Audioslave & Family Guy Live
May. 2nd, 2005 12:37 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
rusty_haloOkay. So. Saturday I went to see Audioslave.
Well, first I got up early (for me on a Saturday) and got my hair cut at noon. Bangs. It looks pretty good.
Then I listened to Audioslave for a while and tried to learn as many songs as I could.
I headed over to Roseland and got there around 6:45, just as doors were opening. There was a HUGE line, around a couple blocks, so I got in it and waited. It moved pretty quickly.
I was wearing big black boots (the better to see over people's heads), two layers of fishnets (interesting patterns), a red plaid fishnet-covered miniskirt, a small low-cut black shirt, and a black collar with silver crystals. I was carrying a tiny purse, umbrella, and jacket. I'm shocked that I managed to hold onto the umbrella and jacket throughout the whole concert.
The nice thing about Roseland is that there's a bar to the left of the stage, which means that there's a walkway all the way to the front of the room. All you have to do is walk up there, stand in front on the far left, and then slowly inch your way to the center. By the time Audioslave came on, I was in the third row, slightly to the left of Chris Cornell, with a perfect view. And it was almost second row--I was between and only slightly behind two people in the second row, and I had short people in front of me.
It took a while for the opener to come on (Johnny something), so I read as I waited. ("Scavenger Hunt" by Christopher Pike, because it was small and not-heavy and I'd been meaning to re-read it.) I got weird looks for reading in a mosh pit before a show. I'm so jaded; I was trying to think of how many concerts I've been to, and I was guessing around 75. Depends on whether you count repeat concerts by the same band; I saw Uranium 235 something like 35 times in three years, and Dope something like 10 times.
Anyway, so the opening band was pretty good. They were playing sort of old-school grunge pop, Mudhoney or Nirvana style. Brought back memories; I liked it.
After they finished it took *forever* for Audioslave to come on. I took the opportunity to slowly inch closer to the center. The guy standing behind me was one of the most irritating human beings I've ever had the misfortune to encounter. He reminded me of a louder and stupider version of Eddie Van Blundht, the shapeshifting guy with a tail that Darin Morgan played in that one X-Files episode. He was yelling to his friend about when the band was going to come on, and what the lights changing meant, and who the people (roadies) onstage were, and making unbelievably inane racist comments.
So, I managed to get pretty far away from him. And I was actually pretty much in the second row, until this little twit flirted her way to the front and sweet-talked the guys in front of me into letting her squeeze between them in the front row. She was drunk, and spent the evening flirting and chattering and generally being a repulsive excuse for a human being. At least she was short.
So anyway, I waited, and waited, and waited, and then finally the band came out and OH MY GOD CHRIS CORNELL WAS STANDING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's difficult to explain what this means to me. I think you'd probably have to have known me as a kid to really get it. Danielle would understand; Mike might, too. It's like, life was empty and gray and hopeless, and then came MUSIC, and with that came meaning and hope and inspiration. I was 11, and there were four bands that really truly meant the whole world to me: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. I listened to them constantly, knew every word and every sound on every record. Their faces plastered my bedroom walls; you couldn't even see the wallpaper. I read every article I could find, joined every fan club, spent hours pouring over every lyric.
Superunknown was my favorite Soundgarden record. It's one of those things where I was so young, my musical understanding grew along with my understanding of the record. And lyrically, it meant a lot to me; I've always felt like I sort of see the world in a similar way, that Chris Cornell and I probably have similar personalities. Those lyrics really connected with me.
I never tried to draw Layne Staley or Kurt Cobain, because they were too beautiful and I was afraid to screw them up. But I drew Chris Cornell and Eddie Vedder, the ones who felt more like family. Probably the best thing I ever drew is a portrait of Chris Cornell, from when I was 14; I still have it in my sketch book. And the best story I've ever written, also when I was 14, was partially about him. It was sort of about seeing Soundgarden in concert, actually. This is why I say Danielle would get how much it means to me, to actually see him--she really liked that story, I even gave her a pretty copy with a cover and everything.
So anyway, CHRIS CORNELL WAS STANDING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME. Looking a bit older, but still as beautiful as ever. It was almost like being 14 again, and being inside of that story I wrote.
