It must have happened, 'cause I got the pictures

[BlueSky]

I can't say thank you enough to all of you that encouraged me to go the concert. It wasn't just going with Ron that I was concerned about, it was leaving Jason, too. Without all of your comments I probably would have missed an absolutely amazing night. (For the newbies, see this thread: http://www.drumchat.com/showthread.p...ong-29455.html)

***There are a lot of pictures, so I had to divided this into a post plus replies***

It has been a really long time since I had a girl's night out, so if I tend to sound more like a fangirl than a drummer at times, please excuse me.



This is me and the girls waiting in line to get in. Which one do you think is me?
I don't like posting pictures of myself because I always hate them. (Its a girl thing). But there is a picture I have to post later, and I don't want that image in your head every time you see my screen name, lol. It's really bad.
I recently discovered that Twitter is the best way to keep up with my favorite bands, so I am now a member of the Twitter universe. (I'm @drummerbluesky if any of you are also tweeters) Anyway, we tweeted this one to the bands that we were going to see that night. BTW, I'm the one on the right. Did you guess correctly?!

Three word can sum up the night:

FRONT ROW, BABY!!

Turns out that being in the front row can really change your concert experience. Plus, you get some cool swag. Its been two days, and I'm still pretty pumped. My ears are still ringing, too. Well, the right one is. The left one is almost back to normal. (I blame Candlebox. The sound until they took the stage was awesome. Once they started, it was screech after squeal.)

[BlueSky]

Since it was a multi-band show on a really small stage, the drum sets got further away as the night wore on. By the time Hinder took the stage, Cody's beautiful Pearls were up on risers, and I didn't get to see him play that well. However, the first band was Open Air Stereo, and if it hadn't been for the 5ft runway between us and the stage, I think I could have probably crashed his Zildjians if I had my sticks on me!



What I was most looking forward to was watching the drummers play the music I was so familiar with. I did get to see Nick Gross (OAS), but Cody Hanson (Hinder) was too far away, and my angle was off. (Of course, that just means I had more time to watch Jared Weeks *sigh*)

My camera doesn't take the greatest photos in low light with moving targets, and the battery died right before Hinder took the stage. If I had known I was going to be front row center, I would have brought my DSLR!

This is Nick Gross of Open Air Stereo. Great band. Sounded phenomenal live.


and Chase Johnson...

[BlueSky]

I didn't take any pictures of Devour the Day, or Candlebox, but one of my girlfriends that had left the floor to sit in the balcony took some pictures of Hinder for me. This is Jared Weeks (of Saving Abel)



So, the music was fantastic, but that isn't the best part...being on the front row wasn't even the best part. The best part was a result of my vanity.

I had gone to the restrooms to check my make up after the first set, and on my way back, I noticed Nick's beautiful drums sitting there with Scott Pounds, the bands' bass player. Trying to be casual, I told him how much I enjoyed the show, and asked him where Nick was. Then Nick comes around the corner and I almost turned into gushing fangirl, but I held it together
I started talking to him about the show, and he was polite, but then I told him I was a drummer. It was like a switch turned on and we were best friends! I asked him about his kit - he plays DW exotics, I think he called them, and Zildjians. It was cool to see that most of his cymbals are the same sizes as mine, but he plays the customs and mastersounds, lol. I asked him about his influences, told him I heard a little of Shannon Leto in his snare rolls. He said Shannon is one of his influences, but his biggest is Travis Barker - he grew up playing and taking lessons with him! So its no surprise that he plays with Zildjian Artist Series Travis Barker sticks - which he autographed for me!! He couldn't find a sharpie at first, so he went to hunt one down. He was gone about 10 minutes, and I got to talk Chase and Scott while he was in the meantime. (While he was gone I got a text from Mikayla that said "You just missed your drummer!! Where are you?!" ) When Nick came back, he had also brought me a shirt. (yea!) So here is that awful picture (taken by the lead singer, lol. Must be a little strange):

[BlueSky]

And my autographed stick and tee, along with a pick I caught during Hinder's set. ( I got one during OAS and Candlebox, but I gave those to my friends - I had an autographed stick!!I also got a gatorade from the Candlebox set, but I drank it. (it was sealed! The stage guy gave it to me.) Like I said, cool swag being front and center!



The stick was the one he used during the set, and I think he had used them before that. I saw the sticks before the show and they even looked rough at that point.


So there it is...proof that it happened! (And I'm so glad it did!)

[angus242]

Glad you went. Concerts can be a lot of fun. I hadn't been to one in almost a decade. I hit 4 so far this year and I'm glad I did.

My drumming career has started again because of these shows. Great pics by the way!

[Northern Redneck]

Funny I did pick you in the pic lol.

[N2Bluz]

Reading this and seeing those pics made my whole night! I'm so happy for you...it's obvious that you had a night to remember and enjoyed yourself more than you have in a long time (most likely). I know that your husband is just as happy that you enjoyed the night. I think it did both of you a ton of good. Congrats!

[pastor_bob]

BlueSky, I so glad you had even more fun than you expected, and I'm sure your hubby was really excited for you. Great pics, and how cool that something as small as a visit to the "laddies room" turned into an encounter that will surely give you the encouragement to blow through those moments when we struggle to learn a new skill.

[DrumDame]

Holy crap that is awesome!!! Sooo glad you went and had such a great experience!

[Drumbledore]

Wow....Candlebox are still around? Had no idea.

[markthechuck]

looks like you had a blast, i love going to concerts.

[BlueSky]

Glad you went. Concerts can be a lot of fun. I hadn't been to one in almost a decade. I hit 4 so far this year and I'm glad I did.

My drumming career has started again because of these shows. Great pics by the way!

Thanks. I haven't been to a concert in a loooong time. I have two more coming up, if I can get my husband to take me to Saving Abel in November. Hinder did a couple of Saving Abel songs, but I want to hear more!

I started playing drums because my musical tastes changes and the new genre made me want to play along with more than just the steering wheel.

Funny I did pick you in the pic lol.

Cheater. You've seen my FB page. Granted, most of those pictures are 15 years old...

Reading this and seeing those pics made my whole night! I'm so happy for you...it's obvious that you had a night to remember and enjoyed yourself more than you have in a long time (most likely). I know that your husband is just as happy that you enjoyed the night. I think it did both of you a ton of good. Congrats!

Glad I could help. And yes, I did enjoy myself more than I had in forever. Just thinking about it now still makes me giggle. Jason was happy that I had a great time...I don't think he was too happy that I woke him up to tell him about it. I really didn't mean too - my equilibrium was so off from my ears ringing that I kept tripping over stuff.

BlueSky, I so glad you had even more fun than you expected, and I'm sure your hubby was really excited for you. Great pics, and how cool that something as small as a visit to the "laddies room" turned into an encounter that will surely give you the encouragement to blow through those moments when we struggle to learn a new skill.

Gotta love serendipity. Seeing his excitement talking to another drummer was infectious.

Holy crap that is awesome!!! Sooo glad you went and had such a great experience!

Thought about you and Bridie when I was posting, but I didn't go there. This time I will, just for us girls....Holy crap, those guys were HOT!! Being on the front row certainly has it advantages!

Wow....Candlebox are still around? Had no idea.

Me either. And they still only have the two "hits". Did you know they got their name from a song one of your Aussie bands wrote?

looks like you had a blast, i love going to concerts.

I did. Can't wait for the next one.

[slinky]

I picked correctly too. I don't know how. It must be through the eyes.

[DrumDame]

I'm sure Bridie appreciated the pics, I know I did. Thanks!