Is This the Way to Normal?
As some of you might know I went to the Crossing Border Festival in the Hague (Den Haag) -- Uh, it was kind of amazing.
THURSDAY -- FIRST DAY
I bought my ticket from someone on the internet, so I was a little skeptical about it, but I got my bracelet and could get in anywhere.
____________________
When I arrived at a tent, it was literally this small tent, to see FRIGHTENED RABBIT, I was shocked at how empty it was -- I got to stand in the middle in the front, so yay for being way too early.
Frabbit was introduced as "a band that played at a gig of 8,000(?) people that week earlier, now they were here... a tent which fit less than 200 folks." It had the crowd laughing.
I'm just going to show you a select of showable pictures I took (resized, so they look slightly better -- and I don't want to drag it out too much) -- this goes with every other picture posted in this entry. Also, a disclaimer for the videos (which you can find here): most/all videos were filmed on chest level and I did not pay too much attention, so there's lots of shaking and being out of focus:
SEE HERE. PROOF I WAS THERE. Kinda.
If I'm right, this was before they started.
Best picture of the set and possibly night; when it came to sharpness -- it's weird, the ISO was 400, but when I switched to 800, all the photographs came out more shaken. Or the band moved more in the course of the night. I suck at photography.
My favourite when I was reviewing the pictures on my camera.
From the 8-10 songs I remember by name:
The Modern Leper
Square 9
Old Old Fashioned
Fast Blood
My Backswards Walk
Head Rolls Off
I Feel Better
Good Arms vs. Bad Arms
...I could be wrong. I haven't come across anyone having the exact set.
('Fast Blood' on my YT page.)
____________________
After I told Andy (Frightened Rabbit) to have a nice day, I walked with a girl to Ra Ra Riot -- I think she talked the whole way. I lost her when the Death Cab for Cutie merchandise stand caught my attention.
RA RA RIOT was good. Someone once told me that the actual concert is at the front of the stage, Susie? - I kind of agree with that. I couldn't really get into it, because you get way more distracted... and, well, in this case I wasn't familiar with the music either. The last two songs they performed were rather great though.
(Video of 'Dying Is Fine', the last song, is on my YT page.)
____________________
I had to go through a Bob Dylan tribute by some band in order to stand in the front of Death Cab... I will never get this name in my head: "STEF KAMIL CARLENS & THE GATES OF EDEN: Bob Dylan Tribute". I had to look at the time every time they played another song. When was Death Cab coming? Random: the bass player looked like a young!Mike Huckabee.
Fancy graphic in the background though.
____________________
DEATH CAB was amazing!
(Definitely not in order or complete:)
Your Heart Is an Empty Room
I Will Possess Your Heart
No Sunlight
Cath...
Long Division
Grapevine Fires
The Employment Pages
Brothers on a Hotel Bed
The New Year
The Sound of Settling
We Looked Like Giants
Soul Meets Body
Summer Skin
I Will Follow You Into the Dark
Marching Bands of Manhattan
Crooked Teeth
Title and Registration
Transatlanticism
People taller than me blocked my view of Ben and Chris, even though I was on second row, so I took a lot of pictures/video of Jason and Nick. (I didn't want to stand in the way of other people when I used my camera - unlike *cough* at the Jason Mraz' concert in September, where other dudes were standing in front of me, I couldn't get around them. I have to mention now, I'm fairly short. Jon Stewart short.)
The stage filled up with smoke -- here's Chris laughing about it as especially Ben goes "what the fuck" .
Nick, in case you couldn't tell.
I've decided to not upload the majority of my Death Cab videos. This because of the... how to put it, the even more horrible sound quality... and parts of the audience I unintentionally filmed... and the couple next to me that kept showing PDA throughout the whole thing. I think the guy did that on purpose -- everytime I filmed Ben he went to kiss his girlyfriend, blocking my view of Ben. But most important of all, it's because of the sound.
____________________
FRIDAY -- SECOND DAY
Also got a ticket from someone on the internet -- two hours prior of the opening of the festival. I didn't expect someone to have tickets; but the day before was so much fun, I couldn't let two of my favourite bands atm slide. Anyway, I got in! Hmm. I will have to pay him now.
____________________
THE SWELL SEASON -- fucking impressive.
