best concert u ever been to?

[zebu]

when? where? who? why? how did u feel etc...

ill tell u bout mine later

[Khartoun2004]

April 16, 2004 at a club called lupos @ NV at the Strand (Long name I know.) to see MUSE with my friend Dave. We were about 3.5 feet (a little more than 1m) from the stage. It was just an amazing show, half the kids from class were at that show and we had all skipped school that day. It was national Senior Skip Day.

The opening bands were good. One of them had won WBRU's local battle of the bands competition two weeks prior. They sound like Radiohead. The other band was from New York, they're called The Exit.

Muse played a bunch of stuff of their absolution album which had only been released in the US for a month at most. and they played some stuff off the Origin of Symmetry album, which wasn't released here at all

Some girl kept grabbing my ass too. I was going to bitch at her until I turned around and realized she was totally hot.

[Mossopp]

Best concert ever?
Shit, that’s a tough one to narrow down!

Okay, I’ll say that the best concert I have attended to date was Atreyu at King Tut’s Wah-Wah Hut in Glasgow on 15th December 2004:

It was a clear night but fucking freezing. I got the number 23 bus into the city and got to the venue quite early. I was one of the first people in the queue.
The gig was sold-out and the place was packed. This was the first time I had ever been to King Tut’s. The events that took place that evening have ensured that the tiny St. Vincent Street venue will always hold a special significance for me.
I spent the first hour or so fleeting back and forth between the main hall, the merch stand and the bar. By the time support bands Black Maria and Bullet For My Valentine (the latter of whom started a fucking violent circle pit at the back of the room!) had been and gone I was already pretty drunk.
I was stood at the back of the room shortly before Atreyu took to the stage. One of their roadies walked by me and made his way to the stage. Everyone got out of his way to allow him to pass so I thought “Hang on a minute..!” and I followed right behind him. In doing so I wound up right at the front of the crowd, at the foot of the stage.
I can’t stress enough how small King Tut’s actually is (300 maximum capacity). There weren’t even any barriers separating the crowd from the stage - just a few small blocks about 12cm high placed around the bottom of it!
When Atreyu walked on, the place fucking exploded! The volume and intensity of the music and the crowd threatened to tear the roof right off the building! Fuelled by cider and adrenaline, I screamed my lungs out. Atreyu’s brutal metalcore sound tore strips off everyone present - bodies were flying through the air, pits were opening up all over the place, everyone was yelling the lyrics back at frontman Alex Varkatzas like their lives depended on it.
I was at the right side of the stage, in front of guitarist Travis Miguel, who spent the entire duration of the gig with a smug grin on his face. I can’t say I blamed him - if I were in a room full of people who were so clearly devoted to me and my music I’d be a fucking smug bastard too!
Bassist Chris Thomson regularly made his way over from the opposite end of the stage to mouth the lyrics and yell at my section of the crowd. He even took over lead vocal duties mid-set while Alex had a time-out to rest his shredded vocal chords.
But it was main man Alex Varkatzas who stole the show. He regularly leaned over into the crowd so he was less than 5 inches away from the people in the front row. When he came right over to my side and almost jumped on top of us I couldn’t believe it. I grabbed onto him and had my arm around his neck. He looked me right in the eyes as he screamed the lyrics to ‘Bleeding Mascara’. It was so fucking intense - there were stacks of amps in front and to the left of me blasting out Christ-knows how many decibels, I had Alex screaming in my face and everyone else in the crowd around me screaming right back at him! Right at that moment, nothing else mattered.
Atreyu proceeded to rip through all the best loved tracks from both their albums - ‘Suicide Notes & Butterfly Kisses’ and ‘The Curse’ - throwing in a face-shredding cover of Bon Jovi’s ‘You Give Love A Bad Name’ in the process. They finally vacated the stage only to be coaxed back on by the deafening chant “At-Rey-U, At-Rey-U” from the crowd. They obliged with a brutal rendition of ‘The Crimson’ before bidding us a final farewell.
I left the venue and stumbled back out onto St. Vincent Street just after 11pm, the cold night air acting as somewhat of a wake-up call. And I felt fucking proud that I had been witness to one of Atreyu’s first UK headline shows. I knew that these guys were destined for big things and knowing that I was one of the first people to catch onto them made me feel pretty damn proud.

