Current Mood: still amazed
Tuesday I drove to Chicago with new Current Roommate Greg to go see Judas Priest on the Metal Masters tour.
Holy shit.
Despite driving through Chicago not a week earlier, I still forgot about the time change, which meant we left at 1:30, gained an hour, and arrived at the First Midwest Bank Amphitheater about three hours early. Totally not a problem - the weather was gorgeous (I'm convinced the nice weather for both of my trips dooms the start of school to be torrential downpours and 200% humidity until it snows in November). The drive was simple - it was located in the South side of Chicagoland, so there was only 1 toll either way and the traffic wasn't too bad either. The way up we listened to the JP's newest album, Nostradamus.
Anticipation.
I got my ticket for free with the purchase of the aforementioned Judas Priest album, but I wasn't expecting much because it was a lawn seat. I knew the concert series had a few acts associated with it - Testament, Motörhead, and Heaven & Hell. I figured one of the three other bands would open for Priest (maybe on rotation?), and then we'd be gone. 2 hours, maybe, 3 hours tops. I secretly held low expectations in case my treasured ancient bands hadn't aged well and just limped around stage singing low-key (double meaning intended) versions of their former selves.
Wrong.
Fun police stopped us at the door. Football to toss around in the parking lot to kill time? No playing catch allowed. Blanket for lawn seats? Not allowed. Binoculars? Too big. Greg's carabiner? Not allowed (apparently they can be made into makeshift brass knuckles, which I totally hadn't thought of before). Camera? Not allowed. Snacks? Not allowed. Mandatory pat-down? Check. I was beginning to wonder if it was even possible to have a show that even remotely resembled concerts of my favorite band's era(s).
Waiting.
Greg and I stood in line for merch for 45 minutes, thinking that later prices would be higher and they'd having nothing but 2XL. We spent the entire time checking out band shirts around us, and it was like an archeological dig. Pretty much every hard rock and heavy metal band represented here, and some 7 foot tall metalhead stopped to tell me "Man, I love your shirt. Queen's really sweet. I've been listening to them probably since before you were born." Greg and I settled on matching shirts featuring the Screaming for Vengeance eagle.
Thirsty.
Turns out the concert wasn't sold out, so they upgraded all the lawn seats to regular seats. We were stoked, until we found out that we moved 10 feet forward from the lawn right to the last row of seats. Yay? Testament opened first. I've not really heard much of them, but they really kinda sucked. Cookie monster vocals that I don't like. (Side note: I'm a big subscriber to the philosophy that if the music's too loud, you're too old, so I was a bit dismayed when Testament was actually hurting my ears. Afterwards Greg told me that the sound guy must've been drunk because the guitars were WAY too loud, squealing constantly and drowning out everything else out. Still: next concert, consider protection, as lame as that feels). Didn't recognize any of the songs, and the sun was in my eyes.
20 minute break to change sets.
Motörhead up next. I seriously can't understand a fucking word Lemmy says (Another side note: his real name is Ian Fraser Kilmister, which didn't need to be changed). Much better sound, but I still don't know the songs. Lots of ancient fans rocking out, which makes me smile. Finally I get pumped as they close with Ace of Spades - and I'll admit here to the world that I only know it because of Guitar Hero. At this point it's starting to look like maybe we'll see all four acts? Fans start whispering if H&H has a guest singer, or the real deal...
More fans fill in during the break.
Heaven and Hell has the most incredible stage set I've ever seen. And that's not just because the previous two acts had nothing more than a banner. We're talking 20 foot gargoyles, fog machines, decrepit cemetery fences and headstones, strobe lights and pyrotechnics. It looks like a Spencer's display at Halloween, and it's cheesy and perfect. Ronnie James Dio himself runs on stage in all his 5 foot 4 glory, and even our seats we can tell he's a tiny ball of energy. The crowd explodes as he greets us. I can't wait for the final act, but I know a lot more songs now. They play my two favorite songs of theirs, Time Machine and the eponymous Heaven and Hell. During the latter Dio stops in mid song to look at the sky, the lights die and a single spotlight illuminates his conversation with the angels. Then he tells them off and looks down at the floor, and a single enormous red light shines on his face, casting a demonic shadow behind him . He sings a deal with the devil and he dives back into the song. He leads the crowd along with the main riff to the song, and I've got goosebumps.
