David Byrne brought his “Who Is The Sky” tour to Providence on Sunday October 5th, 2025.
To say Mr. Byrne is pushing the envelope on live musical performance would be a vast understatement. Accompanied by a troupe of seven roaming musicians, and five singers, Mr. Byrne performed a wonderful selection of Talking Heads classics, as well as material from his new record.
The show is not only an auditory celebration, but also a visual one. The staging for this tour includes a stage made up of a massive LED setup that totally encompasses the stage. It’s not only on the rear wall, but also the sides, and the flooring. This creates an incredible visual experience that is fully utilized throughout the show and programmed by a full team of designers. At times this effect made it appear that the performers were performing on the moon, hovering over a neighborhood, or even inside David’s New York City apartment.
In many ways, this current tour is an extension of the “American Utopia” Tour that culminated with a lengthy Broadway residency. That show as wonderfully captured by Spike Lee and released as the film “American Utopia”. Some of the material played on Sunday was a reiteration of that show, but Mr. Byrne has added a few Talking Heads songs that were not a part of that show. One notable addition is that of the Talking Heads classic “Psycho Killer” which was performed with each performer lit with a single overhead spotlight that followed them as they roamed the stage. The effect of this lighting was simply stunning, and unlike anything I have ever seen in a live concert.
To have all the musicians roaming the stage while playing multiple instruments involves an incredible amount of wireless transmission of audio signal. It could be a nightmare, not only in terms of connectivity, but it is also a huge challenge to bring to different venues every night. The RF transmissions can be interrupted by all types of interference, and to pull off a show of this nature without dropouts, or feedback is a massive challenge. The technical aspirations of this type of show could be a nightmare of glitches, but the expertise of the touring crew pulled it off without a hitch, it was seamless!
After a career as a professional sound engineer, I am rarely able to enjoy a show without at some point being aware that something is drastically wrong. That the crew was able to present this show so perfectly just left me stunned. It looked, and sounded incredible.
If you’re a fan of David Byrne’s solo work, Talking Heads, or just want to see a wonderfully choreographed musical performance presented with fantastic production value, I highly recommend you see this tour when it hits your town. You won’t regret it.
Setlist
1. Heaven
2. Everybody Laughs
3. And She Was
4. Strange Overtones
5. Houses in Motion
6. T-Shirt
7. Nothing But Flowers
8. This Must Be the Place
9. What is The Reason For it
10. Like Humans Do
11. Don’t Be Like That
12. Independence Day
13. Slippery People
14. I Met The Buddha at a Downtown Party
15. My Apartment Is My Friend
16. Hard Times
17. Psycho Killer
18. Life During Wartime
19. Once In a Lifetime
Encores
20. Everybody’s Coming To My House
21. Burning Down The House
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