bReview: David Byrne 'Who Is The Sky' Tour
Wednesday 14 January 2026 at Spark Arena
Written by Nicholas Lindstrom
Photography by Isabella Rose Young
David Byrne’s How Music Works is a hefty book. And for good reason. Within the paperback’s 367 pages, Byrne traverses a range of musical topics, drawn from his decades-long career at the forefront of music’s weird and wonderful. In Chapter Two, Byrne delves into the evolution of his life in live performance, elaborating on how he came to be known for his work in that arena. Fourteen years on, I was eager to see how the lessons from How Music Works would manifest in the stage show for Byrne’s ‘Who Is the Sky?’ tour.
The Spark Arena audience, much like the weather in Auckland that day, was mostly grey on top. (My people!) But there was no lack of energy. Excited chatter filled the waiting space as the massive stage monitors displayed a point-of-view shot situated on the moon’s surface. The dimming of the light drew a roar of anticipation from the crowd, matched only by the adoring screams that followed Byrne’s appearance at centre stage, flanked by three musicians, all clad in the same shade of blue, their instruments strapped to their bodies. As the opening number, Heaven resounded around the arena, Earth appeared slowly on the stage monitor, giving the impression that we were looking out at our home. When the number finished, Byrne pointed at our little planet. Telling the audience, "There she is, our heaven, the only one we have". That simple gesture was enough to orient the audience in the direction the show would take. An exploration of what it means to experience life on earth, to be human amongst other humans.
(David Byrne at Spark Arena / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
In How Music Works, Byrne discusses the fine line that a musician must walk when curating a setlist. He compares the concert space to a fine art museum, in which a mixture of older works and newer pieces is expected. Despite this particular tour being in support of his most recent album ‘Who Is the Sky?’, Byrne still managed to make time for the crowd pleasers. Talking Heads hits, And She Was, Houses in Motion, This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody), Psycho Killer, and Once in a Lifetime satisfied the crowd’s familiarity bias while also managing to feel reworked and fresh. Seeing ‘This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)’ recontextualised in front of a calming visual of a forest, with a more subdued arrangement, I felt arrested by the pure domestic ardour of the lyrics. As David Byrne puts it in his book, it allowed me to ‘see something familiar from a new angle.’ But there were plenty of purely new things to see and hear. The massive stage screens provided visual cues for each song. During ‘T-shirt’, the screen displayed the kind of prints that you might see at a mall near you. Some particular favourites were ‘Merry drunk, I’m Christmas’, ‘We’re all dogs in God’s hot car’, and ‘Auckland kicks ass’. The biggest audience reactions came when the words ‘Make America Gay Again’ and ‘No Kings’ flashed onto the screen. I think Byrne would have been happy with that engagement; it fit the show's ethos of humanism and acceptance. Themes that ran throughout the nearly two-hour show.
Humanism seems to be the ideological basis for Byrne’s new album, ‘Who Is The Sky?’. As he told the crowd before launching into the album cut What is the Reason?, Love and Kindness are the most punk things you can do right now. The intrinsic radically optimistic production that runs throughout album tracks Everybody Laughs, Don’t Be Like That, I Met the Buddha at a Downtown Party and My Apartment Is My Friend made a lot more sense in the live context. But there were also moments of forthright confrontation with social issues. Particularly during Life During Wartime, where the screen displayed images of I.C.E agents committing acts of brutality. The song ended with the screen display of a helicopter spotlight, aimed directly at the audience, evoking the words of Pastor Martin Niemöller.
(David Byrne at Spark Arena / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
In a sense, the live show presents a microcosm of that more egalitarian world that Byrne strives for. The transformation of a band into a community is something he first explored in his Talking Heads days. “The band became a more abstract entity, a community. And while individual band members might shine or take virtuosic turns, their identities became submerged within the group.” You can see the throughline of this ethos in the ‘Who is The Sky?’ Tour. Every one of the thirteen musicians onstage wore the same shade of blue. From my seat, they were only really distinguishable by the instrument (or lack of instrument) that they had strapped to their bodies. Amongst the perpetual motion of the slick choreography, it was easy to lose Byrne, as he became one with the band and dancers. I need to give a special mention to Kely Cristina Pinheiro, who laid down fat basslines all night long.
When I first moved to Auckland in 2023, I caught the ferry to Devonport for the 2:30 pm showing of Stop Making Sense at The Vic. I sat in the massive, empty theatre and watched a white man in a progressively gargantuan suit throw himself around a stage, jerking and jiving. And I loved every second of it. 2026 David Byrne is considerably more measured than his younger self. His steps are more choreographed and intentional, but so is his message. Last night’s show was a masterclass in art’s reflective power, a surging display of humanist grooves. Maybe we are all dogs in God’s hot car, and with good music, it feels like we can crack the window, just a little bit.
(David Byrne at Spark Arena / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
(David Byrne at Spark Arena / Photo: Isabella Rose Young)
Setlist
Heaven
Everybody Laughs
And She Was
Strange Overtones
Houses in Motion
T Shirt
(Nothing but) Flowers
This Must Be the Place (Naive Melody)
What Is The Reason?
Like Humans Do
Don’t Be Like That
Independence Day
Slippery People
I Met the Buddha at a Downtown Party
My Apartment Is My Friend
Hard Times (Paramore Cover)
Psycho Killer
Life During Wartime
Once in a Lifetime
Everybody's Coming to My House
Burning Down the House
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