Encore! They play Neon Knights, and the drummer has glowsticks on his drum sticks. Fantastic.
Agonizing wait as the last bit of sun sets behind the stage. Finally, a 50 foot Nostradamus projection signals the entrance of one of my favorite bands. Rob Halford, the voice, wears a metallic robe and holds a scepter as he sings the intro track before diving into their setlist. To the best of my memory:
Dawn of Creation
Prophecy
Metal Gods
Eat Me Alive
Between the Hammer & the Anvil
Devil's Child
Breaking the Law
Hell Patrol
Dissident Aggressor
Angel
The Hellion/Electric Eye
Rock Hard Ride Free
Painkiller
Hell Bent for Leather
The Green Manalishi (with the Two Pronged Crown)
You've Got Another Thing Comin'
It's really hard for me to pick my favorite part. On the projector they had album covers from each song, Halford jumped on stage early on to wave the giant JP flags, they extended the drum solo before Painkiller (with the stick tosses), and seeing KK Downing and Glenn Tipton in perfect sync as they melted faces with their solos was amazing.
Rob Halford rode his Harley onstage for Hell Bent for Leather, which was a trademark moment I thought had passed since he hurt himself doing it a long time ago. Greg and I just about fell off our chairs (the chairs we were now standing on, not blocking view 'cuz we were the last row). I'm not going to claim that he invented it, but at one point Mr. Halford stopped to do a very Freddie Mercury-inspired vocal duet with the audience, with a series of short cries that slid up and down the scale. His voice was phenomenal. He still hit the high notes and I was incredibly impressed.
Overall, it was an phenomenal experience. Judas Priest rocked so fucking hard, it really blew me away. Greg and I really couldn't even talk afterward, we screamed and sang so much. The concert exceeded my wildest expectations, and I like Priest even more now (I didn't think it was even possible!). A six hour concert finished off by a great performance!
Showing posts with label concert. Show all posts
Showing posts with label concert. Show all posts
8.20.2008
7.01.2008
big payoff
Current Mood: productive
I thought the 4th of July was pretty much a holiday unto itself, but apparently it's actually more of a celebration + 3 day weekend, or something. Because of this, I have my favorite holiday (Friday) off, but am working close to 30 hours of the Saturday and Sunday afterward. I was assigned most of those hours on top of my normal ones because apparently nobody else around the hall wants to work.
This is doubly sucky because I have three separate friends coming in from out of town coming to see me (at least in part). I've also been warned three separate times not to attempt to get onto a roof of a Purdue building to watch the fireworks (the penalty is instant termination). I would feel somewhat insulted, but I've more or less made it my mission the past two summers to gain legitimate access to the roofs of University Residences as often as possible.
Attempts: many.
Successes: one.
That said, maybe I'm just paying my dues now. I say this because it looks like August is shaping up to be a pretty awesome month. I'm gonna have a new pool at my new apartment, so I'm looking forward to swimming.
I just ordered my *free* lawn ticket for the Metal Masters tour with Judas Priest. It came free with their newest 2 disc album, Nostradamus. I'll be going with Future Roommate Greg, and I'm really excited. I've only been to 2 concerts - Stxy/REO Speedwagon and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
Also, it looks like my trip to Green Bay with Jenny for Bengals/Packers preseason is gonna happen, too. I'm probably more excited for that. I need to find some orange and black to wear, since it's going to be Monday Night Football and I sure would love to make it on the Jumbotron...
