Leonard Cohen in Melbourne

Saturday morning, I was all set to post a review of the Leonard Cohen concert Aradhna and I saw the night before at nearby Rod Laver Arena.

But I couldn't pull the trigger. It would be too much like posting about a dream, or a hope for the future. A Cohen concert is not something witnessed. It's absorbed. And so breaking it down into highlights feels rote, or dishonest.

Found this photo from Friday night's show (above) on an 'official' Cohen tour blog. For those interested in a detailed review of the show have a look at this Cohen forum post, which includes a breakdown of the night's setlist:

Set 1
01 Dance Me To The End Of Love
02 The Future
03 Bird On The Wire
04 Everybody Knows
05 Who By Fire
06 Famous Blue Raincoat
07 Democracy
08 Chelsea Hotel #2
09 Waiting For The Miracle
10 Anthem

Set 2
11 Tower Of Song
12 Suzanne
13 Avalanche
14 A Singer Must Die
15 Sisters Of Mercy
16 The Gypsy's Wife
17 The Partisan
18 Hallelujah
19 I'm Your Man
20 A Thousand Kisses Deep [recitation]
21 Take This Waltz

Encore 1
22 So Long, Marianne
23 First We Take Manhattan

Encore 2
24 I Tried To Leave You
25 Closing Time

The Basics: Show kicked off at 8:15. Cohen did a jig off the stage to end the first set. Half hour passed before he returned with an acoustic guitar to start the second set alone (as shown in the photo at the top of this post). His final jig came at the end of the second encore at 11:15. Rod Laver Arena seats 15,000 but the section behind the stage was carefully covered, giving the place a slightly more intimate feel and eliminating echo. As a Cohen concert is as much about the quiet between notes, the venue's outstanding sound was a relief. Crowd was old and white but steadily increased its enthusiasm as the show rolled on, gathering converts and working up the blood of Cohen cultists. Among those in attendance were Emily and Michael, whom we met beforehand in Southbank and took a water taxi along the Yarra River to the arena (below, along with Shug & Diane). All in all, a wonderful evening, and one that must be experienced -- felt -- to understand.