His voice was amazing. Utterly perfect. I'm not exaggerating; I don't think I've ever seen a live vocalist sound so exceptionally good. He was absolutely in top form.
audioslaved.com says the setlist was
Set it Off
Exploder
Your Time Has Come (from Out of Exile)
Like a Stone
Spoonman (Soundgarden)
Gasoline
Drown Me Slowly (from Out of Exile)
Doesn't Remind Me (from Out of Exile)
Be Yourself (from Out of Exile)
Bulls on Parade/Sleep in the Fire (Rage Against the Machine)
Outshined (Soundgarden)
Shadow on the Sun
Encore:
Black Hole Sun (Chris Cornell, solo acoustic)
I Am the Highway
Show Me How to Live
Killing in the Name Of (Rage Against the Machine)
Cochise
So anyway. I didn't really know the Audioslave songs, but I was sort of familiar with most of them. Everything was good, the performances were amazing, the band was tight, it was just awesome.
I'd read message boards, so I knew that they were going to play Soundgarden songs, but I still started shrieking uncontrollably when they started into "Spoonman." I mean, it's Spoonman. It's the first Soundgarden song I ever heard, on 97.5 WPST when I was eleven. It's not my favorite Soundgarden song, and I've probably heard it a few too many times, but it was still amazing to see them play it.
Chris was chatty and sweet between songs. He was obviously in a good mood and kept grinning. He has the loveliest smile, and his eyes light up, and it's just amazing. I adore him in the totally non-cynical way you can only adore someone you've admired since you were 11. He dedicated one song to his mother-in-law, who was in the crowd, saying it was her favorite. Another (Show Me How to Live?) he dedicated to Prince, who was staying in a hotel room near him. And Black Hole Sun he dedicated to his new wife, saying that the only thing she knew about his career when she met him was that song. He's a beautiful human being; he glows.
So yeah, after Spoonman they played more Audioslave songs, then Chris went offstage and the band did Rage Against the Machine's "Bulls on Parade" with no vocals. I was never a huge Rage fan, but that's a pretty good song (better without vocals, heh). Tom Morello is really an amazing guitar player. I'm very happy that I got to see him play.
And then they did "Outshined" and OMG THEY PLAYED OUTSHINED!!!!!! Umm.... that was the highlight for me. I just love that song. And the performance was so astounding, so absolutely perfect--BETTER, even, than the recorded version! I saw Chris Cornell sing "I'm looking California / and feeling Minnesota"! And the way he sang the chorus, so powerful, completely mind-blowing, I can't even put it into words.
The mosh pit was pretty tame for the first few songs. It started to get intense with "Spoonman," though, and went insane with the first Rage cover, "Bulls on Parade." There were a few body surfers to duck, not too many. I held my position in front without too much trouble. I got slammed around, shoved into people, smushed, the usual; I have a few bruises. But I survived Marilyn Manson front row at the height of their fame; nothing in an Audioslave pit was going to intimidate me. Unfortunately there were a bunch of shrieky little girls who couldn't take it and wouldn't shut up; honestly, if you don't want to get shoved around, stay out of the pit.
Which isn't to say that I wasn't annoyed by the assholes. Some of these guys aren't even there for the band; they just want to get drunk, start fights, hit people, and grope women. I fail to see how "it's a rock concert" is a justification for sexual assault. But that's life, and if you want to be up front, you put up with it and enjoy the show--and if a guy grabs you, well, that's what sharp fingernails are for.
So anyway, the band went offstage, and then Chris came out alone and did an acoustic "Black Hole Sun." Which was beautiful, except for the twit of a girl who spent the whole song screaming in my ear about how guys were pushing her. Yes, honey, you're in a mosh pit, guys are going to push you. Shut the fuck up and enjoy the show that you're suffering to see.
I think I was the only girl up front not pitching a fit or begging to be pulled out. One of the guys next to me even turned to me and said "You've done this before, haven't you?" Oh, yeah.
After "Black Hole Sun" was a clip of a cover that I didn't know, and then the Audioslave song "I Am the Highway," which is beautiful. Chris started it acoustic and then the band joined in. It felt like he really poured his soul into that song. It was like a "Fell on Black Days" or "The Day I Tried to Live" type song. That's when I came very close to tearing up--it was like I could feel his emotions through his voice, you know? He's such an astoundingly good singer, and so genuine.