I thought the 4th of July was pretty much a holiday unto itself, but apparently it's actually more of a celebration + 3 day weekend, or something. Because of this, I have my favorite holiday (Friday) off, but am working close to 30 hours of the Saturday and Sunday afterward. I was assigned most of those hours on top of my normal ones because apparently nobody else around the hall wants to work.
This is doubly sucky because I have three separate friends coming in from out of town coming to see me (at least in part). I've also been warned three separate times not to attempt to get onto a roof of a Purdue building to watch the fireworks (the penalty is instant termination). I would feel somewhat insulted, but I've more or less made it my mission the past two summers to gain legitimate access to the roofs of University Residences as often as possible.
Attempts: many.
Successes: one.
That said, maybe I'm just paying my dues now. I say this because it looks like August is shaping up to be a pretty awesome month. I'm gonna have a new pool at my new apartment, so I'm looking forward to swimming.
I just ordered my *free* lawn ticket for the Metal Masters tour with Judas Priest. It came free with their newest 2 disc album, Nostradamus. I'll be going with Future Roommate Greg, and I'm really excited. I've only been to 2 concerts - Stxy/REO Speedwagon and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
Also, it looks like my trip to Green Bay with Jenny for Bengals/Packers preseason is gonna happen, too. I'm probably more excited for that. I need to find some orange and black to wear, since it's going to be Monday Night Football and I sure would love to make it on the Jumbotron...
6.27.2008
forecast
Current Mood: pensive
I'm not a fan of laundry list posts, but this is more for me than anybody. Plus I just rolled out a survey post, which is pretty lame too. Deal :D
So it's about halfway through June, which means summer is approximately half over for me.
Finals ended Saturday, May 3rd. As soon as I was done with all my finals and a paper, I left Purdue. Jenny and I went to Cincinnati for about a week, went to Union Terminal to see Bodies (the Exhibition) and went to a Red's game. Then I came back and moved into Earhart, and had a week of straight training before jumping right into work. Since then I've beaten Metroid Prime: Corruption and read some books I've wanted to for a while (mostly stuff I put off during the school year). I went to Joey Steenbergen's wedding, and Benji & Corrie's wedding reception. My 22nd birthday came and went. I performed a special summer improv show for Earhart Hall summer school residents with most of the SoF. I've gone to see Iron Man and Indy 4. I've posed as a model for a Purdue brochure. I stopped biting my fingernails! I've kept up on my goal of posting here and on my other story site at least once a week (but not much more). I have also picked up a few extra hours helping with Day on Campus Tours, but for the most part I've been relaxing and hanging out with my friends that have been here (including a game of the new D&D 4.0 rules).
Pretty busy, I think. I am trying not to waste away my summer, but really relax and not overstress. I need some time to recharge my batteries. Thinking back to last summer, I should've either gotten more rigid deadlines from Dr. D for our research, or seriously considered limiting myself to just either a job, or my fellowship.
So where does that leave me for the rest of the summer? I've got from now until summer "ends" with the start of class- Monday August 25th. As of now:
I have about 25 hours of work every week for most of the rest of that time. I don't know when my last day will be, but the last day I could possibly work is August 8th.
That's also the last day for my current apartment lease, so sometime around there I'll need to move. That means up until then I need to continue whittling down the things I have here at Earhart. Peace has to move out, and I'll have to sort out everything there between me n' Alex. Then between Jenny, probably Greg, and hopefully mom coming to help, I'll move everything out of Earhart and Harrison over to my new apartment on the landing.
Mom wants me to try and go to an airshow July 19 and 20th, but I don't know if I'll be able to get off of work then. Similarly, my favorite holiday (4th of July) is coming up, and I'd like to hang out with everybody near Purdue and watch the fireworks, but I may have to work.
I'd like to go to Ft. Wayne and visit Andy and Jacque, and possibly someplace in Chicago - maybe see Scott? On top of that, Monday August 11th, Jenny and I are thinking about going to Green Bay WI to see the Bengals play the Packers @ Lambeau for the preseason. This may or may not count as our anniversary celebration. :D All of that takes a ton of money and gas is a lot more expensive than past summers, so we'll see. I will probably go home after apartment moving and before classes.
