Well, I'd be less than honest if I told you all that a lot has been going on in my life since my last blog post, because truthfully, it's been uneventful for the most part. I've managed to knock out a few concerts here and there, but on most days I've been keeping busy with creating a better lifestyle for myself, like waking up earlier and spending more time outdoors. Record shopping has been kept to a minimum this summer, as I've been trying to save my money on bigger and better investments, like small trips and a new passport for Cruise to the Edge. Rest assured, I'm happy with my decision to save my money for those matters, as I feel that those investments will create more lasting memories than buying a bunch of used records or eating out several times a week.
I guess I'll talk for a bit about some of the shows I've gone to since my last blog post. First I saw Alice Cooper at the Greek Theatre. I came in not knowing a note music, but left feeling I had experienced a total breath of fresh air. In short, I didn't expect to enjoy it as much as I do, since metal doesn't do much for me usually. If you know me, you know that I'm a sucker for the theatrics in live shows, and there was no shortage of that. I must have seen just about every costume and stage prop I could imagine. The band was tight and engaging, and there was even a surprise at the very end: guitarist Orianthi made an appearance. The last time I was supposed to see her in concert, I had just gotten my first tattoo the day before, and was much too sore to go, so I sat that show out. Overall, it was a great night at the Greek. I was seated in the benches towards the back of the venue, so next time I hope to be closer to the stage.
Next I saw Panic at the Disco at Staples Center. I was a bit more familiar with this band since my sister played their music quite a bit during our drives to and from high school. It's very refreshing to go to a show for a band that I grew up with, where the median age of the audience is about 25 years old. I don't go to many shows like that. This show was another pleasant surprise, though. I love my prog concerts, but shows like this one have a certain depth of energy that I can't get with some of the older bands I see, not that I hold anything against those bands. I understand. They're not spring chickens anymore. It's most important that they can still play well. That being said, Panic at the Disco managed to pay tribute to a few well known "oldies" like Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" and Cyndi Lauper's "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun," which just about everyone in the audience happily sang along to. It's always a real affirmation to see that, especially since there seems to be a consensus among older music fans that the younger generation "just doesn't get good music."
I decided to give ARW another try, so I saw them next at the Greek Theatre. This time, I was 5 rows from the stage. If you read my entry about the first time I saw ARW in 2016, you'll know that I was less than enthused about that show for some reason. Nothing about the performance was really all that bad, but for some reason, I just couldn't get myself to enjoy it. Since some time had passed, I decided to try it again, so I bought my ticket to this show the day tickets went on sale. Fortunately, I enjoyed myself a lot more this time around. I found myself more engaged with the show. Another thing I noticed was that there seemed to be more energy from the band, particularly from Jon Anderson, Trevor Rabin, and Rick Wakeman. The setlist was a mix of things I had not heard live before, and a few "generic" choices like "Owner of a Lonely Heart," and "I've Seen All Good People." I would have even considered a VIP package, had they not been priced at $700 a piece. I was fortunate to run into a number of friends of mine that night as well.
I also caught Justin Hayward's shows in Pasadena and Santa Clarita. I loved Justin's show at The Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, so I thought I would knock out two shows instead of one. He played the same set both nights, which consisted of Moodies hits and some solo material, all of which I loved hearing.
Took a major shift in concert style last night, when I attended Korn's special concert at the Hollywood Palladium. This was the second of a three-night mini tour they are doing in celebration of the 20th anniversary of their third album Follow the Leader. I'm not a massive Korn fan, but I can remember being 13 years old back in 2010 and lying on my beach towel at summer camp with this album blasting in my ears. From what I know about Korn fans, it seems like most of them spent their high school years this way. I mainly bought tickets to this as a birthday gift for my dad, but I also had some degree of interest in seeing it. Since this show is only being played in 3 cities (San Francisco, LA and Las Vegas), I figured that they would be performing the entire Follow the Leader album. I tuned out to be wrong about that. They played about half of the album and then played hits for the remainder of the 90-minute show. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it. I was surprised to see how calm the audience was, since I had heard that Korn audiences could be a bit aggressive. There was plenty of headbanging, but not much more than that. I stood towards the back of the floor area as a precaution, but I think I would have been ok a bit closer. It was a sold-out crowd but I still had a pretty good view of the stage.
I go back to school a week from today. I have one more show before that, which I will talk about after the fact.
