If You Give a (Fan) a (Ticket)...

Where’s the Love: 5 Reasons Why I Wag My Finger

2012-02-10T01:15:00.004-05:00

There’s something unique about being a Hanson fan. We’re fiercely loyal and all a bit crazy, though in a large spectrum of ways. You’d like to think that our common love would bind us together, that all fans share this deep, unspoken understanding that means friendship by default. It’s not always the case. Here are a five times that love starts to wear thin for me.

1) 1, 2, 4, 52, 5, 3, -6? Wait…The number system. It’s flawed and we all know it, otherwise there would never be any arguments. Some love it, and some hate it. It makes sense in theory, but the problem is it never works the way it should. Number 15 is saving 13 and 14 for her friends that will be there “soon,” 56 is standing ahead of 20 for no apparent reason, and nobody has seen numbers 5-8 since the night before. It’s no wonder people that hate it feel the way they do. On the flip side, nobody wants to sit on a sidewalk for 16 hours and have someone walk up an hour before doors and stand at the front of the line because the “numbers don’t matter.” Really, they don’t. It’s an arbitrary system. Maybe one day I’ll show up first and start lettering people instead, just to see what happens (does it matter after 26 anyway?). At the end of the day, whether you carry a sharpie in each pocket or numbered yourself 1/8^th for laughs, just stand behind whoever was ahead of you in line and we’ll all get along fine.

2) Cutting/Pushing. I guess I think of it as a sort of warped golden rule. I would never do it to you, so please don’t do it to me. GA should be a little more first come, first served, a little less survival of the fittest.

3) Cameras. It’s understandable to want to capture the epicness that is a Hanson show, bring it home, and relive it again and again; to share it with others that couldn’t be there, or to preserve something you don’t want to forget. I do it with words—I get it. With all the hi-tech gadgetry we have today, it’s as easy as whipping out your iPhone and pressing “record.” But if you’re going to record a whole song or take more than a few pictures, please plan ahead and find a spot where your camera won’t be in the way (and for God’s sake turn off the 1,000 kilowatt flash! No wonder Isaac wears sunglasses). We paid to see Hanson, not your Nikon D800. And my own personal disclaimer: Prop your camera above my 5’2” head at your own risk—I get good air during “If Only.”

4) Creepy conversations. I enjoy meeting nice fans, but it’s a deal breaker when someone says “So, which wife is your favorite?” Check, please! Other conversation topics to avoid: body parts, baby names for your hypothetical offspring, stories where the climax is eye contact, any and all Hansons that aren’t in the band.

5) Play by plays. No one wants to stand next to a narrator when we can see and hear everything for ourselves. Yes, we saw Isaac look at you (and everyone else in our vicinity—he does that). Yes, we recognize those opening chords for “Great Divide.” And “Lost Without Each Other.” And every other song you’ve correctly identified. And that time you yelled “I want your babies!”? It brought to mind kidnapping charges, since, you know, he already has babies, and you can’t have them.

What makes you wag YOUR finger? Feel free to comment.

Forever if (N)Ever

2012-01-07T20:09:00.002-05:00

That awkward moment when Jon McLaughlin refutes your latest blog post...

I had that today.

From my blog post on Jan. 5th:

"...he was absolutely phenomenal, quite possibly the best piano player I've ever heard, and more than worth the $10 I spent to pick up his latest album (Forever If Ever)...Do yourself a favor--go to iTunes, youtube, Spotify, jonmcl.com, etc. and listen.You won't regret it."

From Jon's blog today (Jan. 7th):

"my last record Forever If Ever is no longer up on iTunes, Amazon, my site, stores, anywhere. It has disappeared. So if you have already purchased your copy then great! It’s value just went up. It’s a collector’s item now. It once was worth $10.00 but now I estimate that it’s value has sky rocketed to at least $11.20-11.25."

You can check out his full entry here for further explanation, but you get the point.

So ah, maybe don't go out and look for Forever if Ever. But do keep this guy on your music radar.

And I for one will not be selling my copy for a $1.25 profit. With the autograph, it's got to be worth at least $12.50.

These Crazy Times

2012-01-05T22:23:00.002-05:00

I have a confession: I'm glad Hanson canceled their show in Albany in October. True, I was more than a bit frustrated to suddenly find myself without a show to see or even a place to sleep, but sometimes you just have to go with the unexpected twists and make the best of them.