GenCon in mid-August, maybe? Also if I can get the right ticket, maybe a Judas Priest concert with future roommate Greg (how much would that rule?)
I will try and make it through the rest of my pile of books, Beard's comics, and finish at the very least Pokemon Diamond and Super Mario Galaxy. I've also got some computer maintenance to do (clean out bookmarks, clean up music files, etc.) but that's not high priority.
I'm going to make a point to keep posting to my blogs. By my best estimate, I have 14 chapters of my story left until I hit my goal [(50k - current 31,819) / 1300 word/chapter average) = 13.9]. I won't stop until I hit 50k, but I also won't quit until I've told my story. At one chapter/week average, I'll be done in 14 weeks, which means I won't finish before the summer ends. Fine, except my posting rate plummets as school picks up.
I should go give blood again, soon.
The last thing I'm writing about as a goal for the summer directly parallels my feeling about it. Something I've been putting off since the end of school. I need to talk to my counselor and get registered for the fall, and possibly take a summer class for July. Ugh.
Do. Not. Want.
I'm not a fan of laundry list posts, but this is more for me than anybody. Plus I just rolled out a survey post, which is pretty lame too. Deal :D
So it's about halfway through June, which means summer is approximately half over for me.
Finals ended Saturday, May 3rd. As soon as I was done with all my finals and a paper, I left Purdue. Jenny and I went to Cincinnati for about a week, went to Union Terminal to see Bodies (the Exhibition) and went to a Red's game. Then I came back and moved into Earhart, and had a week of straight training before jumping right into work. Since then I've beaten Metroid Prime: Corruption and read some books I've wanted to for a while (mostly stuff I put off during the school year). I went to Joey Steenbergen's wedding, and Benji & Corrie's wedding reception. My 22nd birthday came and went. I performed a special summer improv show for Earhart Hall summer school residents with most of the SoF. I've gone to see Iron Man and Indy 4. I've posed as a model for a Purdue brochure. I stopped biting my fingernails! I've kept up on my goal of posting here and on my other story site at least once a week (but not much more). I have also picked up a few extra hours helping with Day on Campus Tours, but for the most part I've been relaxing and hanging out with my friends that have been here (including a game of the new D&D 4.0 rules).
Pretty busy, I think. I am trying not to waste away my summer, but really relax and not overstress. I need some time to recharge my batteries. Thinking back to last summer, I should've either gotten more rigid deadlines from Dr. D for our research, or seriously considered limiting myself to just either a job, or my fellowship.
So where does that leave me for the rest of the summer? I've got from now until summer "ends" with the start of class- Monday August 25th. As of now:
I have about 25 hours of work every week for most of the rest of that time. I don't know when my last day will be, but the last day I could possibly work is August 8th.
That's also the last day for my current apartment lease, so sometime around there I'll need to move. That means up until then I need to continue whittling down the things I have here at Earhart. Peace has to move out, and I'll have to sort out everything there between me n' Alex. Then between Jenny, probably Greg, and hopefully mom coming to help, I'll move everything out of Earhart and Harrison over to my new apartment on the landing.
Mom wants me to try and go to an airshow July 19 and 20th, but I don't know if I'll be able to get off of work then. Similarly, my favorite holiday (4th of July) is coming up, and I'd like to hang out with everybody near Purdue and watch the fireworks, but I may have to work.
I'd like to go to Ft. Wayne and visit Andy and Jacque, and possibly someplace in Chicago - maybe see Scott? On top of that, Monday August 11th, Jenny and I are thinking about going to Green Bay WI to see the Bengals play the Packers @ Lambeau for the preseason. This may or may not count as our anniversary celebration. :D All of that takes a ton of money and gas is a lot more expensive than past summers, so we'll see. I will probably go home after apartment moving and before classes.
