Walking into the House of Blues in Anaheim on November 9th, I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect. It had been decades since I’d last seen Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark; the last time was back in 1988 at the Rose Bowl when they opened for Depeche Mode during the Concert for the Masses. I remembered them being good, but memories can be tricky things… especially when filtered through nearly 40 years of other concerts and experiences.
Let me cut right to it — OMD absolutely blew me away.
This wasn’t just a nostalgia trip or a competent run-through of the hits by a band coasting on their legacy; this was one of the best live shows I’ve seen in years — and I go to a lot of concerts. I’m talking top 10 material here, which is not something I say lightly…