The silver lining presented itself when we remembered that Stephen Kellogg was playing a show in Albany the same night Hanson had been scheduled to play. We had tried to match up a day off from Hanson's tour to a SK6ers show along the way, but it just hadn't worked out. We ended up getting what we wanted, just not in the way we expected.

But even though Stephen Kellogg and the Sixers are great and always put on an amazing show, this still isn't the reason I'm glad Hanson canceled on us (what can I say? I already knew that about SK6ers). So what can make me glad to miss a Hanson show? Here's the full list:

Jon McLaughlin.

Not my first choice, not even my second choice--but the third string entertainment of the night. I'm sure he's had better compliments, but the bottom line is he was absolutely phenomenal, quite possibly the best piano player I've ever heard, and more than worth the $10 I spent to pick up his latest album (Forever If Ever) at the merch table after his performance. It provided an important part of the soundtrack for the next several thousand miles before I finally made it back home and still couldn't take it out of the CD player.

Why am I writing this three months later? Because I'm still obsessed with this album, and whoever is reading this right now should not have to miss a Hanson concert and find themselves on the street with no place to go in order to discover this music. Do yourself a favor--go to iTunes, youtube, Spotify, jonmcl.com, etc. and listen.You won't regret it.

Not my video, but someone managed to capture the song that won me over and shared it on youtube. Enjoy!

P.S. If 2:33-3:18 doesn't win you over, I don't trust you as a person.

Eat to the Beat: Epcot Food & Wine Festival 2011

2011-11-24T02:25:00.004-05:00

10/31/11

If you consult Urban Dictionary (and let's face it--you do), you'll find this entry about "bananas":

1. a slang word derived from the old saying "bananas" used to describe someone that was crazy. Used now to describe anything in style or cool.

Turns out it also means a half-price, one-size-fits-all costume acquired in mass quantities from K-Mart just hours before Halloween. All definitions seem to fit this situation.

We wanted to dress up for Halloween, but we didn't have the room to pack costumes or the time and money to stop and find new ones. Just as we were about to give up and resign ourselves to the predictable Mickey ears, opportunity presented itself in the form of a $12 polyester banana suit. I picked up one and joked that one of us should wear it. Then we saw the second one lying a few feet away, and the light bulbs went off.

I have to say I'm a little irked that our costumes were such a hit this year after we spent weeks planning and designing what turned out to be an epic fail last year. Turns out people appreciate the simplicity of a banana more than the complexity of a Hare Band, and that's all there is to it. So we got lots of smiles and cheesy banana jokes thrown our way, and more than a few pictures snapped from a distance. Then there were the people that enjoyed it so much that they asked for pictures with us (most of whom were also enjoying the wine aspect of the food & wine festival). I'd love to see their faces the next day as they looked back at their pictures and went "Wait...I met bananas?" or better yet "Wait...I saw Hanson?" I hope both were a pleasant surprise.

We had a blast dancing around and, well, going bananas (did you really think I'd let it go that easily?). Another highlight of the day? An impromptu M&G with the main event themselves, complete with a kiss on the cheek and a picture to prove it. That's right, I finally met Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Sorry, Hanson. You got trumped.

Hanson went as Storm Troopers:

11/1/11

We spent the second day trying to do everything we didn't get to on day one, which boils down to the Tower of Terror, the Rock 'n' Rollercoaster, and a whole lot of eating.

In a nutshell, I ate my way around the world in about three hours.

Coq Au Vin in France

Goulash in Germany

California Rolls in Japan

Strawberry Tart in France

Gelato in Italy

Perogies in Poland (my personal favorite)

Ravioli in Italy

By the end of the night, there was certainly no empty space left deep down inside to mourn the loss of Hanson at the end of another tour.

St. Petersburg, Ft. Lauderdale

2011-11-21T23:15:00.003-05:00

St. Petersburg 10/28/11

Depending on how you count things, the St. Pete show was my 50th (ish) time seeing Hanson. Landmark material, right? And how better to celebrate than by getting a great spot and hearing your favorite album? Still, I think the fact that they recorded this show made it lose a little something for me. Hanson was aware of the cameras. I was aware of the cameras. And while I'd like to believe that none of us act any different with cameras, I think it's impossible to completely forget their presence. It's hard to dance like nobody's watching when you know there's the potential for repeated viewing if you happen to do something horrible enough to warrant an instant replay or six.

It was also the most cramped I've ever felt at a show. In fact, I might even prefer plain old-fashioned pushing to being thigh-to-thigh and shoulder-to-shoulder with the people around me. At least with pushing, there are ways to make it stop. When you're crammed in so tight that you can feel the girl five people down reaching into her pocket for her cell phone, there's not really much you can do but stay still and hope someone else caves first.

