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DAVID BYRNE
@ Adelaide Entertainment Centre,
Adelaide,
24th January 2026
(Live Review)Review by Colin Reid
Photos by Elise De Simoni (@elisedphoto)
A David Byrne gig isn’t what you and I would generally perceive a gig to be. Whilst it bears some similarities in that, yes, there are drums and guitars and percussion and backing singers it doesn’t present in a way that our mind generally understands a concert to be structured. Yes it is a rock concert but in many ways it is much more like a piece of performance art or musical theatre. The backing musicians, or perhaps cast member is a better description, don’t simply back up the lead artist. The drummer isn’t stationed at the back, the guitars aren’t out on the wings and the backing singers are certainly tucked away on the side. Rather than what convention expects’ the rest of the ensemble are fluid and forever in motion. Those who have an instruments are connected wirelessly and their mini drum kits, keyboards or guitars are strapped to their bodies. Together with the backing singers / dancers they are free to move across the otherwise empty stage following intricate choreographed perfection as they either follow David’s lead or they become the centre attraction themselves.
If that wasn’t enough of a variation from the norm for the viewer to get their head around David’s stage is surrounded by massive panels that light up and these transform throughout the performance. The audience are taken from the surface of the moon to inner city roof tops as well as a 360 degree tour of David’s New York apartment and much, much more. With all this going on it is clear that a David Byrne show isn’t just a gig but rather a redefining of what a live performance can be.
After David makes a short announcement, urging us to be in the moment, keep phone use to a minimum and above all else to dance the show begins. Four figures, apparently standing on the surface of the moon which is illuminated in stark tones of black and white with the distant planet Earth in the background. They are slowly lit up to reveal David and his three companions dressed in vivid blue jumpsuits and matching sneakers as they go into the Talking Heads song ‘Heaven’ to rapturous applause.
The ranks on stage swell thirteen and together they go into track two ‘Everybody Laughs’ from the recent ‘Who Is The Sky’ album. It has such an infectious opening riff and such a feel good vibe to it. In the upper seated section the crowd’s knees are tapping and heads are swaying with the feeling of joy whilst meanwhile one or two in the lower level have started to dance.
This good feeling only builds as they go into another Talking Heads classic ‘And She Was’ which David introduces with a humorous anecdote about a girl at high school who took acid in the afternoon in the field by the local chocolate factory. “I never got into psychedelics but years later I did write a song about her!” There are so many of us with so many wonderful memories of these songs and I’m wishing that we could all be up on that stage dancing with him.
The choreography is outstanding and there is seldom a moment when they are still. Sometimes is appears as organised chaos, sometimes precision interweaving patterns, sometimes individual virtuosity. It is a spectacle to behold, everything about the performance is fluid and the thirteen are never ever static however it is so highly choreographed that one sometimes wondered if there was any room for anything spontaneous in the show.
The temperature has been hovering around 40C for a couple of days and David thanks Adelaide for turning up the heat for them! Despite the oppressive weather they have been out and about in the CBD and to prove it the screens display a montage of photos of local sites “I’ll explain your city to you” he jokes. I liked that, it was an interesting touch and showed that each time he plays isn’t just another show and also that whilst so much of the evening depends upon choreography that there was room for some spontaneity.
‘T Shirt’, another track from ‘Who Is The Sky’, goes down a storm. The screens are showing various t-shirt designs including ‘Make America Gay Again’ parodying the MAGA cult slogan and ‘No Kings’ a take off of the Burger King logo both indications of David’s opinion of Trump.
Some of the crowd has taken David at his word and have begun to leave their seats to dance to another ‘Talking Heads’ song (Nothing but) Flowers and then ‘This Must Be the Place’. It is really great that David is treating us with so many gems from the Talking Heads back catalogue.
Between songs David recounts an interview with Superman film director James Gunn who said recently that the most punk thing you can do right now is to be kind. David said it had taken him a while to get it but that now he recognised that love and kindness are a form of resistance. It is a nice thought and a hope that we can hang on to but given what is happening right now in Minnesota, Gaza, Ukraine and other places it probably isn’t enough. Despite my misgivings they stick with the script and play ‘What Is the Reason for it?’ another track from the latest album.
David returns to the theme of being out and about exploring in Adelaide. To prove beyond doubt that there is room for spontaneity and improvisational in the set he has the screens display a promo poster for an upcoming Adelaide Fringe show called ‘Bryne Dance’. The image is so cool, it is in the form of an old style Golden Book featuring a host of mini figures performing David’s signature dance moves. To make things even better David has tracked down the show’s creators and they come out on stage to teach us, and David, some iconic David Byrne dance moves! This is fantastic, we can all learn to dance like him!
It had taken me a little while to get used to this style of performance but I am really warming to it. This format certainly gives him the ability to change the viewing experience, the background, the make up and construction of the backing players and singers and this allows for quick fire changes to the mood or the vibe in order to suit each song. A format that I was finding distracting only thirty minutes ago I’m now fascinated and captivated by. I’m particularly loving the starry night background which has all their thirteen names floating through space as their earthly bodies glide across the stage driving on their celestial names above. Another has a background of rushing waters which is a perfect visionary metaphor for the fluid, swirling nature of David’s music where so much happening all at once. It is rhythmic chaotic perfection without either a beginning or an end. No wonder they took a long bow after that one.
The regular set closes out with three big Talking Heads songs. Firstly ‘Psycho killer’ has the crowd clapping along with the rhythm of the intro. All of the performers have their individual moment lit up one by one in the spotlight as they demonstrate their skills. It is an amazing version, getting faster and faster towards it’s glorious conclusion. Next comes ‘Life During Wartime’ and the lyric “This ain’t no disco” had the whole ground floor up and out of their seats, dancing and cellphones light up all around the arena. One of the loudest cheers of the night came as footage is shown behind the ensemble showing a person of Hispanic student getting away from a group of ICE agents. It is another stark reminder of how much America has changed in the last twelve months. The final song in the trifecta is ‘Once in a Lifetime’ featuring David and the rest dancing in front of a stark orange backdrop with twisting pixel columns of colour and generating a wall of sound of sonic perfection.
The cast then form up into a long line and take a slow double bow, “Thank you, thank you” David acknowledged the crowd with everyone out of their seats clapping and hollering.
After a short break they returned with ‘Everybody’s Coming to My House’. The lyric “everybody’s coming to my house and I’m never gonna be alone” seemed a fitting set of thoughts for David to be having as the pandemic was coming to an end. ‘Burning Down the House’ closed out the night and two by two the drummers, guitarists and dancers took a moment in the centre light with David as their names appeared up the screen.
It had been some performance. No one who hasn’t seen him before had seen a show like this before and I was so happy happy to have been there. No one had wanted it to end and everyone left with a smile on their face.
Check out Elise De Simoni’s (@elisedphoto) full gallery of this event HERE
Follow DAVID BYRNE
Website – Facebook – Instagram
YouTube – Spotify – Apple Music 
Press Release 10th January 2026 (below) HERE
DAVID BYRNE
WHO IS THE SKY?
Australia and
New Zealand tour
kicks off next week
+ Sydney sold out and final tickets in Auckland & Melbourne
AMNPLIFY – DB
