Seal in Boston – May 12, 2023

Celebrating over three decades of music, the legendary singer Seal came to the Boch Center Wang Theatre in Boston. With a night of music celebrating his first two albums, Seal and Seal, fans were in for a great night of music.

The Buggles

The Buggles biggest claim to fame is their hit song, “Video Killed the Radio Star,” also known as the very first music video ever played on MTV. (They used to play music videos??) Started as a duo of bassist Trevor Horn and keyboardist Geoff Downes, the group is now just Trevor and some hired guns. Trevor has written and produced countless hits for other artists over the years, and so their set included some of those songs, as well. Opening with Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s “Two Tribes,” and later playing the Yes hit, “Owner of a Lonely Heart,” Trevor has certainly had some huge songs in his career. Their short set came to an end with, of course, “Radio Star.” The band sounded phenomenal, and they put on a very entertaining set to warm up the show.

Seal

Tonight was all about celebrating Seal’s first two self-titled albums. Kicking off the night with his first huge hit, “Crazy,” the soulful singer had the audience on their feet and dancing from the very start. With hits like “Killer,” off his first album, and “Prayer for the Dying,” off the second, the caliber of Seal’s first two albums is undeniable.

Thirty years on, Seal’s voice is as powerful as ever. As he wailed songs like “Don’t Cry,” he hit every note, delighting the crowd. Seal made a real connection with the crowd, not just emotionally, but physically, as well, as more than once he came into the crowd to sing songs with the audience.

As I mentioned earlier, Buggles frontman Trevor Horn has a massive career producing hits for other artists. One chapter of his library is Seal’s entire catalog. With that in mind, Trevor and the rest of the band were also Seal’s backing band. The talented group of musicians perfectly recreated the sounds of Seal’s hits.

Later in the show, Seal brought attention to Trevor. He mentioned that when preparing the second Seal album, Trevor convinced him to record a song that he wasn’t a big fan of. That song turned out to be “Kiss from a Rose,” undoubtedly Seal’s biggest hit. As he performed it tonight, clips from Batman Forever, the movie for which the song appeared on the soundtrack, played on the screen behind him. The song is absolutely iconic, and his performance did not disappoint.