Less than a few days after the gig, I found out that Atreyu would be returning to these shores in April ’05 for another headline tour. They are again playing Glasgow, however this time at the slightly larger capacity Garage on Sauchiehall Street.
I bought my ticket immediately! To say I’m excited about seeing them again would be the understatement of the century! In fact, I’m almost nervous about seeing them again - how can anything possibly live-up to that night at Tut’s??!


Music and going to gigs is what I live for and I have a mini-novel inside my head to accompany each and every single show I’ve been to. I don’t want to bore anyone with tales of bands that none of you have ever heard of or even give a toss about, but if you really wanna know, I’ll happily spill it.
It’s only February but I’ve already been to one gig (Taking Back Sunday/My Chemical Romance) and have 5 others lined-up (Simple Plan, The*Ga*Ga*s, 36 Crazyfists/From First To Last, My Chemical Romance and Atreyu) so far this year.
I’m gonna make 2005 memorable!

[luxxi]

The Cardigans some 5 years ago. Very close to the stage. And after the show we hung around and Nina came and gave us autographs. Nice of her to do it.

[teeny]

Think it would have to be the first gig I went to.

Summer of '96 my brother and I went to a Bryan Adams concert. It was in Parken, which is a huge football (/soccer) stadium. Think about 25.000 people attended. We had seats not too far from the stage.
When performing Summer of '69 Bryan asked the audience if there were someone with a Danish flag in the crowd. Cos mainly people were waving Candaian flags.. then one guy with the Danish flag printed on his t-shirt got to go onstage and he got to sing the song instead of Bryan.
When singing "It's Only Love" Bryan commented something about Tina Turner, since she was in Copenhagen the same week, and then he sang the duet. Only since Tina wasn't there to sing her part he changed his voice to make it shound a bit like her
Think it was the best concert I've been to so far, since there was a lot of interaction with the audience and all seemed to have fun.

Also liked the last of 3 concerts by Suede at Roskilde Festival in 98 (or was it 99?). It was at the smallest stage durring the 3 days and the crowd was about 2000. The songs played were mostly b-sides and those less known to other than the fans.

[Tom Violence]

Maybe t.A.T.u. at St. Petersburg SKK in December 2003. I took the only sick days I've ever had from any job to be there. It's something like a 1400KM round trip from Moscow to St. Petersburg. I wasn't all that worried about my deception being found out until I accidentally gave my work number to a girl I met a record signing t.A.T.u. failed to attend. Ahem.

Anyway, all the people from the SPB t.A.T.u. fan club were wonderfully welcoming. They live in a fantastic city, and it was a privilege to be shown around it by them. And - as a last word on the topic of meeting people - there was a certain attractive red-head I met and spoke briefly with after the show. La la la.

The show itself was pretty intense. Short, yes, but worth the effort. I find it hard to describe why - I suppose there was some relief at finally being able to see the group I'd put so much emotional investment into.

And the girls are intensely charismatic performers. I don't care what they are or aren't, that kiss is still the most astute, iconic - and commendable - punk rock statement I've encountered. Plus songs like 'Ne Ver, Ne Boisia' are blistering live.

For me, it's the overall experience that makes a gig stand out. Generating some undefinable spirit in the crowd means more than producing the tightest of performances, or ever having the best songs. So, somehow, seeing, say, Jimmy Eat World at Leeds three years ago did just that.

Or the smallest of bands, such as 33 Korovy at Arena in Zelenograd. That might have had something to do with sharing the company of the saxophonist and her sister. It all comes back to the same thing, sooner or later. Their ska version of 'Love Buzz' was top too.

[zebu]

here goes my story,
date: 01.09.2003.
location: dom sportova, zagreb, croatia
time: 21h

as everyone who knows me only a lil might have already guessed the best gig for me was placebo that wasnt the first placebo concert i been to but certainly better one (first time i left before the end cos of well i was young and crazy).

anyway ive been looking forward to this gig all the summer, ripping posters from the buildings across city, spent the day before gig round some hotels looking for their buses and shit. we got there few hours earlier, entered as soon as possible and took our places right in front of the stage, well 1m away. almost got in a fight with some girl while waiting when she wanted to push thorugh. and finally they came! ill never forget how they blasted bullletproof cupid as their first song. it was out of space and out of time.whole concert i was in some kind of a trans (i didnt take drugs not even a drop of alcohol!) how good they sound live! since then im even bigger fan and cant wait to catch next chance to see them.

after we went to the bar where brian and steve were, was nice to see how they look off stage and so close they even kissed lol

i dont get to go to many gigs here, bands mostly skip my country but last years things r begging to change so i was able to go to couple of them. one of the most memorable beside placebo 2001&3 was manu chao in 2002, that man can really make everyone dance.