Despite all this, I had a great time. I finally got to hear Lullabelle live, which I suppose means something by default since I branded myself as "Hollybelle" the moment I rediscovered these guys. After the show, we waited by the bus. I decided like 20 shows ago that I should try to get pictures with Hanson at my 50th show; it seems like the obvious thing to do, right? Only that night, the thought didn't even cross my mind (and hasn't until right now). Instead, we let the guys pick out stickers to add to the maps in our tour books. I suppose in the end I'd rather have those silly little stickers than a picture I could recreate after any given show. Maybe I'll remember to get a picture when I hit #100.

(nevermind the "50" residing over Atlanta instead of St. Pete. I'm still not sure which really was #50)

Ft. Lauderdale 10/29/11

The Shout it Out story was probably the best of the three I saw, if for no better reason than Isaac's sassy attitude. He kept joking and snapping his hand back and forth for no apparent reason, and it was hilarious. Someone asked something about unreleased songs, which triggered Zac not only to admit to the existence of some song called "President of Gas," but to also break out into it. Isaac immediately joined in while Taylor looked the other way like he didn't know the other two goofballs on stage much less share any genes with them. He finally gave in and added a third harmony at the very end of the brief preview we got. It was entertaining for sure, but I can't say I foresee it finding a home on any future album.

The end of the tour felt a little strange because this show was technically the last, but the two Epcot shows directly after threw everything off. They weren't really part of the tour, but putting them after the final show made it feel like we didn't get a real ending. Standing in another sold out crowd that night, though, it finally felt like a last show to me. The energy was high, the setlist was really good, and I finally got to hear SIO for the first time of the Musical Ride Tour after hearing every other album at least three times. I ended the tour the same way I began it: in my favorite silver ballet flats. On day one, I took a picture in my front row seat with my favorite shoes resting against the stage. On the way out of the last show, I tossed them in the trash because they'd been rocked a little too hard (not to mention completely soaked from the rain).

Norfolk, Charlotte, Atlanta

2011-11-16T12:00:00.002-05:00

Norfolk 10/23/11

Occupy Norfolk wins for being the best occupy group we encountered. They had fliers to hand out and seemed to actually know why they were there, and they were really nice and brought us snacks and brand new pillows without us asking for a thing.

And then there was the incident nobody really understands. Let's just say there was some expired NyQuil, a homeless man, and a lot of confused shouting involved. No one will ever really know what happened that night, but I have a feeling that it may be for the best.

For some reason I really wasn't feeling the show when it started. I felt sick and out of it and generally miserable--perhaps some latent affects of the NyQuil? Or maybe I was just run down from being sick in the first place, but I spent the entire time before the show began with my head resting on the barricade, and it took a lot to not do the same through Charlie Mars's set. Even the first few Hanson songs didn't do it for me, but at some point I got over it and had a good time.

No thanks to the crazy girls pushing in the crowd, of course. I was never directly hit by whoever was doing it, but the girl behind me got shoved into my back repeatedly. Normal at a GA show, right? Except I turned and looked several times to see a whole group of girls being slammed into each other and trying to call for security, but they were too far back for anyone to notice. For a few seconds, it looked like someone was trying to start a mosh pit. I was able to motion to a guard off to the side who finally came over to check out what was going on. As soon as he came and stood over the barricade, about 10 hands shot into the air and all pointed at the same two girls, who then looked around as if they didn't know what was going on. If it were a cartoon, they would have been whistling and looking shiftily at the sky. I ended up having to call security over twice more and I think the culprits were finally removed, but not before throwing a full cup of beer over the barricade and all over my friends, and not before Isaac noticed and gave a brief speech about "watching over" the people around you before starting "Watch Over Me."

Then while we jumped during "If Only," the barricade in front of us rocked back so hard I thought for a second that it was going to fall on us. My friend a few people down with a different segment in front of her said she only ever felt hers shift forward a few inches closer to the stage. The one in front of me literally fell in towards us at about a 45 degree angle before landing back in its original position. I think we all jumped a little more carefully after that.

Out by the bus we thanked Isaac for his attempt to calm the crazies behind us in the crowd, and he ranted with us about how obnoxious it is for people to pay good money to have their time ruined by that kind of behavior. There was talk of hypothetically wanting to punch such people, but I think his mind changed when he thought about the ratio of male to female in the crowd. "Of course, I don't hit women," he recanted with a grin. Neither do I, Isaac. But that doesn't stop me from really wanting to sometimes.

