Night two of Bob Dylan’s “Lights of Autumn” tour came to Gothenburg, Sweden last night. It followed a very dramatic opening night in Oslo. A few questions got answered. Would he keep most of the surprises from night one? No! Would he add new surprises in their place? Heck yes!
Here to tell us all about it are Daniel Seaton and João Amorelli. Daniel Seaton is a writer and historian. His latest book is Truth Under Fire: Australia’s Second World War Correspondents (sounds like a book a certain 85-year-old history buff might like!). Over to Daniel first, then João, plus some photos, video clips, and a full tape!
Daniel Seaton:
Unlike the Oslo Spektrum, where Bob Dylan kicked off his 2026 UK/EU tour two days prior, Gothenburg’s Scandinavium is, as far as arenas go, quite a pleasant place to watch a concert. While the Spektrum is undergoing a swathe of messy-looking construction work, the Scandinavium is by comparison sleek, spacious and more efficient in terms of getting people in and out of the venue. Of course, the seasoned Dylan fan would always choose an atmospheric theatre over a soulless and cavernous arena, but they will have no such luck on this tour: Dylan is sticking to the arenas until he reaches the UK.
Coming off the back of the Oslo show, where Dylan surprised by returning to an old favourite in “Tangled Up in Blue”—the first since 2018—(with the addition of several completely new verses), alongside other unexpected inclusions like “Crash on the Levee” and an encore of “You Ain’t Goin’ Nowhere” (not to mention never before played covers of Randy Newman and Guy Clark songs), the Gothenburg concert continued to defy expectations.
Upon taking my seat, I quickly realised that standing only a couple of metres away from me in the auditorium was Dylan’s longtime bass player and band leader, Tony Garnier. Wearing a black hoodie, he was leaning against a railing, happily chatting away with a couple he clearly knew somehow. I didn’t want to eavesdrop, so entertained myself by looking at the stage setup and studying the arena’s seating configuration. Remember, phones are locked away in pouches for Dylan shows, meaning that the audience has to entertain itself the old fashioned way ahead of the performance: either with conversation or by quietly staring into space. The nosebleed seats at the Scandinavium, which is most commonly used for ice hockey matches, are terrifically high, the seats’ occupants looking tiny off in the distance. After five minutes or so Garnier, looking perfectly relaxed, said his goodbyes to the couple, acknowledged a few fans and disappeared backstage.
At 8pm sharp, Dylan’s four-piece band (minus their leader) took to the stage, playing an extended opening to “To Be Alone With You” in a laid-back, country rock style. After two or three minutes, Dylan stepped on stage to huge cheers from the crowd, his face shrouded by the black cap and hood combination he has recently taken to wearing. Who knows why Dylan does this? My best guess is that it helps to block out any bright lights and helps him to focus on his piano playing, though, with this being Bob Dylan, it is entirely possible that he’s simply doing it to defy expectations. Back in 2019 at a concert in Vienna in the pre-Yondr phone pouch days, he admonished the audience: “Take pictures or don’t take pictures. We can either play, or we can pose.” Perhaps by shrouding himself on stage he hopes the audience will focus on the music to a greater extent.
The opening number was messy, with numerous lyric flubs (standard practice, as any avid Dylan concert-goer will know) and the band not quite clicking yet. The same was true for the second song, “Man in the Long Black Coat,” and the third song, “It Ain’t Me Babe,” which was the first deviation of the night from the Oslo setlist. The third song, though, being recognisable for the more casual fans, attracted a great response from the audience, some of whom clapped along at various points. The music, however, was still quite messy at this stage and the band didn’t appear to be particularly in sync.
Dylan leads and guides his band with a combination of subtle nods and glances to the band members, as well as not-so-subtle hammering on his piano. Indeed, at various points in the show, he hit the same notes on the piano repeatedly in an effort to establish the rhythm that he wanted the band to follow. His frustration during these early stages of the concert seemed clear, with a few tutts and mutterings being audible through the microphone which appeared to be directed towards the band’s drummer, Anton Fig (more on that later).