Blue October concert
Oh. My. Gawd. I met Justin Furstenfeld, the most fascinating man I can think of and the person I most wanted to meet. I am still stunned, hours and too little sleep later. I'll probably write more later because my head is foggy right now, but wanted to get this down.
They changed the concert from outside to inside in Heaven (Masquerade, for those who don't know, have an outside music park and three levels/rooms - Heaven, Purgatory and Hell) because rain was predicted, and while the outside concert (where I saw them before) would've been better for certain things, I was glad it was moved because I was dreading standing in the rain.
Standing. Approximately 7 hours of standing. Yeah, I feel worn out this morning, and everything hurts. All worth it.
The first two bands were all right. Ours had some very nice music. Switchfoot came out strong, but my opinion quickly deteriorated because of their fans, who were pretty darn irritating. Really, though, these were just things to bear until Blue October came out.
I wish I'd had room to write down the setlist, but everyone was so packed that I couldn't even move my feet, much less my arms, and only got a few photos because every time I managed to raise the camera, someone in front of me would stick theirs in my way. But...they opened with "Independently Happy" which was perfect to me. They did a very nice mix of older and newer stuff, harder and softer stuff. I can remember (in no particular order): Hate Me (of course), Into the Ocean (of course), Say It, Jump Rope, 18th Floor Balcony (my favorite), Should Be Loved, Dirt Room, Blue Sunshine, Picking Up Pieces, My Never, Been Down, The End, James (both those last two were huge surprises to me), She's My Ride Home, Clumsy Card House, and probably some others I'm forgetting - Jenna, what am I missing?? ETA: Independently Happy, Graceful Dancing, Angel, Let It Go, Congratulations (thanks, Jenna!!)
Justin was mesmerizing. For the second time seeing them, I wanted to watch C.B. and Ryan and could NOT tear my eyes away from Justin. This was Nean's first time seeing them, and she commented afterwards about his acting out the songs, and I looooooooooooooove that. It's not corny or show-off-y, it's just a natural extension of the songs and his passion, his emotion. I am more fascinated by him than ever, and more certain that he is the most interesting person in the music business today.
Unfortunately, there were a few obnoxious people in the audience who were distracting and rude, particularly one huge guy who was drunk and pushy. I was determined that nothing would ruin my seeing my band, but he came awfully close, and I almost cheered when someone knocked him down. That didn't stop him but it did slow him down a little, and we were finally able to move further away from him. We did meet some lovely people - J.P. and Heidi from the Carolinas, and the beautiful girl who knocked the big guy down, as well as some others.
After the show, we met up with jaeyn and Becka (am I spelling that right, Jenna?)...they had gotten there after us and couldn't squeeze through to where we were during the show. We did some shopping at the merch table, then went outside where I immediately saw C.B. Got a hug, and he said they were coming out to talk to people. He never came back out, so I'm glad I caught him while I could. He's just as beautiful up close as he is on screen.
We waited a bit in the light rain, then Jeremy (drummer, Justin's brother, subject of the song, "For My Brother") came out. We got some dodgy pics with him, thanks to my dodgy camera, and he signed stuff for us. Then we waited some more and Matt (bass) came out. Got pics with him and autographs. These were nice times, both guys were very nice and sweet. This reminded me of how sweet Toad is when they're meeting fans after the show, and gave me even more reason to love Blue October. For me, one of Toad's strongest points has always been the way they meet fans after the show, and I saw that last night with Blue October, and it justified their place in my heart as my second all-time favorite band.
And then...Justin came out. He had the biggest crowd, of course, so we waited while he talked to people and took pictures with them. Finally, it was our turn. I got his autograph, and got to say what I wanted to say to him (mostly, thanks...and "I think I must be your oldest fan", how much his music meant to me), and then we did the photo thing. As I moved into the circle of his arm, I said, "This is the thrill of a lifetime," and he said, "Naww," and I said, "Oh, yes, it is." And it was. I've wanted to meet him for two and a half years, and it was HUGE.
We hung around a bit more to see if Ryan or C.B would come out, but they didn't so we finally left, walking down the street in the rain, with my not being sure my feet were actually touching the ground. I met Justin Furstenfeld. This was truly bigger than meeting...even Craig Parker or the Moody Blues, two of my biggest thrills. I really can't think of anyone I've ever met that I wanted to meet more, or meant more to me to meet. I met Justin Furstenfeld.
And here...I have proof...
Notice the huge, blissful grin on my face. :)
Here's my pic with Matt, too, trimmed somewhat to get rid of my ancient neck *grins*:
I'll post more pics when I can get them cleaned up. I wish I'd taken my real camera, this digital sucks for getting clear, non-shaky pictures, not to mention the people constantly bumping me to jiggle the camera. For now, here are a few which are still shaky/blurry, but give a sense of the show:
Justin:
C.B.:
C.B. and Justin (yeah, I know it's not good, but I couldn't resist having it here):
ETA: Thanks, Jenna, for cleaning Jeremy and me up so that we can actually be seen!
