31st July 2005 Benidorm Music Meeting, Benidorm, Spain

Review by neko:
Since it took us 7h to get here, we obviously now need to get back, 7hours again. So Saturday is one of those nights where we stumble into the hotel at 3am and order a wake up call for 5am. I can’t even describe how shit I feel at 5am in the morning getting up again, having had a bit less than 4h sleep in total in the last 2 nights. We catch our 6am train though and by 1pm we’re back in Alicante.

But now we still have to make our way to nearby Benidorm where the gig tonight is taking place, and due to unlucky timing this takes another two hours. So, by 3pm we finally get to our hotel. It’s a bit of a shocker. Gran Hotel Bali is supposedly a 4 star place, one of the highest buildings in Spain (43 floors). As we enter it’s pure package holiday hell. I have never in my life been on a package holiday and now I know why. It’s full season of course, the place is full of tourists with hundreds of children and the place is pretty horrible too. Not having had much sleep doesn’t help either. No offence to anyone from here, it’s actually a very nice part of Spain, but this whole tourist thing here freaks me out and I cannot wait to leave again!

We’re trying to make the best of it though and head to the beach for the rest of the day which isn’t too bad, nicer than in Alicante at least and the Mediterranean sea is nice and warm. So I guess I shouldn’t complain, there’s worse places to be in. Then in typical package holiday style we of course enjoy the half-board provided buffet style supper with all 2000 other guests (and their kids) – fun.

Later that evening then we’re of to the Foietes stadium where the ‘Benidorm Music Meeting’ is taking place. Arriving at 11pm we’ve missed first band Echo & the Bunnyman. I hear they were big in the 80s… or it was a British thing? Kieron and Rob are into them – and I am getting told off for being ‘too young’.

But as we get into the venue Mr James Brown comes on, very unique line up before Prodigy of course. The audience is some interesting mix of people of all age groups. We’re sat in the bar and watch the gig from a bit further away, all very interesting to watch. I never really realised I knew all these tracks by James Brown, but as the set goes on I realise I know pretty much all of them (maybe I should have watched Echo & the Bunnyman after all and the same would have happened?).

Just around midnight then Mr Brown is finished (after dragging on with some of the tracks for a bit too long sometimes) and we get in place for The Prodigy. My tiredness has gone now, I’m all excited for the show as usual. Half an hour later and the band are on.

Tonight’s show is once more amazing… I don’t even know where to start. First of all the setlist is the same as last night, but quite a bit is different. Some of the tracks have been changed, a lot of spontaneous little fills here and there, some jamming and that kind of stuff. Also performance wise such a great show again. If they keep this spontaneity going until next weekend for the three indoor UK shows then we’re going to get some of the best shows ever. Be there if you can … I mean it.

The new track, the Wake the fuck up Jam is one of my favourites now. That and Voodoo People and Back to School are definitely the highlights of the very strong set now. I also like Hotride back in the set, it still seems to be ever changing, but much for the better every time.

The audience here in Benidorm is great as well. Thank god my fear of just random holiday makers turning up doesn’t materialise and it actually feels like at a proper show, many people evidently here just to see Prodigy and that with great anticipation.

As I write this it’s 11pm the following night and I’m sat in Alicante waiting for our delayed flight back to London. The band are playing a third Spanish show in Vigo tonight and I am sure it’s as good as the other two. Once more it feels to me like they were better than ever this weekend. And although I’ve pretty much lost count of how many times I’ve seen them over the last year I’m still amazed every single time again…. and the new Warning doesn’t change that.