Still, one show gets some gems, and the next show gets a standard set. I see a bit of unfairness in that, considering there are die-hards in every crowd as people who saw them multiple times over the years and would welcome some new songs instead of repeating "Sleep" or "Cpt. Crah" all over or bringing back "I Love This Town" when they could play "I'd Die For You" instead. But you know that song and dance.

But I agree: Still a setlist that looks uninspired on paper can be a fantastic show. And on this tour the performances seem to be really great. I'm OK with a 24 song set, of course I would leave a bit disappointed if I got the same old 24 as I'M one of those following every setlist. BUT, a high level performance can make up for it. And the boys seem to perform tight and passionate this tour. And we shouldn't forgive, they are indeed playing songs we never thought would see the spotlight again. They even made a These Days song a stable!!!!!!! I mean...

On the other hand, a nice setlist could also make up for a shitty performance, but not totally. The show in Hessisch Lichtenau in 2006 is an example: It was a very cold summer day, Jon was not happy with the weather, did not much talking to the crowd (of "only" about 30.000+ people), except for complaining about the weather ("this is what you call a german summer, huh?), rushed through the songs like one huge medley and the band left after 2 hours straight after a quick bow. That was the shortest BJ gig I've ever seen. Still, the performance was pretty tight and the set was nice. I have to say, tickets were about 15 Euros cheaper than usual.

They opened with "Raise Your Hands", which was perfect, as Jon was running around on the catwalk, they played "These Days" and "Garageland". So even though I was disappointed and could understand people being pissed off, I still think the performance was a solid one. A couple of days later in Munich they play exactly one hour (!) longer. Ok, tickets were indeed more expensive, and there more than twice the people than at the show above. But what bothers me is the suspicion that the short show was not only about the weather, but also about a small festival crowd with many non-fans and less money. And that is, dear Jon, totally un-professional.

But yeah, it has always been the way that some shows are longer than others. And hey, if Montreal goes nuts it's only fair that they get an extra encore. Same happens in Munich every time. Still, every other show should still get a nice setlist too...