Thomas Dolby

An unforgettable evening. Thomas Dolby was entertaining, engaging, pleasant and gracious. A unique experience to have a soundtrack played live in front of you. The venue was perfect.

Having seen a few Thomas Dolby shows in the past, I was unsure as to what to expect this time around. What we saw wasn t a concert in any traditional sense, and instead what we experienced was a multimedia experience like no other I have ever seen. The Invisible Lighthouse tour is really a movie with a live mixed soundtrack of music and effects. Dolby utilizes award winning Foley artist, Blake Leyh for live sound effects and movie ambiance. Check out Blake s website for some history about his achievements as they are definitely impressive. During the show Dolby plays a musical score with the movie and sings where applicable. The mixture of live narration blended with on-screen narration was simply incredible. Everything was perfectly synced and the story Dolby told in the film made you long for a different era. If you don t know what the movie is about I would recommend visiting some websites to get a general idea. At the end of the show he held a Q&A session and I asked if there would be a DVD of the show. He said he wasn t sure as he didn t know if the live elements would truly translate to DVD (I m paraphrasing here). Needless to say, I would recommend you see this award winning film while you can before it is possibly lost to history. At the end of the movie Dolby does play a few crowd favorites with some humorous elements intertwined for those diehard Dolby fans who are wanting to hear a few hits. If you like independent films and the concept of this show, don t hesitate to get tickets. The VIP passes are well worth their weight in gold as he meets with a small group of people after the show for a one-on-one discussion. Ask any question about the movie or his career, and you ll get informative and humorous answers. Of course there is the photo-op and autograph session after the discussion, but the time he takes with the group is unrivaled by any touring artist I have ever seen. There are only a few dates left and I would encourage you to get tickets and see this show.

The Birchmere is a great place to see a live show - really no bad seats in the whole place. Thomas Dolby put on a great show with a relatively small crowd in attendance due to the impending Hurricane Sandy. This actually made for an even more enjoyable experience as the show had a nice intimate feel to it.

I hate leaving negative reviews on things, so I'll try to keep this short. The opening band, Aaron Jonah Lewis and Ben Belcher, were really pretty fun. I don't know if I'd buy their album, since it's not necessarily my thing, but they were extremely charismatic and engaging, joking around a lot with the audience, and were fantastic musicians. Their set was quick, and may not have lasted quite as long as the audience would have liked, but it's better to understay your welcome than overstay. Thomas Dolby performed perfectly competently, but it just felt to me like there was no energy or connection somehow. He talked between tracks and the stories were fine, but not riveting. After a little while, I realized that I was really bored. I wound up departing after maybe four or five songs. It wasn't the venue; I love that venue and the opening band rocked it. There was just something ineffable missing about the performance.

Something tells me that Thomas Dolby wants more to be known as a musician than a technician. That might not have been so much the case in 1981, but it is certainly now. His music borrows from all walks of musical life, Jazz, Reggae, Rock, Blues, Bluegrass, Classical you name it - it's probably in there. So if you plan to see him, and you haven't heard any of his new material - be prepared for some culture shock. That is not to say it isn't excellent - it is - but it's not 'The Flat Earth'. Nonetheless, you WILL hear his songs from the past - redone in a way that modern electronic equipment can represent it. It didn't hurt that he had Kevin Armstrong with him (who has been his guitarist from the beginning!), and an excellent drummer who, in addition to playing a traditional drumset, has an Octapad triggering an iPad for sampled 'hits'. It's especially fun to watch him 'build' a song from bits. First a bassline, then percussion, then the rest of the band joins in. Fun to watch and listen to. What talent these guys have!

Thomas' film was thought provoking and funny at times. Overall it was well made and made us concerned about the global changes the earth is going through. Nothing can be done for the film's subject but Thomas indicated 46 lighthouses are in a similar position here in the states. Enjoyed the music, narration, and foley work. Loved meeting Thomas and Blake after the show. We really enjoyed seeing Thomas and Blake perform our favorite songs after the film. Thomas and Blake were kind to spend so much time with their fans. The Duck Room was a fun venue. We hadn't been there before so we didn't know what to expect.

When we initially saw that Thomas Dolby would be appearing live in Lawrence, we naturally assumed it would be a standard concert event. Upon further investigation, we learned that this would be a movie presentation with Thomas providing the live naration and music with Foley work done by renowned sound man Blake Leyh. Slightly chagrined, but big fans, we decided to go anyway. We were so thankful we did. The experience was like no other, both musically and visually enchanting while dredging deep philosophical questions. Thomas remains a world beating artist. If you can get VIP tickets, it is worth it. Mr. Dolby gratiously answered many questions after the show and patiently signed multiple autographs. He is a true gentleman. Even if you can't do the VIP ticket, go see this show.

Great show! The Invisible Light film was amazing. TD was gracious backstage and was quite engaged with the fans.

The concert/film experience was one that was completely unexpected. Up to that point, I only knew Thomas Dolby as a musician, not as the filmmaker/poet/musician/storyteller that this performance really showed him to be. All in all, very enjoyable. A wonderful blend of fond memories from the 80's along with a great artistic experience.

