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FrenchBison Reviewed: August 31, 2023 concert by King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard
I was happy to have the opportunity to head to Lille for this show, which is my only chance to see the band on this tour. Saw a bunch of Gizz fans cruising around the city in the afternoon, had some beers with some French and Belgian fans who were randomly at the same bar before the show. The bartender was curious so he threw on some Gizz as we were pre-gaming... a fun moment.

On to the show. L'Aeronef is a big box, almost feels like a giant shipping container. A bit strange as a venue, and very, very crowded (maybe 1500 to 2000 people crammed in there?). Very intense start...the front of the place exploded as they started playing and kept the energy high for the entirety of the I'm in your Mind suite. Cellophane was a highlight in that opening segment for me. Supercell and Converge seemed tight to me, although hard to totally tell when engulfed in the chaos. In fact, the first 50 minutes or so were non-stop and rowdy as hell, I stayed in the pit for most of it but had to evacuate when a crowdsurfer landed on me a bit funny during Witchcraft. Recovered with a beer and went to the back of the smallish room as Magenta Mountain was heating up. Ambrose summoned the powers of the Beastie Boys during Grim Reaper. L'Aeronef did not seem to be the best venue acoustically, so I spent a good part of the microtonal portion of the show trying a couple of different spots in towards the back. For me that part of the show didn't "pop" as some of those microtonal jams have the potential to do (perhaps I'll have to relisten if a recording pops up), but Billabong Valley was a treat. Ice V brought the jammy goodness. Finally found a sweet spot for the sound for the extended Boogieman Sam which was a ton of fun which finished with a huge "a wop bop aloobop a wop bam boom"! Then I couldn't help myself and had to get back into the pit for Dripping Tap, which was drawn out and intense. A circle pit formed and the crowd was in a frenzy. I was completely drenched with sweat (and flying beers) by the end! Super high energy in the front of the room. I hope that Gizz keeps playing these medium size rooms in Europe, but given their growing popularity I'm afraid they might be soon focusing on the Zénith Paris and Alexandra Palaces of the world.

Tldr: It was rowdy, I'd do it again.

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