[ypsidan04]

The ONLY rock concert I've ever been to, July 15, 2004 - Evanescence, Seether, Three Days Grace, and Breaking Benjamin in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It was a real nice venue too. It's an outdoor atmosphere, and as such is only useable in the Summer, but there is a roof over the seats which keeps the rain off should there be any, and makes for better acoustics, as opposed to not having a roof. And it's quite large, especially when you take into account lawn space behind the seats and up the hill. I wrote this a week or so after, and I've kept it ever since and will continue to keep it:

Breaking Benjamin started out, and during one of the breaks between songs, their lead singer took a stab at a line or two from "Bring Me To Life", adding afterwards "Hey, not bad for a guy!". I gave him a resounding chorus of booos!!, but most people just laughed. I'd say they were just so-so. The two songs that I was familiar with (So Cold and Polyamorous) were cool, obviously, but the songs I wasn't familiar with were not so good. One or two had way too many high guitar notes that really weren't nice on the ears, if you know what I mean.

Then, after a 15, 20 minute break (there was a reasonable wait like this between each set) up came Three Days Grace. Not much to speak of, except that it was pretty fun to sing along to "I Hate Everything About You". The lead singer asked everyone to stand up and sing that. I wasn't going to stand up for these guys though, even though I do like them (I liked all 4 bands ) One of their guitarists had a spiky mohawk that looked pretty interesting. Definitely a better job done than Breaking Benjamin. (my current edit: although in this day and age, I'd easy rate BB ahead of TDG. Maybe BB just isn't a real good live band...)

The first two bands played to a quite-less than full house. A lot of people didn't mind missing the early support bands, but I made sure to see the whole thing, all 4 hours worth. By the time Ev came on though, I'd say the place was 80-90% full.

Then Seether was up, and I remember their setlist:

- "Gasoline"
- "69 Tea"
- "Driven Under"
- Some new song from DII. I didn't catch the name. It was cool though. Still haven't gotten that, but it's at the top of my list. (My current edit: That would be "Hold On" which was included on the Daredevil Soundtrack)
- "Needles"
- "Broken" w/ Amy: This was the first time I got out of my seat for a song. Most people cheered abnormally loudly and got up (for obvious reasons), when Shaun said "Here's a song that almost everyone knows" and we all recognized the opening bars. I was twirling my full hand or sometimes just the index finger in the air, as a way to work off impatience (my current edit: that's something I'm used to doing when waiting for something to happen. Like at American football games, people twirl their hats in the air waiting for the kickoff - same principle), because anyone who's anyone knows that Amy is going to come out. But she kept us waiting until, you know, the beginning of her lines like 30 or 45 secs in. I was thinking she would come out right at the beginning and wait to sing, but she didn't show until the second she started singing. Of course everyone, me included, gave a big cheer and hands in the air, when she came out. I kinda feel a little sorry for Shaun and the band, because they probably get that at every performance they do with Evanescence - which lately is a lot of performances. By "that", I mean Amy getting a "YEAAAAAHHH!" and the band getting an "Alright! Wooo!". Basically, overshadowing. She just had an everyday pair of jeans on, and a black tanktop with just a little midriff showing. And of course I sang along, cause I always do that when the song comes on the radio. It's such a great song, when the two of them sing. I doubt I would have bought the Punisher Soundtrack if this song wasn't on it. Then after, she said "I'll see you guys later", and trotted off.
- "Fine Again"

And, quite a lot of the songs were done with Shaun's face completely hidden by his really long hair - he could definitely do with a ponytail. And of course, headbanging didn't help his cause.

Then, I swear, there was SUCH A LONG BREAK (!!) before Ev started. It felt like an hour, but it was probably 20 minutes, lol. This made the impatience at the beginning of "Broken" seem like David in David and Goliath. But anyway, they had this cool set, with a big version of their "pointed 'e' logo" in the back, that looked like it was carved out of rock - probably just plastic though - and a whole bunch of chains hanging down on each side - whoever pays for that must have spent a small fortune on all those chains. They had smoke machines that blew plenty of smoke when they started. And they started with "Haunted", but they started out in basically complete darkness - you could only see silhouettes. And then a bunch of light effects happened, which was really cool.

