Back to (Nickel)Back

Just about this time last year, the wife and I saw Nickelback in concert. On Thursday, they came back around and we seized the opportunity to see them again. It was the same tour, so they did a lot of the same songs, but it didn't seem like a repeat of the last time we saw Nickelback. In fact, this concert presented a lot of firsts for me. This is the first time that my back-to-back concerts were seeing the same band. (Yes, my last concert was a little over a year ago. Okay, not exactly. A couple of months later we saw Saving Jane, but it was such a small venue and the crowd was so small that it was tough to call it a concert.) It's also the first time that I've seen a band twice during the same tour, and it's the first time I've taken the kids to a big concert. (The Mrs. and I took them to Saving Jane, but like I said before, that doesn't really count.)

It was definitely the first time I was eager to see all of the bands. Breaking Benjamin and Three Days Grace were the opening acts. I don't own any of their stuff yet, but I've heard them on the radio and liked what I had heard. Breaking Benjamin was almost exactly what I expected. They were young and the sound wasn't too hot, but this was more because of their equipment than because of their talent. The sound was a little hollow and muffled, but the band was tight and clearly having fun up there. Three Days Grace really impressed me. They were technically an opening act, but they performed as if they were the feature. The sound was good, the crowd was involved and the band did a great job of interacting with the fans. But back to the firsts...

As I mentioned, this was the first time that we had taken the kids to a big concert. We knew that we could get separated and made contingency plans early on. But I didn't quite expect how early we'd go our different ways. The concert was general admission, and the older kid said she wanted to get up to the stage. Having done this once or twice before, I knew that it would be tough and spelled it out to her... "...we might not make it all the way up front, but this is our best chance..." "... you won't be able to see..." "... once we're in, we stay there or lose our spot..." "... it'll be hot and cramped..." She was up for it, and she was a trooper.

During Breaking Benjamin's set, we started our march to the stage and made it about two thirds of the way, at which point it got too packed to make any more headway. Part of the blockage was a guy in a wheelchair and a couple of his friends. It was tough for someone on their feet to get any closer to the stage. Imaging how difficult it was for a guy in a wheelchair. They were about the same age as me, and we chatted after Breaking Benjamin was done. During the set change, people left the floor to get beer, and people tried rushing the stage, but like I said, we were sardines. And hey, if I can't get my kid any closer to the stage, then there's no way in hell that I'm letting a giggly little group of bitch-ass teenie-bopper girls pass me. I heard them coming from behind, and told my daughter not to let them by. They then tried budging through the other side of me. I just held my elbow out and bellowed "Hey! I don't fucking THINK so!!" They retreated, and that was the last I saw of them. Mr. wheelchair and his buddies thought that was pretty cool.

Shortly after Three Days Grace came on, Daughter started overheating and getting a little claustrophobic, so we left the floor. By this time of course, all of the seats were taken, and we were left to wander around the arena temporarily taking seats as the opportunity arose. We went back to the floor when Nickelback came on, but stayed in the back, where the kid could see and had a little elbow room. She watched intently for the first couple of songs but tired quickly. This was my cue to find a seat -- even a shitty one. We ended up finding Sexy Wife and the little 'un in the nosebleed section, slightly behind stage left. Being slightly behind stage, we didn't see the band's faces or the bling on the stage, and the music was slightly less loud because the speakers were pointed toward the audience, but the whole family was back together. The kids got to sit, while Wifey-poo and I stood immediately behind them. All was good... the kids got to sit and enjoy the show, and we got a unique view... we weren't part of the sardine crowd, we saw things from the band's vantage point. We saw the mosh pits on the floor, the fans cheering the band on... It was kind of crazy.

Though Nickelback's set was similar to what we heard last time, the experience was completely different. Because we took the kids, our attention was a little divided but they had fun, and I'm proud that we were able to give our kids their first concert experience.

Next up, we will be seeing Evanescence later this month. Another first... the first time I've attended two major concerts in such rapid succession.