Then another Audioslave song, then a cover of Rage Against the Machine's "Killing in the Name," which is the only song I ever liked by them. It's great and powerful, and of course the crowd went nuts. I've never had any desire whatsoever to be in the middle of a Rage Against the Machine mosh pit, but I just sort of went with the flow, didn't get killed, and enjoyed the energy. Chris did a great job, living up to the song and putting his own spin on it. And did I mention that Tom Morello is incredible?
Chris stood right in front of my section and sang, several times. He came over near the end and smiled at us, and I screamed and he looked at me and smiled at me for a half-second. It's like finding out that a fantasy character you adored is real and even more amazing in person.
So they did one last Audioslave song, and then it was over, and I was completely disheveled and covered in sweat (most of it not my own) and water (that the security guys had been pouring on us). And I couldn't stop grinning.
So then I rushed down to 43rd between 7th and 6th to a place called Town Hall (stopping only briefly to grab and down a bottle of water), because I had a ticket to see Family Guy Live. This is basically the cast of Family Guy doing a script read-through of an episode, showing the first part of the season premiere, and answering questions. I was late (it started at 10, I got there at 11), so I only saw half the script read-through, but that was okay.
I decided to go to this because, duh, Family Guy is one of my favorite shows. And I'm fascinated by its resurrection. And I got a really good seat, front of the loge.
They were doing the episode where the family goes into the witness protection program and Chris kisses a boy (who turns out to be a girl). It was great, and funny, and so weird to see the voice actors who match up to the characters. The creator guy (Seth MacFarlane?) is obviously brilliant--he does Stewie and Peter and Brian, and he's very witty.
It was weird to see Seth Green in person. And very funny to watch him do Chris' voice. The best part was when the episode makes some reference to UPN as one of the circles of hell, and someone said to Seth Green, "Wasn't Buffy on UPN?" He made a face and said yes, but luckily he managed to make his escape before that, so he was never on UPN. >:)
After the episode, Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein (???) sang a duet between Peter and Lois, and then they showed the first part of the season premiere which aired Sunday night, and then they answered questions. Most of the questions were lame, and the actors were all getting drunk onstage, but overall it was pretty funny. I was on such an Audioslave high that it was hard to fully appreciate, though.
Well, first I got up early (for me on a Saturday) and got my hair cut at noon. Bangs. It looks pretty good.
Then I listened to Audioslave for a while and tried to learn as many songs as I could.
I headed over to Roseland and got there around 6:45, just as doors were opening. There was a HUGE line, around a couple blocks, so I got in it and waited. It moved pretty quickly.
I was wearing big black boots (the better to see over people's heads), two layers of fishnets (interesting patterns), a red plaid fishnet-covered miniskirt, a small low-cut black shirt, and a black collar with silver crystals. I was carrying a tiny purse, umbrella, and jacket. I'm shocked that I managed to hold onto the umbrella and jacket throughout the whole concert.
The nice thing about Roseland is that there's a bar to the left of the stage, which means that there's a walkway all the way to the front of the room. All you have to do is walk up there, stand in front on the far left, and then slowly inch your way to the center. By the time Audioslave came on, I was in the third row, slightly to the left of Chris Cornell, with a perfect view. And it was almost second row--I was between and only slightly behind two people in the second row, and I had short people in front of me.
It took a while for the opener to come on (Johnny something), so I read as I waited. ("Scavenger Hunt" by Christopher Pike, because it was small and not-heavy and I'd been meaning to re-read it.) I got weird looks for reading in a mosh pit before a show. I'm so jaded; I was trying to think of how many concerts I've been to, and I was guessing around 75. Depends on whether you count repeat concerts by the same band; I saw Uranium 235 something like 35 times in three years, and Dope something like 10 times.
Anyway, so the opening band was pretty good. They were playing sort of old-school grunge pop, Mudhoney or Nirvana style. Brought back memories; I liked it.
After they finished it took *forever* for Audioslave to come on. I took the opportunity to slowly inch closer to the center. The guy standing behind me was one of the most irritating human beings I've ever had the misfortune to encounter. He reminded me of a louder and stupider version of Eddie Van Blundht, the shapeshifting guy with a tail that Darin Morgan played in that one X-Files episode. He was yelling to his friend about when the band was going to come on, and what the lights changing meant, and who the people (roadies) onstage were, and making unbelievably inane racist comments.
So, I managed to get pretty far away from him. And I was actually pretty much in the second row, until this little twit flirted her way to the front and sweet-talked the guys in front of me into letting her squeeze between them in the front row. She was drunk, and spent the evening flirting and chattering and generally being a repulsive excuse for a human being. At least she was short.