I've been a fan of Thomas Dolby since seeing & hearing the "Radio Silence" video on MTV in the very early 80s. My interest in his music waned a bit in the 90s, but I did follow his Headspace/Beatnik tech startup during that time. Fascinating guy! I had never seen him live, so was thrilled to find out he was playing the Duck Room. I then learned that it was actually a performance of his "DIY" film "The Invisible Lighthouse", which looked pretty interesting. The show was done in two parts: first, "The Invisible Lighthouse". He narrated, played portions of the soundtrack live (including some excerpts of his songs), shined a spotlight around the room at key moments. Also on stage, Blake Leyh, noted sound designer, performing live "Foley" sound effects and some guitar parts. The film was great! Semi-autobiographical, funny at times. Following the film, Thomas and Blake took questions from the audience for about 20 minutes. Good stuff. After the Q&A session, it was back to the keyboard rig for a run through about few of his "hits": "Spice Train", "Hyperactive", "One of Our Submarines", "Airhead" and (of course), "She Blinded me With Science". While it was a bit annoying to hear the audience chatter as he introduced "Science" ("...ok, babe, here's the song you know!", "...oh, I know this one!"), it was cool to hear his humorous account of the recording session for that track. I do have one complaint - the sound system was substandard, particularly for the "songs" portion of the show. It was relatively quiet with very little bass. I wish Thomas would have specified a bigger PA (as I assume is done for most rock/pop acts that play the Duck Room). All in all, a fun night - it was a thrill to see one of my musical idols live, even all these years later.

An intimate evening \u2014 nostalgic, current, forward-looking, historical and cutting edge. Just what you would expect from Mr. Dolby. He never disappoints.

Never been to a more personal concert with Thomas Dolby talking directly to his audience over a gorgeous film and catchy music.

I wasn't sure what to expect, but the movie was really fantastic. And I loved the way he sang along and created the sound effects. The guest violinist was exquisite. And it was fun to hear him play his hits at the end. Only problem was the weird guy in the front!

Pretty good show. TD's voice was a bit on, and off ... meaning to say that he did pull a few obscure songs out - yet did not play his newest masterpiece 'Nothing New Under The Sun' But when he was on, man, it was heaven ! He even played 'Lifeboats' which was a long shot fantasy for me since I was at anchor in Annapolis, 50 miles away waiting for the hurricane to pass before heading offshore to be lashed by the tradewinds of the Caribbean (TD lyric). Nice almost jazzy show, and very intimate - maybe 200 people, and one could hear the wood of the drumsticks on many of the lighter passages. Met a guy who wanted more upbeat - R&R show ..... but that was years ago ! This was a great show from an older new wave rocker from the early MTV generation era. He did well, enough to satisfy my childhood friend and myself. The new album, "A Map Of The Floating City" is easily the best album of 2011.

Although the Birchmere was half empty due to hurricane Sandy, Dolby played his heart out. He has an absolute cracking backup band and he's got a great stage presence. He promised to play all night and probably played for a good 2 1/2 hours. I'm a big fan of his old stuff and he did a lot off of Golden Age of Wireless and Flat Earth so I was real happy with his setlist. As always, the Birchmere sound system was top notch although there could have been a little more balance with the vocals. The show had a very intimate feeling due to the small turnout and Dolby kept things interesting with this witty stories. An excellent show!

100 guests were treated to another wonderful show. Dolby sounds and performs at his best. Birchmere is made for these shows. His group was fantastic. I can't wait to see him again. He performed for about 2.5 hours with no break and no opening act. One of the best shows all year.

Phenomenal show with a great mix of old hits and solid new material. Thomas Dolby and the band braved the leading edge of the storm and committed to hunkering down in DC for the following days of Hurricane Sandy to play the Birchmere -- and I'm glad they did! One of the best shows I've ever experienced, and a great first time seeing him live. Thanks much!

I saw his show earlier in the year back in March, and it was a very good show. This time round, he seemed much more relaxed and interactive with the audience. He only played a few songs from the last tour and played some songs that are infrequently played live. Can't wait to see him next time he's in town!

Maybe it was just the small, intimate venue, but Thomas Dolby's show at L'Astral in Montreal was amazing! It really was just an evening of music with friends; he was chatting with us between songs and giving a lot of backstories. And of course, playing with a band that made the music even better! Some old stuff, some of his new stuff, a very eclectic set that fans will truly appreciate!

Wife and I drove up from NC to VA to see TD play, and he was awesome. Loved every minute of it! He played a diverse range of songs and styles which my wife liked as someone relatively inexperienced with TD (she was only familiar with "She Blinded Me With Science") and I loved as a more moderate fan familiar with a good bit of his 80s songs. I started looking online tonight to buy some more CDs now! Toad Lickers was a favorite of mine (wierd but awesome) as was My Brain Like a Sieve, Airhead, a few I need to learn the names of, and basically just everything he did. I loved the 80s stuff, I loved the film noir sounding stuff, the bluegrass influence- everything. And I am a huge early Dolby fan- have songs from Wireless stuck in my head constantly, but I really got into the later stuff in this show. We also enjoyed the stories he told during the show!

Thomas did not disappoint. He brought a large synth rig as usual, but also brought a crack guitar and drummer, (using an Octopad no less!). This is my 4th time seeing him. I love how he tells stories in between each song.

The concert was fabulous! Loved the steam punk time machine. He did a great job covering alot of albums and doing the all justice. His voice was perfect!

This is the 5th time I've seen Thomas Dolby over the years. Each time it's a different 'feel' to the shows. He mixes the set list well and changes each song enough to make it sound fresh each time. It doesn't hurt that he's a pretty charismatic guy on stage as well. I'd highly recommend seeing him to anyone whether you know alot about his discography or not. My wife is too young to have known his music from the early 80's but is a huge fan now.

Thomas Dolby managed to play all of my favorite songs! The depth of the sound submerged my ears and gave me chills. He can't hit all the hi notes anymore, but it didn't take away from the experience. He told interesting tales about the songs and himself. The warm up duo were a fun romp also.

A fun, varied program with amusing stories to go with most songs. Thomas Dolby doesn't disappoint.