GenCon in mid-August, maybe? Also if I can get the right ticket, maybe a Judas Priest concert with future roommate Greg (how much would that rule?)
I will try and make it through the rest of my pile of books, Beard's comics, and finish at the very least Pokemon Diamond and Super Mario Galaxy. I've also got some computer maintenance to do (clean out bookmarks, clean up music files, etc.) but that's not high priority.
I'm going to make a point to keep posting to my blogs. By my best estimate, I have 14 chapters of my story left until I hit my goal [(50k - current 31,819) / 1300 word/chapter average) = 13.9]. I won't stop until I hit 50k, but I also won't quit until I've told my story. At one chapter/week average, I'll be done in 14 weeks, which means I won't finish before the summer ends. Fine, except my posting rate plummets as school picks up.
I should go give blood again, soon.
The last thing I'm writing about as a goal for the summer directly parallels my feeling about it. Something I've been putting off since the end of school. I need to talk to my counselor and get registered for the fall, and possibly take a summer class for July. Ugh.
Do. Not. Want.
11.01.2007
he cares not for your suffering
Current Mood: encouraged
I want to go ahead and start off plugging my new novel (I have a fear that some people just read the first paragraph or so of my really long entries?) for NaNoWriMo. That's right, folks, I'm gonna go ahead and give it a shot. I have until the end of the month to try and write 50,000 words. I'll be posting chapters as I write them to this blog, so if you'd like, please stop by and give it a read, leave me a comment or two about what you like or don't, what I screwed up, or even what you hope will happen (I could use some ideas).
This means I will probably be writing in this blog less, so if you're jonesin' for a fix, try my other blog for this month. I also hope that by telling a bunch of people, I will be more inclined to stay on track.
What else should I talk about. Current Roommate Alex recently purchased an account to Gamefly, the Netflix of video games. Hopefully I can piggyback occasionally (like he does sometimes for my movies) when a good game comes to our house. Right now he's got Super Paper Mario (Wii) and it's really fun to watch! My only criticism so far is that it's a pain in the ass to scan every room three times (once regularly, once in 3-d, and once with the pointer), but if it's anything like the other 2, it'll still be a great game.
Speaking of games, I finally got to experience Guitar Hero III, and I love it for the most part. The song list - 70 songs! - is filled with lots of really great songs. My favorite so far is "Welcome to the Jungle". I'm not in love with the new visual styles (Judy Nails, what have they done to you?!), a few of the songs are really whiney and emo, and there's no Co-Op freeplay. No Freezepop! I am in love with the venue "Shanker's Island", and the obvious Tenacious D influence to the storyline. I tried a few sections of "Through the Fire and Flames" by Dragonforce, and it made my entire arm burn. Crazy. I doubt Greg and I will ever beat that one on expert, but it's a lot of fun hanging with him anyway.
I still don't know if I'm going to be able to make it to the A7X concert, but it's still in the works. Speaking of concerts, later this month Jenny and I are going to take a road trip in her new (used) car to Ft. Wayne to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra with Andy Ober and Jacque. I have no clue what I'm doing for Thanksgiving.
This weekend coming up is going to be filled with improv (shows on Friday and Saturday), writing a bunch, and football. Whee!
I want to go ahead and start off plugging my new novel (I have a fear that some people just read the first paragraph or so of my really long entries?) for NaNoWriMo. That's right, folks, I'm gonna go ahead and give it a shot. I have until the end of the month to try and write 50,000 words. I'll be posting chapters as I write them to this blog, so if you'd like, please stop by and give it a read, leave me a comment or two about what you like or don't, what I screwed up, or even what you hope will happen (I could use some ideas).
This means I will probably be writing in this blog less, so if you're jonesin' for a fix, try my other blog for this month. I also hope that by telling a bunch of people, I will be more inclined to stay on track.