So anyway, I waited, and waited, and waited, and then finally the band came out and OH MY GOD CHRIS CORNELL WAS STANDING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
It's difficult to explain what this means to me. I think you'd probably have to have known me as a kid to really get it. Danielle would understand; Mike might, too. It's like, life was empty and gray and hopeless, and then came MUSIC, and with that came meaning and hope and inspiration. I was 11, and there were four bands that really truly meant the whole world to me: Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. I listened to them constantly, knew every word and every sound on every record. Their faces plastered my bedroom walls; you couldn't even see the wallpaper. I read every article I could find, joined every fan club, spent hours pouring over every lyric.
Superunknown was my favorite Soundgarden record. It's one of those things where I was so young, my musical understanding grew along with my understanding of the record. And lyrically, it meant a lot to me; I've always felt like I sort of see the world in a similar way, that Chris Cornell and I probably have similar personalities. Those lyrics really connected with me.
I never tried to draw Layne Staley or Kurt Cobain, because they were too beautiful and I was afraid to screw them up. But I drew Chris Cornell and Eddie Vedder, the ones who felt more like family. Probably the best thing I ever drew is a portrait of Chris Cornell, from when I was 14; I still have it in my sketch book. And the best story I've ever written, also when I was 14, was partially about him. It was sort of about seeing Soundgarden in concert, actually. This is why I say Danielle would get how much it means to me, to actually see him--she really liked that story, I even gave her a pretty copy with a cover and everything.
So anyway, CHRIS CORNELL WAS STANDING RIGHT IN FRONT OF ME. Looking a bit older, but still as beautiful as ever. It was almost like being 14 again, and being inside of that story I wrote.
His voice was amazing. Utterly perfect. I'm not exaggerating; I don't think I've ever seen a live vocalist sound so exceptionally good. He was absolutely in top form.
audioslaved.com says the setlist was
Set it Off
Exploder
Your Time Has Come (from Out of Exile)
Like a Stone
Spoonman (Soundgarden)
Gasoline
Drown Me Slowly (from Out of Exile)
Doesn't Remind Me (from Out of Exile)
Be Yourself (from Out of Exile)
Bulls on Parade/Sleep in the Fire (Rage Against the Machine)
Outshined (Soundgarden)
Shadow on the Sun
Encore:
Black Hole Sun (Chris Cornell, solo acoustic)
I Am the Highway
Show Me How to Live
Killing in the Name Of (Rage Against the Machine)
Cochise
So anyway. I didn't really know the Audioslave songs, but I was sort of familiar with most of them. Everything was good, the performances were amazing, the band was tight, it was just awesome.
I'd read message boards, so I knew that they were going to play Soundgarden songs, but I still started shrieking uncontrollably when they started into "Spoonman." I mean, it's Spoonman. It's the first Soundgarden song I ever heard, on 97.5 WPST when I was eleven. It's not my favorite Soundgarden song, and I've probably heard it a few too many times, but it was still amazing to see them play it.
Chris was chatty and sweet between songs. He was obviously in a good mood and kept grinning. He has the loveliest smile, and his eyes light up, and it's just amazing. I adore him in the totally non-cynical way you can only adore someone you've admired since you were 11. He dedicated one song to his mother-in-law, who was in the crowd, saying it was her favorite. Another (Show Me How to Live?) he dedicated to Prince, who was staying in a hotel room near him. And Black Hole Sun he dedicated to his new wife, saying that the only thing she knew about his career when she met him was that song. He's a beautiful human being; he glows.
So yeah, after Spoonman they played more Audioslave songs, then Chris went offstage and the band did Rage Against the Machine's "Bulls on Parade" with no vocals. I was never a huge Rage fan, but that's a pretty good song (better without vocals, heh). Tom Morello is really an amazing guitar player. I'm very happy that I got to see him play.
And then they did "Outshined" and OMG THEY PLAYED OUTSHINED!!!!!! Umm.... that was the highlight for me. I just love that song. And the performance was so astounding, so absolutely perfect--BETTER, even, than the recorded version! I saw Chris Cornell sing "I'm looking California / and feeling Minnesota"! And the way he sang the chorus, so powerful, completely mind-blowing, I can't even put it into words.
