Before and after the gig is just as important as the show itself. Being shown how a hybrid car works on the way back from the venue makes up for the trudge to and from the venue hours before Bob Dylan took to the stage. Wishful thinking it may have been to want to grab dinner and read the latest Thomas Pynchon rot near to the venue; it’s fascinating to see that there isn’t anything there. Lotto Arena may as well be an island where construction vans are parked, where dreams go to die. Still, Dylan is likely unaware of the world around him anyway as he’s shuffled from venue to venue on this European tour. It’s a delight to see the setlist plastered on BobLinks, but a different thrill entirely to hear what the veteran songwriter has in store. The Lotto Arena is the right size for Dylan. Big enough to pack appreciative fans in, small enough to allow for an intimacy to flow through that affects all in different ways.
Some will find themselves dancing to Early Roman Kings, as a handful of attendees were spotted doing. Others will drop a pint over themselves and swear their way through Tangled Up in Blue, as a delightful individual a few rows back did. It didn’t dampen the atmosphere, just the occupants of the row in front. Further ahead, to the stage, is Dylan, whose Lights of Autumn tour feels frankly calm compared to the chopping and changing of his line-up for the North American tour. Mike Seal is the standout, a new guitarist who has more than earned his spot on stage in just a few shows. He adds an edge of cool, classy electric guitar influence to When I Paint My Masterpiece, a staggering performance that sits well after Tangled Up in Blue and before Not Dark Yet. It’s that trio of songs which serves as the very best of the night, with Dylan having reworked the lyrics to his Blood on the Tracks classic. He leaves plenty of room for Seal’s instrumental strengths to shine on When I Paint My Masterpiece too, and it’s often the case that Dylan’s latest guitarist is the best part of the show.
But that’s not to say the rest of the band, and Dylan too, aren’t in great form. They are. Not a moment of insincerity to be heard on what could always be the last tour from the 85-year-old songwriter. His cover of I Can’t Seem to Say Goodbye is particularly wounding, lingering on that notion of not actually saying goodbye at all to fans who are expecting him to carry on. His setlist is filled with songs that carry the notion of death, with a scintillating, instrumentally reworked Tryin’ to Get to Heaven and show closer Every Grain of Sand standing out. Time Out of Mind songs are slowly but surely starting to dominate the set, with four staggering renditions matched only by some trimmings from Rough and Rowdy Ways. Of the four from his latest album, Black Rider feels like the standout. An isolated vocal from Dylan to kick things off is met with applause, and rightly so.
Just about anything Dylan does is met with thunderous clapping. The same goes for Seal, too, and his guitar solos are deservedly the highlight of the night. He and the rest of the band are finding ways to breathe new life into these exceptional songs and they’re sounding refreshed in this reimagined state. Dylan sounds clear, too. A little wobble on the mixing for opening song Watching the River Flow is just a teething issue of a venue getting to grips with his sound, and the rest of the night comes together brilliantly. Dylan crams his set full of songs that hover around classic status. Love Sick is a welcome addition, as is I’ve Made Up My Mind to Give Myself to You. It does feel as though the show peaks right before Early Roman Kings, but the band has enough energy in them to make good on that second wind and tie together a phenomenal performance.
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