David Byrne — musician, artist, icon. There’s no questioning that the former Talking Heads frontman excels in his industry, captivatingly merging music with philosophy, artistry and utter fascination. For two nights at Red Rocks — August 27 and 28 — David Byrne brought his vision of American Utopia to life with a full, wireless band and a classy yet enthralling stage set up — just like the performer’s outfits, all clad with entirely gray suits and no shoes.
The now 66-year-old musician sang, danced, played guitar and of course, brought the theatrics. Opening with “Here,” he mapped out the parts of a fake brain held in his hand. At another point in the show, a lamp slid seamlessly — magically — across the stage. Oh, and the choreography — simple, interpretive and masterfully planned — helped propel the splendor that was David Byrne at Red Rocks. As expected, the show was one-of-a-kind. It was revolutionary with its marching, drumming, passive political statements and all. But also in a sense that David Byrne showed Denver a vision that has set the bar all-too high for the tours of 2018.