Remembering the Encores

So, one of the great things about Darien is that there is a truly excellent lot for tailgating.  There's just a huge field where everyone sets up camp and you can spend the whole day cooking, Kan-Jamming, and mentally preparing yourself for a concert. The downside of this, is, however that the lot is nearly impossible to get out of, especially if you get parked towards the back, particularly because there's really just one little dirt road you can use as an exit.  At the 2012 DMB show, we got parked further back than I had ever been.  I pretty much knew that we were never getting out when the show was over. When we made our way to the car after the show, I decided that sitting in traffic trying to get out was not how I wanted to spend the next couple of hours.  The "children" were still high off the concert experience, recounting best moments excitedly.  I pulled out chairs and blankets.  Everyone grabbed a snack.  We sat for a while - and then de...

Who: Dave Matthews Band with Brandi Carlile When: July 3, 2012 Where: Darien Lake Performing Arts Center/ Darien Center, NY With: Zach, James & Chelsea Of Note: Influencing the next generation ... There are so many things I want to say, that I need to say about this show. Brace yourself. Seeing the Dave Matthews Band at Darien Lake is a summer tradition for me and I love all of it. The smell of sunscreen, the great lot for tailgating, the terrible traffic getting out of the venue, the (usually) day of roller coasters that precedes it...I love it all. Sadly, my comrades in Dave at Darien have either moved away or have new responsibilities/different priorities now so I was afraid it might not happen this year. No big deal, I'm seeing two other DMB shows this summer, right? Then, a stroke of genius hit me and I asked my nephew if he'd like me to take him to his very first concert. He agreed, asked if he could bring some friends (which, obviously!) and we w...

From Remembering the Encores I'm pretty sure I didn't go to this, but I found this with my ticket stubs and thought it was hilarious. I have a vague recollection of Mike & Ben doing this, though I don't remember what they sounded like or what the point was. Actually, I think the point was just to have a band named Bigger than Ryan, because, "Ryan is the biggest dude ever."

Who: Chris Trapper with Nick Young When: May 12, 2012 Where: Ninth Ward/ Buffalo, NY With: Barb & Hillary Of Note: Barb's Birthday! If 2003 was the year we all turned 21, 2012 is the year that we're all turning 30. Some of us are handling that particular milestone better than others. (Spoiler alert: I had to take myself to a different continent to be able to deal with it.) Anyway, Barb's birthday week-end coincided with a Chris Trapper concert in Buffalo, so we decided on a ladies night out and off the three of us went. The opener was a Nick Young, an acoustic singer/song-writer guy. He was adorable, and his set was very solid. Lyrically, I was really impressed - sometimes it's hard to really listen to words when you're hearing songs for the first time live (just me?), but I was drawn into the story-telling for sure. I'm going to mangle lyric quotes here, but one referenced, "missing the 4am whiskey on your breath," which resona...

Motion City Soundtrack - True Romance Walk the Moon - Anna Sun Apache Relay - State Trooper (Bruce Springsteen cover, apparently) The Leagues - Mind Games Florence + The Machine - Shake it Out Noah - Cover of LMFAO Sexy and I Know It

I thought it would be fun to take a look at some of the repeat to death songs from my past. Fall 2004/ Spring 2005 Remember when iTunes was shiny and brand new and you could get a code for a free song under the cap of a Pepsi?  UB had recently become a Pepsi campus so we were all so excited to get free songs.  Usher's 'Caught Up' was one of the first songs I ever downloaded.  It still stands as the #1 played song in my iTunes.  I remember when I went to MBA prom my first year, I took my friend Ryan.  We had a fine evening - Ry was always super fun to be around; we'd been friends forever.  The next day, I was repeat listening to this song while cleaning/studying/something and I set my away message as 'So caught up'.  Beth called almost immediately and said, "Uhoh, what happened?"  And I said, "What?" And she said, "What happened last night that you're so caught up?"  And I cracked up and said, "I became even more ...

Who: Dierks Bentley, Josh Gracin, Joe Diffie, one other guy and a girl When: October 2004 (I think?) Where: University at Buffalo Center for the Arts/ Buffalo, NY With: Somebody? I have no idea Of Note: Dierks Bentley being the cutest cutie to ever cute So, most of the time, when I set about writing up a concert, particularly one that's not very recent/ fresh on my mind, I consult the internet to jog my memory a bit - exact dates, set lists...details that pair with my overall emotional memories to help me put together the whole picture. I also listen to the artist I'm writing about as I put the post together, which has been so much fun rediscovering music I may have neglected. This concert is an absolute anomaly in that, I can find no record of it on the internet. So either I made this show up and it's a figment of my imagination or my google-fu is lacking. I also have no idea who went with me to this, but I'm pretty sure I didn't go alone. If it was...