 levels are closed behind black drapes.