The mosh pit was pretty tame for the first few songs. It started to get intense with "Spoonman," though, and went insane with the first Rage cover, "Bulls on Parade." There were a few body surfers to duck, not too many. I held my position in front without too much trouble. I got slammed around, shoved into people, smushed, the usual; I have a few bruises. But I survived Marilyn Manson front row at the height of their fame; nothing in an Audioslave pit was going to intimidate me. Unfortunately there were a bunch of shrieky little girls who couldn't take it and wouldn't shut up; honestly, if you don't want to get shoved around, stay out of the pit.
Which isn't to say that I wasn't annoyed by the assholes. Some of these guys aren't even there for the band; they just want to get drunk, start fights, hit people, and grope women. I fail to see how "it's a rock concert" is a justification for sexual assault. But that's life, and if you want to be up front, you put up with it and enjoy the show--and if a guy grabs you, well, that's what sharp fingernails are for.
So anyway, the band went offstage, and then Chris came out alone and did an acoustic "Black Hole Sun." Which was beautiful, except for the twit of a girl who spent the whole song screaming in my ear about how guys were pushing her. Yes, honey, you're in a mosh pit, guys are going to push you. Shut the fuck up and enjoy the show that you're suffering to see.
I think I was the only girl up front not pitching a fit or begging to be pulled out. One of the guys next to me even turned to me and said "You've done this before, haven't you?" Oh, yeah.
After "Black Hole Sun" was a clip of a cover that I didn't know, and then the Audioslave song "I Am the Highway," which is beautiful. Chris started it acoustic and then the band joined in. It felt like he really poured his soul into that song. It was like a "Fell on Black Days" or "The Day I Tried to Live" type song. That's when I came very close to tearing up--it was like I could feel his emotions through his voice, you know? He's such an astoundingly good singer, and so genuine.
Then another Audioslave song, then a cover of Rage Against the Machine's "Killing in the Name," which is the only song I ever liked by them. It's great and powerful, and of course the crowd went nuts. I've never had any desire whatsoever to be in the middle of a Rage Against the Machine mosh pit, but I just sort of went with the flow, didn't get killed, and enjoyed the energy. Chris did a great job, living up to the song and putting his own spin on it. And did I mention that Tom Morello is incredible?
Chris stood right in front of my section and sang, several times. He came over near the end and smiled at us, and I screamed and he looked at me and smiled at me for a half-second. It's like finding out that a fantasy character you adored is real and even more amazing in person.
So they did one last Audioslave song, and then it was over, and I was completely disheveled and covered in sweat (most of it not my own) and water (that the security guys had been pouring on us). And I couldn't stop grinning.
So then I rushed down to 43rd between 7th and 6th to a place called Town Hall (stopping only briefly to grab and down a bottle of water), because I had a ticket to see Family Guy Live. This is basically the cast of Family Guy doing a script read-through of an episode, showing the first part of the season premiere, and answering questions. I was late (it started at 10, I got there at 11), so I only saw half the script read-through, but that was okay.
I decided to go to this because, duh, Family Guy is one of my favorite shows. And I'm fascinated by its resurrection. And I got a really good seat, front of the loge.
They were doing the episode where the family goes into the witness protection program and Chris kisses a boy (who turns out to be a girl). It was great, and funny, and so weird to see the voice actors who match up to the characters. The creator guy (Seth MacFarlane?) is obviously brilliant--he does Stewie and Peter and Brian, and he's very witty.
It was weird to see Seth Green in person. And very funny to watch him do Chris' voice. The best part was when the episode makes some reference to UPN as one of the circles of hell, and someone said to Seth Green, "Wasn't Buffy on UPN?" He made a face and said yes, but luckily he managed to make his escape before that, so he was never on UPN. >:)
After the episode, Seth MacFarlane and Alex Borstein (???) sang a duet between Peter and Lois, and then they showed the first part of the season premiere which aired Sunday night, and then they answered questions. Most of the questions were lame, and the actors were all getting drunk onstage, but overall it was pretty funny. I was on such an Audioslave high that it was hard to fully appreciate, though.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 09:43 am (UTC)Lucky girl... :)
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 09:48 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 10:01 am (UTC)Dude! Rage Against the Soundgarten.
*eyeballs you with envy*
Sounds like a killer show.
(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 10:15 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 11:43 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 11:51 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2005-05-02 08:07 pm (UTC)But I'm sincerely so very glad you finally got to see Chris.
:oD
Did you get my email about Dragon*Con?