What else should I talk about. Current Roommate Alex recently purchased an account to Gamefly, the Netflix of video games. Hopefully I can piggyback occasionally (like he does sometimes for my movies) when a good game comes to our house. Right now he's got Super Paper Mario (Wii) and it's really fun to watch! My only criticism so far is that it's a pain in the ass to scan every room three times (once regularly, once in 3-d, and once with the pointer), but if it's anything like the other 2, it'll still be a great game.
Speaking of games, I finally got to experience Guitar Hero III, and I love it for the most part. The song list - 70 songs! - is filled with lots of really great songs. My favorite so far is "Welcome to the Jungle". I'm not in love with the new visual styles (Judy Nails, what have they done to you?!), a few of the songs are really whiney and emo, and there's no Co-Op freeplay. No Freezepop! I am in love with the venue "Shanker's Island", and the obvious Tenacious D influence to the storyline. I tried a few sections of "Through the Fire and Flames" by Dragonforce, and it made my entire arm burn. Crazy. I doubt Greg and I will ever beat that one on expert, but it's a lot of fun hanging with him anyway.
I still don't know if I'm going to be able to make it to the A7X concert, but it's still in the works. Speaking of concerts, later this month Jenny and I are going to take a road trip in her new (used) car to Ft. Wayne to see the Trans-Siberian Orchestra with Andy Ober and Jacque. I have no clue what I'm doing for Thanksgiving.
This weekend coming up is going to be filled with improv (shows on Friday and Saturday), writing a bunch, and football. Whee!
10.24.2007
so fucking productive
Current Mood: conflicted
Okay, so the next big "purchase" I am debating:
A trip to OSU in a little over 2 weeks (Nov. 10) to see Avenged Sevenfold play in Columbus
Should I stay:
* BIG improv show that weekend. While my attendance is not vital, I'm one of the senior members and I usually am an anchor for several games.
* Tickets cost 25 dollars
* I have no way of getting there, really. No car.
* Greyhound tickets (round trip) are somewhere between 80 and 120 dollars - ouch.
* Last trip to OSU ended poorly (totaled my car)
Or should I go:
* I've been to nearly every improv show for the past three years, so I think the troupe can deal. Other than that, I have nothing that weekend.
* I can beg Eric to help with the tickets.
* I could find my new best friend and borrow (!) a car.
* I could suck it up and buy the tickets and make an adventure of it. Jenny might help if I really want to go.
* I found out today my budgeting is paying off, and I have a tiny bit of extra money. Additionally, I'd be saving money by staying with David/Dan/Eric
* I would get to see David/Dan/Eric
* I get to road trip
* Get to see OSU s'more
* Have only been to one other concert. This is Avenged fucking Sevenfold, and they'd be playing some of their new stuff, too!
Weigh in, please. Convince me.
Okay, so the next big "purchase" I am debating:
A trip to OSU in a little over 2 weeks (Nov. 10) to see Avenged Sevenfold play in Columbus
Should I stay:
* BIG improv show that weekend. While my attendance is not vital, I'm one of the senior members and I usually am an anchor for several games.
* Tickets cost 25 dollars
* I have no way of getting there, really. No car.
* Greyhound tickets (round trip) are somewhere between 80 and 120 dollars - ouch.
* Last trip to OSU ended poorly (totaled my car)
Or should I go:
* I've been to nearly every improv show for the past three years, so I think the troupe can deal. Other than that, I have nothing that weekend.
* I can beg Eric to help with the tickets.
* I could find my new best friend and borrow (!) a car.
* I could suck it up and buy the tickets and make an adventure of it. Jenny might help if I really want to go.
* I found out today my budgeting is paying off, and I have a tiny bit of extra money. Additionally, I'd be saving money by staying with David/Dan/Eric
* I would get to see David/Dan/Eric
* I get to road trip
* Get to see OSU s'more
* Have only been to one other concert. This is Avenged fucking Sevenfold, and they'd be playing some of their new stuff, too!
Weigh in, please. Convince me.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
.jpg)
