In the past, my friends and I would meet up for dinner before the show, and then go our separate ways once we entered the venue. But this time we did things a bit differently. After our first show in Anaheim (which was great!), I decided to try something that my friends commonly did after SW shows: go out to the bus and see if any of the band members would come out for a bit to mingle with fans. It was pretty late at night, but I still decided to try it out.
At first we assumed that the band members would come out to the venue lobby, but once the staff members asked us to leave, we knew that that was not the case. Just as we decided to give up, we spotted the bus in the back of the venue. We couldn't get too close though, on account of the fact that we were separated by a small fence that stretched across the asphalt. Ultimately, all of the band members turned up at some point during my nearly two-hour wait. The first one to show up was Nick Beggs, who played bass and the Chapman stick. Having bought a tour program, something I have been doing lately in place of getting a tee shirt, I received an autograph and a couple photos with him.
The next guy to come out was keyboardist Adam Holzman, who also gave me a photo and autograph. Soon after, drummer Craig Blundell. I would have gladly joined in with the rest of the fans to chat with these guys, but I just didn't have much to say. Being the introvert that I typically am, I simply listened to the conversations the other fans were having with Adam, Craig, Nick and, eventually guitarist Dave Kilminster. I remembered Dave from the two times I saw Roger Waters' The Wall concert performed in LA in 2010 and 2012.
While waiting for SW, I met a nice young woman who had traveled down from Santa Cruz to see the show. I admired her devotion as a fan and we had a good time wondering whether or not SW would even turn up. But eventually, around 12:30 a.m., he did appear. However, security let everyone know that SW would only be giving autographs and not photos. Fair enough, I thought. It's better than nothing, I suppose.
He looked understandably tired, so I decided to keep things brief. Once he reached me he took my program to sign it. As he did so, I simply said, "Thanks for coming. I really appreciate this album, as a girl." He said he was glad I enjoyed it. Shortly after, my dad came around with the car, and off I went. We arrived at our hotel at about 1.00 a.m. I accepted the experience as my first time meeting SW. Even though it was brief, I felt satisfied. Believe it or not, meeting him at least once was on my bucket list.
Dad and I slept through the night and the next mid morning, checked out of our hotel, and headed off to LA for concert #2. due to heavy traffic, we didn't make it down there until after 1:30 p.m. My friends and I had decided to meet each other at Amoeba Music after dad and I had finished lunch. Finally, at around 3:00 p.m., my dad dropped me off at Amoeba and I met up with my friends. Having been to Amoeba many times in the past, I usually like to start browsing in the very back of the Used Rock CDs section.
Suddenly, one friend came over to me and said, "Look behind you." I looked and interestingly enough, it was Steven. Oddly enough, I had suspected that he would pay a visit to Amoeba. Not exactly sure why, it was just a thought I had.
At first my friend was saying we should just let him be and not bother him. I decided I wouldn't directly approach him, just get close to him. So I went until I was about an aisle away from him. He was talking to one other guy that was with him. He eventually came into the aisle I was in. He saw me and said, "Oh, I remember you from last night," since I stayed after Friday night's show for an autograph. We chatted for a bit. I told him that I was trying to get into other prog bands and asked if Anathema was any good. He said I should hear their album We're Here Because We're Here (since he produced it). He also asked if I had heard of Opeth and Katatonia, which I have. He told me he was struggling with what he should get from Amoeba. I had two CDs with me already that he saw. I had the first Genesis album which he said he hadn't heard before. I told him I had been looking for it for a while. After that, I said I would see him that night, and we moved on.
Later on, I was looking through the vinyl section and again, he eventually came to the same aisle with the other guy he was with. I overheard the guy he was with start to tell him that he went to the King Crimson concert he went to at the Orpheum last October. I immediately turned and said "Oh, I went to that too!" and we started talking again. I told them about how great the concert was but also about how disappointed I was with the live album they released this year. Steven told me that they plan to release a full length live album at some point, which I most definitely look forward to. He told me and the other guy that he was "so over King Crimson" but still a fan. Before he left, I asked him what Jethro Tull albums I should listen to. He said Aqualung, Minstrel in the Gallery and Songs from the Wood. He also hinted that Songs from the Wood was going to be rereleased in 5.1 surround sound soon. I thanked him and he told me to have fun at the show that night. Adam also happened to be there, and also recognized me from the night before. I shook his hand. Then we went our separate ways.
At first my friend was saying we should just let him be and not bother him. I decided I wouldn't directly approach him, just get close to him. So I went until I was about an aisle away from him. He was talking to one other guy that was with him. He eventually came into the aisle I was in. He saw me and said, "Oh, I remember you from last night," since I stayed after Friday night's show for an autograph. We chatted for a bit. I told him that I was trying to get into other prog bands and asked if Anathema was any good. He said I should hear their album We're Here Because We're Here (since he produced it). He also asked if I had heard of Opeth and Katatonia, which I have. He told me he was struggling with what he should get from Amoeba. I had two CDs with me already that he saw. I had the first Genesis album which he said he hadn't heard before. I told him I had been looking for it for a while. After that, I said I would see him that night, and we moved on.
Later on, I was looking through the vinyl section and again, he eventually came to the same aisle with the other guy he was with. I overheard the guy he was with start to tell him that he went to the King Crimson concert he went to at the Orpheum last October. I immediately turned and said "Oh, I went to that too!" and we started talking again. I told them about how great the concert was but also about how disappointed I was with the live album they released this year. Steven told me that they plan to release a full length live album at some point, which I most definitely look forward to. He told me and the other guy that he was "so over King Crimson" but still a fan. Before he left, I asked him what Jethro Tull albums I should listen to. He said Aqualung, Minstrel in the Gallery and Songs from the Wood. He also hinted that Songs from the Wood was going to be rereleased in 5.1 surround sound soon. I thanked him and he told me to have fun at the show that night. Adam also happened to be there, and also recognized me from the night before. I shook his hand. Then we went our separate ways.
There's a lot I can think of that I would like to talk to SW about, but that moment, that casual encounter, beat the hell out of the night before. I made a conscious decision to keep the conversation as normal as possible. I had told him the night before what I thought of his music, so I figured there was no need for me to say it again. No need for an autograph obviously, but I also did not ask him for a photo because, like I stated before, I wanted to talk to him not as fan and musician, but as person and person (if that makes sense). Ultimately, it made the weekend all the more special. After we left Amoeba, my friends and I went to a mall in the LA area. As I described my encounter with SW to them, one of them suggested that he liked me because I was "his type" (referring to his taste in women), me being half Indian. I suppose that's a possibility, but I certainly didn't get that impression when I talked to him.
The concert that night was splendid, needless to say. SW never disappoints. Hearing his music live actually makes me appreciate the album more than just hearing the studio recording. A nice ending to a fantastic weekend. I definitely anticipate more in the future. :)
No comments:
Post a Comment