I don't remember the exact order of the songs, but I can tell you they played every song from Fallen, except for "Hello" _and as I've been told, they basically never do that live_, and they also did "Breathe No More" and "Farther Away", the ending of which was honestly drawn out waayyyy too long. She did the "I see you thereeeeerrrrrrre eeeeerrre eeerrrrre" (and the band did the accompanying music) a few times too many. Before they did BNM, Amy said "Now we're gonna do something a little lighter", and more than a few people headed toward the aisles. And then she said "Hey, that doesn't mean you can go to the bathroom! I see you people....This is my job, you know...." She definitely has a good sense of humor. They also did a cover of "Thoughtless" by Korn, which I hear is the "cover du jour" at the moment. Let me tell you, that is a killer song. The band's doing their best hard rock playing and she's playing a piano in the background. It was the only song I didn't sing along to because I didn't know the lyrics. My first thought - and maybe this was wishful thinking - was that this was new _original_ material that will be on the new album. But that was too good to be true. But honestly, if they are ever going to actually put a cover on an album, this would be a great addition to the new album.

Jon LeCompt did the male vocals on Bring Me to Life. Quite well. I've read that he always does that these days at live performances. Only thing was he missed a line that Paul McCoy did (I found myself singing said line even though he didn't). But other than that, he's a great stand in.

Let me tell you, I stood for the whole set and sang along as much as I could - especially on the "big name" songs, I sang every line along with - e.g. BMTL, My Immortal, Going Under, Everybody's Fool. Near the end, I had no hope of yelling after a song, I just had to clap loudly. For the rest of the night, and part of the next day, my voice was pretty hoarse.

And at the end, their final scheduled song was "Imaginary". Unfortunately, after she said "This will be our last song. We had a great time here..blah blah...", many people got up and left. They didn't even stay to hear the whole song. Like beating the traffic is more important than seeing as much as possible of the people you came to see. And after they were done with that, some dumbass guy jumped up on stage, but was quickly apprehended. I personally gave him the finger, even though he couldn't see me. But apparently, Amy just laughed. Anyway, the audience gave enough of an ovation that they came back, and Amy said something to the effect of "Oh yeah, that guy that jumped on stage? They took care of him. There's a bunch of blood and guts back there..." Did I mention she has a sense of humor? And they did "Whisper" for an encore.

Hope you enjoyed reading that. And yes, this did take as long as you think it did to type out.

My current edit: I don't think I ever actually really broke down, but during "Broken" and "My Immortal" I definitely remember being teary-eyed. And I'm not embarassed to say that. And unfortunately, I wasn't all that close. I was about maybe 60% of the way up the seats, row 34. Could have been worse, but also could have been a lot better, but at least it was in the direct center, and not on the fringes. And my ticket was purchased quite soon after they were available. Must have been because of an early sale to e-teamers or something...

I'm getting increasingly pissed that I had to pass up the Chevelle/Strata/Crossfade/Helmet concert (in that order of preference) in Detroit that's happening in about 24 hours from now. Being a college student without a job currently, I couldn't justify the cost. And I passed up Finger Eleven back in November. Chevelle and Finger Eleven are two of my top 20. It's not easy to get a job today in this country, at my age, with not much experience.

[Mossopp]

I saw Seether at Glasgow's G2 in October '04.
G2 is a tiny venue - I'd reckon about 200 maximum capacity - and Seether didn't even come close to filling it that night! But those that were there were totally into the band and I had a fucking fantastic time! I also got incredibly drunk which resulted in me puking my guts out untill 5am.
I saw Shaun Morgan outiside the venue before the doors opened. Myself and some boys in the queue contemplated approaching him but he looked rather pensive and strung-out so we decided it was best to leave him alone. Perhaps he was just missing Amy ......

[ypsidan04]

Originally Posted by Mossopp

Perhaps he was just missing Amy ......

Offtop:


http://img187.exs.cx/img187/579/ador...ycouple2ey.jpg
http://img187.exs.cx/img187/8470/amyshaun8yn.jpg
http://img187.exs.cx/img187/9195/amy...apetown5qm.jpg
http://img187.exs.cx/img187/2910/as19nl.jpg
http://img187.exs.cx/img187/8517/athenslive315ut.jpg

And in general that you might want:

http://img100.exs.cx/img100/3528/amy...nthecat0zn.gif
http://img100.exs.cx/img100/5976/woh6js.jpg
http://img100.exs.cx/img100/9361/emilymartin9dd.jpg (c/o http://groups.yahoo.com/group/amys-escence)
http://img100.exs.cx/img100/365/evanescence28wg.jpg

No need to thank me.

