Rock Concert!

 "We ought to do good to others simply as a horse runs, or a bee makes honey, or a vine bears grapes season after season, without thinking of the grapes it has borne." - Marcus Aurelius

Nearly two years ago, I bought tickets to see a rock concert that our daughter really really wanted to go see.  The lineup was Weezer, Fall Out Boy, and Green Day, and the tour was called the Hella Mega Tour.

I've been enjoying Green Day since MTV started over-playing their break-out song "Basket Case" back in 1994.  I've listened to a lot of Weezer songs, although they've never really been my thing.  Fall Out Boy is why my daughter wanted to see the show, but I wasn't too familiar with their music.  

Covid restrictions resulted in the delay of the original concert, over a year ago.  The concert was re-scheduled from Sept 6, 2020 to Sept 6, 2021.  Between the time I purchased the tickets and actually seeing the show, almost two years had passed.  Good thing I didn't change jobs, move, or die during those two years.

So my daughter and her friend, with me driving, piled into the trusty old Subaru (because mileage!) and drove to Lumen Field (aka Seahawks Stadium).  The trip was uneventful, but the car is really noisy, because I suspect a rear wheel bearing or two are going out.  There is additional noise because the car is bent with a salvage title, and therefore the doors don't seal very well.  Wind whistles around the door seals when you drive at freeway speeds.  It's tolerable on my daily 20 minute commute with the music cranked up, but much less so on a road trip.

The re-scheduled date was the end of Labor Day weekend, and as we approached Seattle, we got into a massive miles-long traffic jam of campers, boaters, kayakers, bicyclists, and dirt bikers - all returning to the Seattle metro area from their long three-day weekend.  I'd leave that place too, every chance I got.  The five hour trip turned into a a six and a half hour trip, thanks to the last 20 mile-long traffic jam of stop and go traffic.  

Now I remember why I no longer travel - it's always a pain in the ass.  Every.  Single.  Time.  It's much worse when you fly, because then you might be unable to get off a plane and choose another option - or too far away to drive home in a reasonable amount of time.  Either way you are screwed.

We checked into our hotel in Issaquah, quickly ate some fast food, and then headed downtown to the stadium.  After getting bent over to park the car, we headed to the stadium, and learned they don't allow bags inside.  So we got bent over outside the stadium to store the bag my daughter brought to carry souvenirs in.  Then we got inside and got bent over buying souvenir T-shirts and a few bottles of water.

Eventually we got seated just before the show started - nose-bleed seats.  There were just four rows higher up than ours.  I didn't care.  We got to see a good show, and the kids really enjoyed it.

Weezer was the first band up.  As I said earlier, I've never been a huge fan, but I know most of their songs.  And I will say this too, having seen them live:  They are legit talented musicians and performers.  I have a much greater appreciation for their music and will probably get a couple of their CDs.  

Below:  Really nose-bleed seats.  Good thing they had mega-screens at each side of the stage.  Rivers Cuomo, center.  Singer, songwriter and rhythm guitar.  The bass player, lead guitar, and drummer are also top-notch musicians. 

 Below:  A video of Weezer on the same tour, when they played in Dallas

 

Below:  Cell-phone lights on, early in the show.

Below:  Fall Out Boy lead vocals and rhythm guitarist, Patrick Stump.

After now having seen and heard Fall Out Boy perform live, I was... underwhelmed.  I'm sorry, and I hate to say that about any band.  They are great musicians, and great performers - absolutely polished and solid.  Unfortunately, I'm not keen on their music, and no amount of professional polish will fix that.  They remind me of Jimmy Eat World quite a bit, which is probably the best compliment I can make.   A few of their more popular song videos are below.

 

 I found the vocals to be a little too "American Idol Contestant".  By that, I mean covering the entire vocal range several times during each song, instead of letting the melody carry the song.  I hate that vocals have become the dominant thing in music these days.  Another thing that bothered me was that the songs seemed so... commercially slick.  Maybe it's just me - the band is incredibly popular.  Most of their albums have gone to #1.  Maybe that's because they are commercially slick - I dunno...

Lastly it was time for Green Day.

Bass Player Mike Dirnt had a GoPro on the headstock of his guitar while the band played the Bass-heavy song "Longview"

Cell phones again.  I am old enough to remember when it this was done with the Bic Lighters that everyone had brought to light up their weed.

Green Day was also very polished and professional.  Their music is pretty simple and very catchy.  I like most of it, and they put on a good show.  Below is a video of their performance in Houston.  Man those guys have a lot of hit music!

After the show, it was nearly midnight.  We had to wait in a block-long line to retrieve my daughter's bag from the storage place, then drive 10 miles to the hotel.  The following day we got into the noisy Subaru and made the long drive back home - this time without major traffic congestion.  

The whole thing was a very expensive pain in the ass to experience a few hours of live music.  Although I enjoyed the concert, I'm not certain that I would have done it if I knew there would be a such a lengthy delay, and if I had reckoned with all the hassles involved.