Not being familiar with the music of David Byrne, I thought that this was closer to being a stage musical as it has a directorial credit to Spike Lee. But this really is a filmed concert performance of songs mainly from Byrne’s new album American Utopia and also songs from earlier in his career and maybe a couple from other artistes. It’s hard to develop a strong appreciation for a completely unfamiliar genre of music from one performance alone but this is a fantastic one and it’s also especially energizing due to how overtly political it is.

Having no previous exposure to Byrne’s music, this makes for quite an enjoyable introduction to New Wave. The matter of fact lyrics that directly talk about relevant social topics (even if the songs were first released in the 1980s!) aren’t always easy to understand, but they do make this feel more like a contemporary art piece than a normal concert. The stage is pretty minimal as well yet it comes wonderfully alive with their use of colored lighting. It’s incredible how different everything looks with just a change of colors. Then there’s how the entire band is right there performing together with Byrne front and center with portable instruments and no wires. This is a show that really leverages modern technology to achieve its minimalistic look. Finally Byrne is a guy with immense charisma and performing ability, not to mention stamina in a show with no intermission and costume changes, for as he puts it himself, a white guy of a certain age. It’s a little embarrassing to see the fans’ massive reaction to certain songs that you realize must be old, familiar hits and not feel anything yourself, but this is still fine entertainment for us non-fans.

The sense of this being an art performance is accentuated by Byrne behaving like an activist on stage. It looks like this one took place sometime before the 2020 US presidential elections, and while Byrne doesn’t explicitly tell the audience to vote against Trump, it’s clear who he supports. He does talk about helping the get out the vote campaign in 2016 and one of the songs is the BLM protest song Hell You Talmbout. I’d bet most non-Americans like myself won’t even understand what Talmbout refers to so there’s a real accessibility barrier here but it makes all the difference that he’s not singing about vague generalities here. The theme here is inclusivity and being welcoming to all, with Byrne pointing out that he himself is a naturalized American due to being brought over from Scotland by his parents as a child. The immediate relevance to what is happening on the streets and his sincerity in conveying his message gives this performance a greater emotional impact than any ordinary concert.

I’m not exactly big on music so this isn’t enough to turn me into a committed fan. But this is a pretty great show and so makes for an easy recommendation. This may not be a musical like I thought it was, but it’s as much an art installation as a concert and that makes it fascinating. I don’t know much about Byrne and from what I can see he is absolutely genuine and passionate about the values he espouses in here. Even the shots of him getting to and leaving the theatre on a bicycle aren’t a stunt. It seems that he really does use a bike to get around everywhere despite his age and celebrity status.