MIKA GIGS

US

Brooklyn Steel in Brooklyn 12 & 13 /9/2019

Tiny Love Tiny Tour started in Brooklyn on Thursday the 12th and Mika came on stage in his gorgeous red suit and white ruffle shirt and started with Ice cream and it was like I had always dreamed Ice Cream to be. I saw the set list before the show started and it was full of new songs and  he did every single - new and old - song from the list. Not only Ice Cream, Tiny Love, Sanremo and Dear Jealousy but also Blue, Tomorrow and Stay High. 

I couldn't remember if the gig high had ever felt that good, if the sweat drops all over my face had ever felt that enjoyable. Mika sounded and looked fantastic, his stage energy was unbelievable and the band was great and added a lot of details to the songs. Tiny Love was my absolute favourite during the night. I loved the drums in it and other instruments as well and for example the new things added to Love Today. From the classics Underwater was my biggest favourite and an extremely emotional version.

The second Brooklyn night was different yet still equally amazing. This kind of concept with small, cozy venues and somehow pure style is a dream come true and it’s hard to find suitable words to describe the exact feelings during the gigs.

On Friday the show was recorded to make a live album, cameras were filming and the distance between the audience and stage was made a bit bigger to have enough space for them. Mika was partly singing to the cameras instead of the audience and there was less contact between him and the crowd. However, he gave all his energy and then some extra and was also careful and detailed with his singing and after getting used to the cameras I could hardly notice they were there.

The band arrived on stage and the gig started with the intro speech about love, invisible force and energy. Then Ice Cream as the opening song, Jealousy, a couple of older songs and Tiny Love. I had several favourites during the night. Blue was extremely beautiful, even breathtaking and Tomorrow was another, huge favourite. Mika was particularly chatty. He talked about the colour of the sin and I loved Origin after that.

This time the most special classic Mika song was Happy Ending. Amazing performance and the audience went wild and probably wouldn’t have stopped cheering unless made to focus on the next song. Love Today was fresh and super energetic and during the song Mika took an embroidered jacket that the girl next to me offered to him. We Are Golden, Grace Kelly and at the end of the show Tiny Love reprise and a reminder to stay high. 

Canada

Corona Theatre in Montreal 15 & 16 /9/2019

We saw two lovely gigs in Montreal. The venue was called Corona Theatre and it was small and more intimate than the venue in Brooklyn. The capacity was hardly 1000 people, probably even less. The first night I had a seat in the first balcony row and saw a view over the whole stage, the second night I went near the stage to experience the gig from closer distance. I really enjoyed both gigs but the energy was still different and on the second night the mood and the whole performance were particularly good. I might have enjoyed the second gig in Montreal even more than I enjoyed Brooklyn. The first show of the tour is always special, the vibe was emotional and extremely memorable. The second Montreal night was good in a different way. It was relaxed and full of positive energy.

Mika was wearing his Prince style outfits with beautiful white ruffle shirts. On the second Montreal night he suddenly appeared on stage wearing black jeans, a white ruffle shirt and a gorgeous long white jacket and did a powerful start for Ice Cream. He continued with Jealousy, then some older songs. After that amazing Tiny Love. There’s something pure genius in Tiny Love. It can be tender, it can be smiling, even playful, it can be serious and melancholic and it can be intense, deep and intimate. The live version starts in a small, pretty way but is soon filled with energy. It’s powerful and uplifting. After Tiny Love Blue which is the most poetic song on the 5th album. Happy Ending had a beautiful ending on both nights and the Montreal audience valued this special detail. No Tomorrow or Sanremo but Elle Me Dit instead, a must in French speaking Montreal and a good, well and loudly appreciated performance.

US

The Fillmore in San Francisco 18/9/2019

Mika had warned in advance the venue in San Francisco wouldn’t be a "fancy" place and it wasn’t indeed. The Fillmore is one of those shabby, cool historical music venues, full of energy from the past, legendary performances. The doors opened sharply at seven and we walked peacefully in. Several big chandeliers were hanging from the ceiling and when the performance started the floor was bouncing under the jumping crowd.

The audience was one the loudest I’ve ever seen at such a small venue. People sang along and screamed so loudly my ears were hurting. It was obvious the San Francisco crowd had eagerly waited for Mika to be back. The vibe during the gig wasn’t as relaxed as the vibe during the second Montreal gig was but again, it was really good in its own way. It was extremely cheerful, and the crowd was diverse and even a bit crazy, bouncing high during the most energetic songs, and I’m sure Mika enjoyed seeing people that enthusiastic.

The setlist was otherwise similar as in Montreal except that Elle Me Dit was, to my huge, huge pleasure, replaced with Tomorrow which is such a good mood song and always makes me smile. The Jealousy we got in San Francisco was incredibly good and I enjoyed dancing it, I enjoyed the lyrics and I enjoyed listening to Mika’s voice. Tiny Love is always amazing and the San Francisco audience took it really well, singing and dancing along. Blue was absolutely beautiful. 

Every sold out show at The Fillmore gets a cool poster that is handed out at the door on the  way out. This time Mika's poster had ice creams on it and during the gig he laughed out loud at the symbolism and after the show signed every single poster. 

Theatre at Ace Hotel in Los Angeles 21/9/2019

The Ace Hotel Theatre in downtown Los Angeles was fancy and unique as a venue. The concert was seated but during the show people wanted to move in front and it wasn’t easy to keep our spots. The crowd stood up the moment the gig started and were allowed to dance, have fun and even jump. I could hear the flu in Mika’s voice, it was warm that way and he shyly asked people to be kind before singing Blue because it’s a difficult song but there was no need for that, Blue was beautifully done and the audience seemed to very genuinely appreciate it. Blue and Underwater were my personal favourites during the night, extremely beautiful and even more melancholic than they usually are. The latter part of the show was highly energetic and I loved the way Stay High ended the gig. 

Mexico

El Plaza Condesa in Mexico City 24/9/2019

I had looked forward to visiting Mexico City for years and really enjoyed experiencing the concert there, the atmosphere was different than anything I had seen. The audience was so excited, so loud. Mika couldn’t walk in the middle of the crowd the way he did in some other cities during the Tiny Tour but he came close to the crowd and made a lot of contact with people, moving a lot around the stage so as many people as possible could see him well.

The queuing was one of the most organised I’ve ever seen and afterwards I had to thank the security for such a nice experience. The calmness ended as soon as the audience was in. What looked enthusiastic and excited to Mika was squeezing to everyone in the crowd. I used all my strength to keep my front row side place and was relieved to be at the barrier because being in the middle of the people would have been difficult. 

The audience wasn’t just dancing and enjoying the music. It was pushing towards Mika, singing loudly, screaming and throwing toys, little sombreros, paper planes and whatever they wanted to give to him on stage. For me it was amazing to experience the atmosphere in this country I had never visited before.

During Big Girl Mika was wearing the blue embroidered sombrero that was delivered to him before the show. He also came down and climbed near to the audience and picked an enthusiastic lady on stage to dance with him. My favourite song was Blue and I loved it and also filmed it with my mobile which I don’t usually do, it was the last gig of the tour and I wanted to have Blue to listen to at home. The audience took the song really well and it surprised me that the excited crowd focused that way.

My other favourite was Happy Ending and it reminded me of the Happy Endings I saw during the Imaginarium Tour 2010. Mika had a flu so Happy Ending was hard to sing but the audience was understanding and encouraged and sang along loudly. The high energy songs in the end were great and I really enjoyed them. Despite his cold Mika’s performance had a huge amount of energy, the audience must have given it to him and this was the last gig of the tour, there was no need to save anything at all.