Review: David Byrne at RAC Arena

David Byrne at RAC Arena
Tuesday, January 27, 2026

I’ve never seen anything quite like David Byrne’s once-in-a-lifetime show on Tuesday night.

From the panoramic visual display circling the stage to the choreographed dancing musicians making up the so-called Ghost Train Orchestra (up to 13 players onstage at different points), we were treated to some kind of art-rock musical theatre masterclass. Song and dance, thrilling design, charismatic performances. This had it all.

Not to mention it was a celebration of one of popular music’s most celebrated catalogues. As the frontman and main songwriter of Talking Heads, Byrne changed rock and roll forever, and we were treated to 10 of their biggest and best hits alongside various solo numbers, including five from last year’s Who Is the Sky?.

Opening with 1979’s Heaven was a sublime introduction, as plucked synth notes and a two-piece string ensemble offered a completely different take on the song that’s such a highlight on both Talking Heads’ third record, Fear of Music, and again on the world-beating 1984 concert film (and live album), Stop Making Sense. Spine-tingling stuff.

Everybody Laughs, up next, exceeded its studio counterpart as the rest of the players emerged, one by one, highlighted by rad xylophone and sax solos. It was the pick of the newer tracks alongside My Apartment Is My Friend later in the set, in which we were taken inside Byrne’s flash New York home and given a sneak insight into his solitary life during COVID.

An array of slogans reading everything from “Make America Gay Again” to “Say Perhaps to Drugs” to “Perth Kicks Ass” lit up the bespoke screen set up as we were treated to a brand new track released late last year, T Shirt, a reunion of sorts between Byrne and Brian Eno (Eno produced three Talking Heads masterpieces between 1978 and 1980, arguably their imperial run).

And we got plenty from those albums, too. Early on it was Heaven and Houses in Motion, the latter featuring a massive guitar shred from Musical Director Ray Suen before peaking on a mad freakout from synth master Daniel Mintseris.

Later, the main set’s big finale of Life During Wartime and Once in a Lifetime had the entire arena on their feet. While the latter’s sparkling synths and “Same as it ever was” refrain made it a frontrunner for track of the night, the former’s affecting footage of police being heavy-handed (mirroring the ICE mandate currently wreaking terror in the US) juxtaposed the tension and release aesthetic that has characterised so much of Byrne’s angular post-punk.

That wasn’t the first time the ageing but wildly appreciative crowd had risen to their feet. Eight tracks in for This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody), we rose one by one, and it was simply breathtaking. Lifted from their most popular record, Speaking in Tongues (1983), there was little doubt as to how much the album still resonates with fans across Slippery People (complete with spectacular footage of oceans crashing behind the band) and especially Burning Down the House to close the encore.

All the while the band of virtuoso performers traded instruments and busted out shapes around one another in the most fluid and unique movements. Suen at turns sent chills with his violin playing and thrilled with epic guitar shreds, in the best example of how multi-faceted this ensemble could be. Kely Pinheiro held down Tina Weymouth’s pumping basslines and quickly became a crowd favourite.

Only 10 days earlier Nick Cave put on what I thought would be remembered as gig of the year, but David Byrne may have just passed him. It’s neck and neck, but we’re talking about two of the best shows of the decade here. It’s only January, but damn, 2026 is off to a very good start.

It’s nearly impossible to describe in words and pictures; it was just a feeling. In the hairs standing up on your neck, or the sheer joy in the eyes of every member of the audience, beaming back at the stage.

Thank you, David Byrne. We needed that.

HARVEY RAE

Photos by Stu McKay