[Mossopp]

Offtop:
Awww, bless.
I really don't understand what a hott chick like Amy sees in a caveman like Shaun, but they do seem to be incredibly happy together.
Good luck to 'em both!

[ypsidan04]

^ look up again... I need more photos. Some people I know online have a few hundred...I've got maybe 20 at most.

[DAZ]

Originally Posted by Mossopp

I saw Seether at Glasgow's G2 in October '04.
G2 is a tiny venue - I'd reckon about 200 maximum capacity - and Seether didn't even come close to filling it that night! But those that were there were totally into the band and I had a fucking fantastic time! I also got incredibly drunk which resulted in me puking my guts out untill 5am.

I've only been to G2 once and it was a great night.I went to see Clam Abuse and got on the guest list through a sound company that had been in at my work in Ayr a few weeks before.
One thing i noticed about the venue was the big pillar on the front of the stage which Ginger kept hiding behind.
Had a great day as the band did a signing and Gig in Missing Records in the afternoon.I got to see them twice for free meaning any money went on plying myself with Morgans Spiced and Cola and the fact my parents were on holiday meant that it was partytime for anyone i knew after we got back to Ayr and descended on my house.

Best gig ever though has to be The Wildhearts in 1994 at Glasgow Garage.I actually got to the front row and jumped about like an eejit all night and the gig was awesome and the Jack Daniels just enhanced the night perfectly.My body was aching for days after that.
Bugger going to the gym..3 gigs a week and i'd be fit enough.

[Crampaholic]

Originally Posted by zebu

here goes my story,
date: 01.09.2003.
location: dom sportova, zagreb, croatia
time: 21h

as everyone who knows me only a lil might have already guessed the best gig for me was placebo that wasnt the first placebo concert i been to but certainly better one (first time i left before the end cos of well i was young and crazy).

anyway ive been looking forward to this gig all the summer, ripping posters from the buildings across city, spent the day before gig round some hotels looking for their buses and shit. we got there few hours earlier, entered as soon as possible and took our places right in front of the stage, well 1m away. almost got in a fight with some girl while waiting when she wanted to push thorugh. and finally they came! ill never forget how they blasted bullletproof cupid as their first song. it was out of space and out of time.whole concert i was in some kind of a trans (i didnt take drugs not even a drop of alcohol!) how good they sound live! since then im even bigger fan and cant wait to catch next chance to see them.

after we went to the bar where brian and steve were, was nice to see how they look off stage and so close they even kissed lol

i dont get to go to many gigs here, bands mostly skip my country but last years things r begging to change so i was able to go to couple of them. one of the most memorable beside placebo 2001&3 was manu chao in 2002, that man can really make everyone dance.

DAMN U DAMN U I SAY!! well ill beat u sooooon and i wont leave the stage like u did

[zebu]

Originally Posted by Crampaholic

DAMN U DAMN U I SAY!! well ill beat u sooooon and i wont leave the stage like u did

i hope they come ur way this spring and that u catch brian after for whatever u want and for me, u already know, i want lots of pics!

[devo4ka]

All concerts i've been to were amazing. But the best one wast at 02.06.06
PRODIGY )) best concert ever!!
Why its the best? well coz i lost all my friends, and i eneded up meetin some real punks, who offered me some weed.. I was already (censored) drunk, and weed just killed me. But when iheard their music (i was right in front of the stage) i couldnt stop dancing. I was sooo energetic. Thanks to the punks, who tried to protect me from all this pushing and squeezing..
Anyway well i managed to touch the singer ) from Prodigy )) awesoomeeee!!
Best concert ever!!!

[Rachel]

devo4ka, my sister went to school with one of The Prodigy

[zebu]

Originally Posted by devo4ka

Anyway well i managed to touch the singer ) from Prodigy )) awesoomeeee!!
Best concert ever!!!

ah the touching thing, i never did that but know some ppl that jumped to firts row like crazy when singer came down, all the usual politness vanished and like that pushing to get there was some basic instinct that cannot be overcome.

one girl kept her hand in a plasic bag for 2 days after molko held her hand lool

[KellyJ]

BIF NAKED!!!! By far the best concert I have ever seen. Bif put on a hell of a performance of course. But the best was meeting her manager Peter Karroll who took my friends and I backstage to hangout with Bif and take pictures with her.

Seocond best would have been Melissa Etheridge when she pulled out her piano and played Weakness In Me. I have never seen an audience go quiet so fast before