They changed the concert from outside to inside in Heaven (Masquerade, for those who don't know, have an outside music park and three levels/rooms - Heaven, Purgatory and Hell) because rain was predicted, and while the outside concert (where I saw them before) would've been better for certain things, I was glad it was moved because I was dreading standing in the rain.
Standing. Approximately 7 hours of standing. Yeah, I feel worn out this morning, and everything hurts. All worth it.
The first two bands were all right. Ours had some very nice music. Switchfoot came out strong, but my opinion quickly deteriorated because of their fans, who were pretty darn irritating. Really, though, these were just things to bear until Blue October came out.
I wish I'd had room to write down the setlist, but everyone was so packed that I couldn't even move my feet, much less my arms, and only got a few photos because every time I managed to raise the camera, someone in front of me would stick theirs in my way. But...they opened with "Independently Happy" which was perfect to me. They did a very nice mix of older and newer stuff, harder and softer stuff. I can remember (in no particular order): Hate Me (of course), Into the Ocean (of course), Say It, Jump Rope, 18th Floor Balcony (my favorite), Should Be Loved, Dirt Room, Blue Sunshine, Picking Up Pieces, My Never, Been Down, The End, James (both those last two were huge surprises to me), She's My Ride Home, Clumsy Card House, and probably some others I'm forgetting - Jenna, what am I missing?? ETA: Independently Happy, Graceful Dancing, Angel, Let It Go, Congratulations (thanks, Jenna!!)
Justin was mesmerizing. For the second time seeing them, I wanted to watch C.B. and Ryan and could NOT tear my eyes away from Justin. This was Nean's first time seeing them, and she commented afterwards about his acting out the songs, and I looooooooooooooove that. It's not corny or show-off-y, it's just a natural extension of the songs and his passion, his emotion. I am more fascinated by him than ever, and more certain that he is the most interesting person in the music business today.
Unfortunately, there were a few obnoxious people in the audience who were distracting and rude, particularly one huge guy who was drunk and pushy. I was determined that nothing would ruin my seeing my band, but he came awfully close, and I almost cheered when someone knocked him down. That didn't stop him but it did slow him down a little, and we were finally able to move further away from him. We did meet some lovely people - J.P. and Heidi from the Carolinas, and the beautiful girl who knocked the big guy down, as well as some others.
After the show, we met up with jaeyn and Becka (am I spelling that right, Jenna?)...they had gotten there after us and couldn't squeeze through to where we were during the show. We did some shopping at the merch table, then went outside where I immediately saw C.B. Got a hug, and he said they were coming out to talk to people. He never came back out, so I'm glad I caught him while I could. He's just as beautiful up close as he is on screen.
We waited a bit in the light rain, then Jeremy (drummer, Justin's brother, subject of the song, "For My Brother") came out. We got some dodgy pics with him, thanks to my dodgy camera, and he signed stuff for us. Then we waited some more and Matt (bass) came out. Got pics with him and autographs. These were nice times, both guys were very nice and sweet. This reminded me of how sweet Toad is when they're meeting fans after the show, and gave me even more reason to love Blue October. For me, one of Toad's strongest points has always been the way they meet fans after the show, and I saw that last night with Blue October, and it justified their place in my heart as my second all-time favorite band.
And then...Justin came out. He had the biggest crowd, of course, so we waited while he talked to people and took pictures with them. Finally, it was our turn. I got his autograph, and got to say what I wanted to say to him (mostly, thanks...and "I think I must be your oldest fan", how much his music meant to me), and then we did the photo thing. As I moved into the circle of his arm, I said, "This is the thrill of a lifetime," and he said, "Naww," and I said, "Oh, yes, it is." And it was. I've wanted to meet him for two and a half years, and it was HUGE.
We hung around a bit more to see if Ryan or C.B would come out, but they didn't so we finally left, walking down the street in the rain, with my not being sure my feet were actually touching the ground. I met Justin Furstenfeld. This was truly bigger than meeting...even Craig Parker or the Moody Blues, two of my biggest thrills. I really can't think of anyone I've ever met that I wanted to meet more, or meant more to me to meet. I met Justin Furstenfeld.
And here...I have proof...
Notice the huge, blissful grin on my face. :)
Here's my pic with Matt, too, trimmed somewhat to get rid of my ancient neck *grins*:
I'll post more pics when I can get them cleaned up. I wish I'd taken my real camera, this digital sucks for getting clear, non-shaky pictures, not to mention the people constantly bumping me to jiggle the camera. For now, here are a few which are still shaky/blurry, but give a sense of the show:
Justin:
C.B.:
C.B. and Justin (yeah, I know it's not good, but I couldn't resist having it here):
ETA: Thanks, Jenna, for cleaning Jeremy and me up so that we can actually be seen!