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Dec. 30th, 2021 10:42 pmBecause I can't resist such things, we're taking a break from the regularly scheduled programming to indulge in some concert nostalgia, courtesy of the_siobhan .
(*ahem)
First concert: Assuming that Fred Penner doesn't count, that would be Neil Young and Crazy Horse on Halloween night, 1996, on the Broken Arrow Tour. He played for three hours, a wall of guitar nose I'm not sure I'd have the patience for now but mesmerized me at the time.
Last: Death Perception, a local outfit made up of some friends of mine. A party atmosphere pervaded and a grand time was had by all. If these guys were European they'd probably be signed with Nuclear Blast by now.
Best: Traditionally I've said the first time I saw Udo Dirknsieder at one of those tiny mop-cupboards doubling as concert venue that used to so proliferate in Toronto. I think a combination of youthful inexperience, a grumpy week beforehand, and a near-perfect setlist rather did tattoo this one in my brain. Dio in Detroit, Twisted Sister in Wacken, and Motorhead anywhere get honourable mentions.
Worst: As I grew older and more jaded, even my favourite bands tended to disappoint me. Either I became harder to please, or more demanding, or saw through the routine of most touring entities, quite a few have let me down. But that's different from WORST. As in, not merely dissapointing but out-and-out BAD, I might still go with Corpus, a beatnik-duo consisting of one keyboardist hitting the same key for thirty minutes, and one speaker grinding his hips onstage while reciting such eloquence as:
"Poop in your purple hat,
And spin my head round and round,
Like a cheap washing machine
(Like a cheap washing machine)"
Loudest: Dio/Maiden at Copps Coliseum. My first time seeing either of them. I could feel my sensitive nerve endings bursting under the vibrations, and could not hear for three days. I honestly thought I'd been consigned to a world of silence. Slowly it crept back, everything sounding nasal, high-pitched and out of tune before something like normalcy returned. I can't guarantee it ever did. I've worn ear protection ever since.
A lot of Metal bands brag about Volume and Ear damage like battle scars. But having tasted hearing loss, I don't participate in this childish boasting. I don't even turn my computer speakers up too loud. If music really matters to you, you'll protect your means to hear it. Otherwise, you're not really into it: it's just an excuse to get drunk.
Seen the most: I've lost count of the times I've been to Iron Maiden, Slayer, and Motorhead. My money would be on Maiden as it's become a tradition for my brothers and I to attend every time.
Most surprising: Twisted Sister at Wacken. 2005 approx. Went in with low expectations, but an open mind. At this point in time, TS were largely (in N. America anyway) the punchlines of a joke, half-remembered artifacts of a bigone era, to the extent they were remembered at all. But I liked some of Dee's solo stuff, respected him tremendously for his stance against the PMRC, and who didn't like "We're Not Gonna Take It"? I was humbled and rewarded by a barn-burning bludgeon of a show, that just about nobody's ever topped. Never has a show forced me to so completely reevaluate a band.
Next: With any luck, The Irish Rovers.
(*ahem)
First concert: Assuming that Fred Penner doesn't count, that would be Neil Young and Crazy Horse on Halloween night, 1996, on the Broken Arrow Tour. He played for three hours, a wall of guitar nose I'm not sure I'd have the patience for now but mesmerized me at the time.
Last: Death Perception, a local outfit made up of some friends of mine. A party atmosphere pervaded and a grand time was had by all. If these guys were European they'd probably be signed with Nuclear Blast by now.
Best: Traditionally I've said the first time I saw Udo Dirknsieder at one of those tiny mop-cupboards doubling as concert venue that used to so proliferate in Toronto. I think a combination of youthful inexperience, a grumpy week beforehand, and a near-perfect setlist rather did tattoo this one in my brain. Dio in Detroit, Twisted Sister in Wacken, and Motorhead anywhere get honourable mentions.
Worst: As I grew older and more jaded, even my favourite bands tended to disappoint me. Either I became harder to please, or more demanding, or saw through the routine of most touring entities, quite a few have let me down. But that's different from WORST. As in, not merely dissapointing but out-and-out BAD, I might still go with Corpus, a beatnik-duo consisting of one keyboardist hitting the same key for thirty minutes, and one speaker grinding his hips onstage while reciting such eloquence as:
"Poop in your purple hat,
And spin my head round and round,
Like a cheap washing machine
(Like a cheap washing machine)"
Loudest: Dio/Maiden at Copps Coliseum. My first time seeing either of them. I could feel my sensitive nerve endings bursting under the vibrations, and could not hear for three days. I honestly thought I'd been consigned to a world of silence. Slowly it crept back, everything sounding nasal, high-pitched and out of tune before something like normalcy returned. I can't guarantee it ever did. I've worn ear protection ever since.
A lot of Metal bands brag about Volume and Ear damage like battle scars. But having tasted hearing loss, I don't participate in this childish boasting. I don't even turn my computer speakers up too loud. If music really matters to you, you'll protect your means to hear it. Otherwise, you're not really into it: it's just an excuse to get drunk.
Seen the most: I've lost count of the times I've been to Iron Maiden, Slayer, and Motorhead. My money would be on Maiden as it's become a tradition for my brothers and I to attend every time.
Most surprising: Twisted Sister at Wacken. 2005 approx. Went in with low expectations, but an open mind. At this point in time, TS were largely (in N. America anyway) the punchlines of a joke, half-remembered artifacts of a bigone era, to the extent they were remembered at all. But I liked some of Dee's solo stuff, respected him tremendously for his stance against the PMRC, and who didn't like "We're Not Gonna Take It"? I was humbled and rewarded by a barn-burning bludgeon of a show, that just about nobody's ever topped. Never has a show forced me to so completely reevaluate a band.
Next: With any luck, The Irish Rovers.
