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Hayley in Concert with Il Divo
banner - Odyssey
Minneapolis 18th February 2006 - Review by Caite Cocker

Hayley in Minneapolis
More images in Gallery 33

Hey everyone!

The concert last night was amazing! I had a marvelous time at the concert, and I'm sure anyone who has yet to go will also have a wonderful time. I looked online for reviews of the concert but had no luck. If I find any I will be sure to post them.

the show opensI managed to take 280 pictures at the concert, of course with no flash. I'll be sure to put some of them up :)  The acoustics in Northrop were better than I remembered. Imagine listening to one of Hayley's CD's with surround sound, multiply that by ten, and then see her in front of you performing. You could see the passion she has for what she does and couldn't help but watch.

As soon as the lights dimmed the music of 'She Moved Through the Fair' began and there was no sight of Hayley. I waited, and it would seem she appeared out of nowhere. Her very first note had my neighbors on the left stop talking and give Hayley their undivided attention through the whole performance. At one point the one sitting next to me asked, 'Do you know who this is? She's stunning!' Of course I told her, and as a reminder wrote down her name and Odyssey's title, along with this website and her official site. Maybe we'll see them join?

never saw blueI have always enjoyed 'Never Saw Blue' and her performance was everything and more. (This can be said for her entire performance.) Due to the basketball and hockey games people were still being seated during the first two songs so there was some extra noise and commotion, but by her next song things had settled down. 'Amazing Grace' seemed to finally grab most of the audience's attention especially now there wasn't the distraction of the people being seated. It's a song that most people know, and Hayley's version was fantastic.

I first heard 'The Mummer's Dance' a while ago and looked forward to Hayley's rendition. I wasn't disappointed, and in fact, I enjoyed Hayley's version much better than the other I heard. The minimal backing really helped (it didn't overtake the singing as it did in the other version I heard).

Hayley'May it Be' came next. She gave a nice introduction to the song by referencing New Zealand and the "Lord of the Rings' movies followed by an equally nice performance. She certainly shows a love for her country and is very proud to be a Kiwi.

'Both Sides Now' was done a bit differently with a faster tempo, and a break in the last part (where naturally people clapped thinking it was the end), but then she and the band picked up again to finish the song. My neighbor to my left actually started clapping enthusiastically at the break, but as soon as the music began again she said, "oh!" and quit clapping until the end of the song.

At one point, Hayley was starting to talk with the audience when someone yelled something. She stopped, "Did someone say something?" Silence. "Oh, maybe I'm hearing things" She chuckled, and went on. when I was talking to Hayley at the intermission I told her she wasn't hearing things, that someone did yell. She said she thought so, but sometimes she gets interference from other radios. In Washington D.C there was a lot of interference from the police station near by. She said, "I would hear this deep voice and I'd be like 'that's not me!' "

HayleyWhen Hayley introduced the song 'From A Distance' I thought at first she was going to talk about UNICEF because she talked about hope and the like, but she didn't. The song was wonderful. It had a great message and I hope to hear it again. Possibly on an album?

Pokarekare Ana was amazing, and from what I could tell there wasn't a whole lot of movement/talking from the audience during this song. 'You Are Water' was a nice choice for a closer. It kept the audience's attention even as they were getting a tad antsy for the charming quartet.

As I mentioned before I was able to talk with Hayley during the intermission. She sounded fine. I think it might have been the mic or the speakers that made her seem hoarse. She mentioned that she expected to be more tired than she actually is doing so many shows back to back. She said she's looking forward to her two full days of break (and the warmer weather), though she said 'I'm not quite sure what I'm going to do with myself!'

Hayley said that writing an update has been on the back of her mind for a while, and she'll get around to writing it soon.

And finally, Hayley says "Hello!" to everyone.

Caite

source : hwi
credit : review by caite
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