The best picture of Markéta I could take. Most of the evening she was blocked by someone's head. Picture was taking while they were performing (with the rest of the band) 'I Have Loved You Wrong'.
Set list yo. + 'Say It to Me Now' in the beginning and 'Once' at the end (because they had time to fill).
(I forgot to zoom in before recording.)
This was incredible to have witnessed.
('When Your Mind's Made Up', 'Falling Slowly', 'Back Broke', 'Leave' and 'Fitzcarraldo' on my YT page.)
____________________
FLEET FOXES -- Serious tip: when you're at a concert, don't surround yourself with tall people and especially don't hide behind a wall of (three) people taller than you. Good music nonetheless. "Appeldorf?"
('English House' on my YT page.)
____________________
BEN FOLDS
He is one of the musicians I've been listening to the longest and most still till this day... well, along with Mraz and Death Cab. I'm very glad I've had the chance to see those three perform live once.
Because.
:)
I like this one so much.
Encore. I think there were a handful of people that already left the room, mostly not knowing Ben would come back to sing another song.
Another tip: when the lead singer is a piano player and has his piano set up in a certain way, don't stand behind the piano making you not to be able to see the actual person. But I just knew, or rather I had a hinch, that Ben would sing 'The Frown Song (Fake)' at one point without the piano -- so he was less than one metre away from me at one many points and I got to film it:
(Just like Death Cab, I'm not going to upload most of Ben's songs, although you can find the fake version of 'The Bitch Went Nutz' on, again, my YT page.)
I got a plectrum (seen in the video above very briefly and on the picture of Jared Reynolds (bassist) -- on the mic stand) and I asked for a set list and this man was nice enough to search for me, before signing there wasn't any more left. I waved back to give my appreciation and left the hall. When I was at the front door of the building; after I stole a poster of the festival, putting my vest/jacket on, making myself ready against the cold; the same guy apparently waited or chased me to hand me the set list (so nice of him!). So here it is:
+ 'Fair' and 'The Fake Frown Song'. I was glad he played 'Landed' -- it was the first song I've heard of him and I loved it.
"We're just gonna play until they tell us to stop." Thank you, Ben, for playing longer. :)
____________________
EDIT: poster + set lists:
I had a great time. And I did not miss a single train.
Okay, this entry is long enough.
THURSDAY -- FIRST DAY
I bought my ticket from someone on the internet, so I was a little skeptical about it, but I got my bracelet and could get in anywhere.
____________________
When I arrived at a tent, it was literally this small tent, to see FRIGHTENED RABBIT, I was shocked at how empty it was -- I got to stand in the middle in the front, so yay for being way too early.
Frabbit was introduced as "a band that played at a gig of 8,000(?) people that week earlier, now they were here... a tent which fit less than 200 folks." It had the crowd laughing.
I'm just going to show you a select of showable pictures I took (resized, so they look slightly better -- and I don't want to drag it out too much) -- this goes with every other picture posted in this entry. Also, a disclaimer for the videos (which you can find here): most/all videos were filmed on chest level and I did not pay too much attention, so there's lots of shaking and being out of focus:
SEE HERE. PROOF I WAS THERE. Kinda.
If I'm right, this was before they started.
Best picture of the set and possibly night; when it came to sharpness -- it's weird, the ISO was 400, but when I switched to 800, all the photographs came out more shaken. Or the band moved more in the course of the night. I suck at photography.
My favourite when I was reviewing the pictures on my camera.
From the 8-10 songs I remember by name:
The Modern Leper
Square 9
Old Old Fashioned
Fast Blood
My Backswards Walk
Head Rolls Off
I Feel Better
Good Arms vs. Bad Arms
...I could be wrong. I haven't come across anyone having the exact set.
Click to view('Fast Blood' on my YT page.)
____________________
After I told Andy (Frightened Rabbit) to have a nice day, I walked with a girl to Ra Ra Riot -- I think she talked the whole way. I lost her when the Death Cab for Cutie merchandise stand caught my attention.
RA RA RIOT was good. Someone once told me that the actual concert is at the front of the stage, Susie? - I kind of agree with that. I couldn't really get into it, because you get way more distracted... and, well, in this case I wasn't familiar with the music either. The last two songs they performed were rather great though.
(Video of 'Dying Is Fine', the last song, is on my YT page.)
