Tuesday, May 11 I was able to take another day off work to see Needtobreathe with Seabird and Stephen Kellog and the Sixers. I had to watch Avalyn in the morning, and the plan was to leave as soon as Ed returned from work. I had a feeling I would still be at the venue plenty early. Ed decided to come home an hour early, and I still left later than planned, but as I suspected, I was there in plenty of time.
I decided to take my SLR along and see if I could get a pass to use it along with my point and shoot.
When I arrived at the venue, the bus was already there, and parked practically at the entrance. I guessed it would be hard to miss people going in and out being that close. I took a photo of the sign near the door and had a bit of a chuckle of the welcome mat in front of the bus door. Then I took a couple of snapshots of the mat as well.
I saw Bear, et al go in and out a few times and kinda waved at them. At one point I asked about a photo pass and was told who I should talk to, but several people sort of matched the description, so I didn't say anything right away. Then I saw Alex. He was the merch guy and I knew him from other events where (strangely enough) he was the merch guy. It was good to see him again. We chatted a very little bit, and he said he'd see about getting me a photo pass, and he was true to his word.
So, I just spent the rest of the time waiting, watching, and killing time until a few other people finally showed up. Most of the people for this show came very last minute, so there wasn't much of a line to start with, but once it was close to door times the line grew quickly. Finally the doors opened, and I showed my ticket and walked up to the stage to wait for the show. I guess I was supposed to mention the VIP packet there and didn't (a mistake on my part) and was just thinking it was evident by the ticket. I should have checked my e-mail closer.
While I was waiting I got a little bit acquainted with one of the ladies next to me, and found out that both of us had been at the Paramore concert the day before. Small world, huh? I also talked to a few others around me and made sure it would be okay to leave and come back because I thought there would be a meet/greet for VIP package people between sets.
Seabird's set was first. This was my third time to see Seabird, and I've loved it
all three times. They are an amazing band and Aaron has an incredible voice. Their music is very strong on the keyboards, and I love that as well. At the end of their set I went to the merch table and bought a tee shirt and two stickers. At least I thought I did. I had them anyway. I asked about the meet and greet and there wasn't anything happening, so I thought maybe it was after the next artist and went back to the stage area.
Stephen Kellog's set was a lot of fun. He also has a great voice, and a wonderful sense of humor. In addition to his own songs he did a funny compilation of tunes from different decades. I decided that I would definitely pick up his cd afterwards.
As his set ended, I headed back over to the merch table again and picked up a copy of Stephen Kellog's cd and asked about the meet and greet. I was told there wasn't going to be one, and then when I mentioned something Alex asked if I was given anything at the door. I said, "no" and he said he'd take care of it. So I ended up heading back for the stage again and Needtobreathe's set.
Needtobreathe was completely amazing! It was my third time seeing them and I have been totally impressed each time. The vocals are outstanding, great lyrics, good music and an energetic stage presence. I loved every single song!! My favorite Needtobreathe song is called "Washed By the Water" and I could see on the set list that it was part of the encore. When it was time for the encore, Bear said that he decided to change things a little, and I admit I was a little concerned they weren't going to play it. Instead, the change included performing one of the other songs in an acoustic set along with it. The harmonies were absolutely stunning and it was one of those moments where the music just seems to just grip your entire being. It was sad when it had to finally end. As they started to clear the stage, I asked for a copy of the set list and it was given to me. Then I asked for a copy for the gal next to me, and she was able to get one as well.
After the show, I went back to the merch table again and waited. I bought a Needtobreathe Tour tee shirt and talked to people for a bit. Finally the guys all came out and did a meet & greet of sorts. I talked to Seth about music a little bit, and had a photo taken with them all. They also autographed the set list for me.
Then I put my camera case down at the bar area and reorganized a bit. Then one of the gals came over and asked about me paying for my Seabird merch. I thought I had. I know I took my card out to give to the gal, and I knew I had a receipt for something. I could only find a receipt for Stephen Kellog, so maybe I hadn't paid? Anyway, something happened in the confusion, so I just said she should charge it and we could work it out if it went through twice. It only cleared once, so it must not have gone through. The only thing I recall for certain was that I got the card out twice. What happened after that is a mystery to me. LOL I am glad it was caught, though. When I buy merch, I usually like most of what I buy, but the real point is to support the bands I love!!!! So, I still feel kind of badly about that, and if by some miracle Aaron sees this, I cannot apologize enough for the confusion!!!! (I'll probably keep apologizing until doomsday!)
After that was all settled, I headed for my car and the drive home, with many good memories.
Wednesday would come too soon. Back to the real world once again, at least until Saturday when I was to head for Las Vegas.
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