Rush - 7/22 @ Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre
For almost 20 years now, Dan and I have been going to see Rush. It was one of the first things we found out we had in common (way back in high school) and as the years have gone by, it is something we always do together. And as far as I'm concerned, it'll be something we'll continue to do as long as Rush keeps on touring. Now here's the thing. I know a lot of people don't like Rush. And I can fully understand it. The prog rock style of music isn't to everyone's taste. Geddy Lee's voice can be annoying. And their song lyrics can get rather hokey. But I still enjoy it nonetheless. Think of them as our "Brokeback Mountain," but without the sex or the very, very, very, very boring script. Christ that movie sucked so hard...
The last time Rush came to town, Dan and I literally got lost in the woods surrounding Lakewood Amphitheatre trying to get from one side to the other. I can kind of look back with a laugh, but it completely sucked at the time. And this time around when the power went out during our preshow dinner due to heavy thunderstorms, I was beginning to wonder if the fates had it in for us. Being that we had lawn seats and that it was pouring down rain, it didn't really bode well that we'd get to see the show. But then the storm front moved through quickly and it looked like we saw the worst of it, so we headed over to the brand spanking new Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre to check out the show.
The Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre opened up earlier this year and has been the third venue that's been built recently (after Gwinnett Arena and the Cobb Energy Centre) in order for white folks to stay far away from downtown Atlanta. And it doesn't get much further than the North Point Mall area of Alpharetta. Sizewise, it's somewhere between Chastain and Lakewood, but still as annoying. First off, it's way up in Alpharetta. Second, you get issued a designated parking area. So no matter if you get there early or not, you're forced to park in the lot they tell you to. Good plan people. And of course, the worst thing about it is that it's an outdoor venue. Because they all blow. Don't try to argue because I'm right.
So we get our parking area and walk over to the venue and try to find a decent spot on the lawn. We decided to spend an extra $10 to rent a couple of lawn chairs so we wouldn't have to sit on wet grass. Finally found what looked to be a good spot and sat down. Little did we know that our view was going to be blocked by three dickwads who decided to stand for the entire show while everyone else was sitting on their rented lawn chairs or blankets. What the Hell?!? The lawn is for lazy people who think a numbered seat is too much of a commitment. Why would you stand up the whole time? Why? Eventually I got up and found us another spot where people were rightfully lounging for the whole show and we spent the rest of the time there.
Thankfully it didn't pour down rain anymore once they started the show after a 1/2 hour delay. Although we did get drizzled on for awhile, but it was something we could easily put up with in exchange for a welcome cold front and a cool breeze. And once the drizzle died down, it was actually a nice night for an outdoor show...quite a rare treat. Rush once again put on a solid performance. At least as much as we could initially make out trying to look past the three standing dickwads and it got even better once we found our new locale (I would suggest that the venue install some bigger flat screens for the lazy lawn people to watch, because the ones at the sides of the stage were still aways away.). They performed two sets and did a bunch of their older material they haven't played live in a long time as well as forcing everyone to put up with some songs off their new album. Yes, I'm a Rush fan but I'm primarily a fan of their older catalog, as I have yet to get their most recent release. They had great use of pyro and at times I was curious if they were going to char the roof over the covered section from some of those fire blasts! But they seriously need to redo the computer animation that accompanies many of their songs, because they're very outdated. My blackberry has better graphics than what they were projecting on screen. And they also showed these short film bumpers that were trying to weave a cohesive story line about the concert, but because we were sitting way back in the lawn it was hard to hear and tell what it was all about. Although it had something to do with chickens...yes, chickens. I'm sure that once they put out the accompanying live concert DVD, I'll get a chance to see what that was actually all about. And they also showed a number of South Park bits about them, so good to know they have a sense of humor.
Then right before the concert officially ended, as they were playing their last song, we skated out and made our way to the car as quickly as we could before we got stuck in the mass exodus of cars trying to get out of Alpharetta. Luckily, we made it under the wire and got out before the major congestion hit. Then we got on 400 South and headed back home. So all in all, it was a very good night. Didn't seem likely at first, but everything worked out nicely and we enjoyed our regularly scheduled evening with Rush. Now it's all a matter of waiting until next time, because we just can't quit them.