____________________
I had to go through a Bob Dylan tribute by some band in order to stand in the front of Death Cab... I will never get this name in my head: "STEF KAMIL CARLENS & THE GATES OF EDEN: Bob Dylan Tribute". I had to look at the time every time they played another song. When was Death Cab coming? Random: the bass player looked like a young!Mike Huckabee.
Fancy graphic in the background though.
____________________
DEATH CAB was amazing!
(Definitely not in order or complete:)
Your Heart Is an Empty Room
I Will Possess Your Heart
No Sunlight
Cath...
Long Division
Grapevine Fires
The Employment Pages
Brothers on a Hotel Bed
The New Year
The Sound of Settling
We Looked Like Giants
Soul Meets Body
Summer Skin
I Will Follow You Into the Dark
Marching Bands of Manhattan
Crooked Teeth
Title and Registration
Transatlanticism
People taller than me blocked my view of Ben and Chris, even though I was on second row, so I took a lot of pictures/video of Jason and Nick. (I didn't want to stand in the way of other people when I used my camera - unlike *cough* at the Jason Mraz' concert in September, where other dudes were standing in front of me, I couldn't get around them. I have to mention now, I'm fairly short. Jon Stewart short.)
The stage filled up with smoke -- here's Chris laughing about it as especially Ben goes "what the fuck" .
Nick, in case you couldn't tell.
I've decided to not upload the majority of my Death Cab videos. This because of the... how to put it, the even more horrible sound quality... and parts of the audience I unintentionally filmed... and the couple next to me that kept showing PDA throughout the whole thing. I think the guy did that on purpose -- everytime I filmed Ben he went to kiss his girlyfriend, blocking my view of Ben. But most important of all, it's because of the sound.
____________________
FRIDAY -- SECOND DAY
Also got a ticket from someone on the internet -- two hours prior of the opening of the festival. I didn't expect someone to have tickets; but the day before was so much fun, I couldn't let two of my favourite bands atm slide. Anyway, I got in! Hmm. I will have to pay him now.
____________________
THE SWELL SEASON -- fucking impressive.
The best picture of Markéta I could take. Most of the evening she was blocked by someone's head. Picture was taking while they were performing (with the rest of the band) 'I Have Loved You Wrong'.
Set list yo. + 'Say It to Me Now' in the beginning and 'Once' at the end (because they had time to fill).
(I forgot to zoom in before recording.)
This was incredible to have witnessed.
('When Your Mind's Made Up', 'Falling Slowly', 'Back Broke', 'Leave' and 'Fitzcarraldo' on my YT page.)
____________________
FLEET FOXES -- Serious tip: when you're at a concert, don't surround yourself with tall people and especially don't hide behind a wall of (three) people taller than you. Good music nonetheless. "Appeldorf?"
('English House' on my YT page.)
____________________
BEN FOLDS
He is one of the musicians I've been listening to the longest and most still till this day... well, along with Mraz and Death Cab. I'm very glad I've had the chance to see those three perform live once.
Because.
:)
I like this one so much.
Encore. I think there were a handful of people that already left the room, mostly not knowing Ben would come back to sing another song.
Another tip: when the lead singer is a piano player and has his piano set up in a certain way, don't stand behind the piano making you not to be able to see the actual person. But I just knew, or rather I had a hinch, that Ben would sing 'The Frown Song (Fake)' at one point without the piano -- so he was less than one metre away from me at one many points and I got to film it:
(Just like Death Cab, I'm not going to upload most of Ben's songs, although you can find the fake version of 'The Bitch Went Nutz' on, again, my YT page.)
I got a plectrum (seen in the video above very briefly and on the picture of Jared Reynolds (bassist) -- on the mic stand) and I asked for a set list and this man was nice enough to search for me, before signing there wasn't any more left. I waved back to give my appreciation and left the hall. When I was at the front door of the building; after I stole a poster of the festival, putting my vest/jacket on, making myself ready against the cold; the same guy apparently waited or chased me to hand me the set list (so nice of him!). So here it is:
+ 'Fair' and 'The Fake Frown Song'. I was glad he played 'Landed' -- it was the first song I've heard of him and I loved it.
"We're just gonna play until they tell us to stop." Thank you, Ben, for playing longer. :)
____________________
EDIT: poster + set lists:
I had a great time. And I did not miss a single train.
Okay, this entry is long enough.