His entire show was a technological masterpiece from start to finish, with visually striking scenery, as well as creative and psychedelic backgrounds. Waters took the stage promptly a little after 8:10 p.m., and it began with ambient music in the background, with a peaceful scene of a beach with “Spoke to Me.” The stage immediately broke into galaxy scenery for “Breathe.” His guitar player Jonathan Wilson delighted on the smooth vocals of the latter tune.
It was followed by the more aggressive “One of these Days,” where green and red lights dimmed from the stage. This was well-received with a tremendous response from the Nassau Coliseum audience.
The clocks background on the televised screens was appropriate for the percussion driven “Time,” which Waters showcased his crisp, lead vocals. Jessica Wolfe and Holly Laessig of the indie group Lucius, who served as his backing vocalists, were superb on “The Great Gig in the Sky.”
“Welcome to the Machine” was one of the highlights from the first set, which featured an animated background. He managed to get the fans to put their hands up in the air, and he incorporated it as a crowd singalong.
After switching guitars from electric to acoustic, Waters treated his Nassau Coliseum concertgoers to “Déjà Vu” from his latest Is This The Life We Really Want? album, where he showcased his rich, baritone voice on the haunting tune.
“The Last Refugee” featured the song’s music video playing in the background, which began with an expressive, interpretive dance. The iconic rocker was not afraid to speak his mind on the vituperative “Picture That,” which was raw and authentic. Once he lifted up his acoustic guitar at the end of the song, the audience gave him a raucous round of applause.
Just when one thought that Rogers could not possibly get any better, he proves everybody wrong again with an empowering version of “Wish You Were Here,” with Lucius’ Holly Laessig and Jessica Wolfe on background vocals. The first half of his show concluded with “Another Brick in the Wall,” where 10 children took the stage (joining the ladies of Lucius), and the kids were dressed in orange prison jumpsuits, and towards the end, they uncovered themselves (by getting out of the orange jumpsuits), thus revealing their “Resist” black T-shirts. “There are your kids,” Roger Waters said. “They are amazing. You should be proud of them,” he added, complimenting them. They were from the Prodigy School of the Arts from Hempstead. He noted that they will take a 20 minute break, and then he and his band will do another set.
In the second part of his show, the technology got even more elaborate, with on screen projects at both sides of the stage, with several smokestacks and a giant Anti-Trump pig that was floating around. Waters opened with Dogs,” and continued with “Pigs (Three Different Ones)” and the witty, sassy tune “Money.” “Please help we are trapped in a dystopian nightmare,” one of the quotes read.
He even poked fun at several of Trump’s inaccurate quotations on the televised screens, where he confused 9/11, with 7-11, among others (including his high IQ).
Waters closed his set with “Brain Damage” and “Eclipse,” which featured the gorgeous pyramid, as he took his fans on a trip down memory lane to the early 70’s and the Pink Floyd Dark Side of the Moon album.
For his encore, he performed “Vera,” as well as the sultry “Bring the Boys Back Home” and “Comfortably Numb,” with neat laser lights gracing the venue, which was a beautiful spectacle.
The Verdict
Overall, Roger Waters was incredible at the new Nassau Coliseum, for his second consecutive show at this venue. He played for well over two hours, and gave Long Island his all. His entire band was talented as a whole. The crowd was aware of the fact that they were in the presence of a rock and roll icon. He did not do much talking, and he allowed the music and the visuals to speak for themselves. He was successful in taking his fans and listeners on a musical journey through this innovative experience. His live show garnered five out of five stars.