Charlotte 10/25/11

I'll get my rant out of the way first. I HATE Amos' Southend, have hated it since I was unfortunate enough to witness my first full-length Hanson concert there in 2007, and have continued to hate it all five times I've been there. Why? The sound sucks, the lighting sucks, and you can't see from anywhere.

But for all the crappiness of the venue, the guys always put on a particularly good show in Charlotte. And to continue a tradition, this one was a day after my friend Laura's birthday (last year it was on Valerie's birthday). To carry on a different tradition, we surprised Laura with cupcakes and then unceremoniously smashed them in her face. It was a good night.

P.S. Props to Holly #2 for making some amazing cookie dough cupcakes!

Atlanta 10/26/11

Little Five Points: home of the weird and creepy. This year we met a girl dressed in pirate attire who introduced herself as a pirate ninja. Funny, I always thought the two were mortal enemies in the books of nerds everywhere, but she clearly didn't follow anything by the book.

I always say the shows are good, but this one was particularly good. The energy of the crowd seemed extra strong, and that can make or break a show. Putting aside all of the amazing energy and crazy dancing for a moment, the one part that stood out to me the most was Zac's performance of "The Walk." Most of the time, Hanson shows to me are about having a good time with friends. I live for the high-energy, upbeat songs, and the deeper moments are few and far between. Something about that song that night though was so perfect that I want to use sappy words like "flawless," "captivating," and dare I say "moving" to describe it. I just stood there and listened and almost forgot where I was until it ended, and I could tell by the looks on the familiar faces around me that I wasn't the only one that felt that way. It's moments like those that keep me coming back.

Lancaster, NYC, Falls Church, Philadelphia, NYC

2011-11-15T01:35:00.004-05:00

Lancaster 10/17/11

The Chameleon Club in Lancaster is easily my 2nd least favorite venue (Amos' Southend in Charlotte holds first place). Picture a shoebox with one too many pairs of shoes shoved inside and you'll get the general layout and organization. Now picture a pair of shoes on the 2nd level with a really gross pair of cheap knockoff heals scuffing up against them all night--that's where I ended up. Thankfully the show itself was one of the best I saw this tour and made up for the minor details. The guys had a lot of energy and seemed to be just as excited as we were to be back to playing shows after the week-long break. Finally seeing Isaac play the piano almost made missing the other shows worth the wait, and we definitely got a kick out of "Somethin' Going 'Round" as the encore.

New York 10/18/11

The New York show was significant for three reasons: 1) It was my first trip to NYC, 2) I won tickets for the show via Hanson's Musical Ride Tour contest (remember this post? turns out it paid off), and 3) I decided to try to drive my car into the city. Two out of three of those turned out well. We managed to get into the city with just a $12 toll, and I stretched the remainder of my luck and found free street parking just a block away from where we were staying with Rachel's friends. By some miracle I parallel parked without any trouble, and my car was untouched the next morning. Getting into the show with my won tickets proved a bit more difficult, but thankfully in the end I had two friends with me that held me a spot inside while I tracked down someone who could find my name on the guest lest and let me in. It was definitely worth the wait to save $50 on the ticket.

The story was entertaining but I can't say I remember much about it. I recall a Hanson comparing The Walk to Deathly Hallows part 1 and Shout it Out to Deathly Hallows part 2 where they get to kill Voldemort in the end, and I specifically remember Zac saying "booyah!" after connecting slavery to the roots of rock and roll music. We shook our heads. Even Zac Hanson can't "booyah" slavery (obviously this is all paraphrased and out of context, so don't quote him too closely on that).

Falls Church 10/19/11

Rain, rain, rain, rocket-launched guitar picks, cameras rudely in the aisle. Oh, and I laughed really hard when Isaac tried to hand Taylor a guitar pick WHILE Taylor was playing the guitar. Not sure how Isaac expected him to pick it up, and Taylor was giving him a look that said the same thing with a little more attitude.

Philadelphia 10/20/11

Parking in Philly was definitely more of a nightmare than anywhere else I've been. Anywhere that allows parallel parking in the middle of a median is nuts in my book. Here we hit a few used music shops and picked up some more music for the road since CDs were our only option in my car. We picked up some Green Day, No Doubt, Creedence Cleerwater Revival, and ABBA before cutting ourselves off (and for the millionth time couldn't find any SoCo).

During the show, we watched from the balcony as security dragged off some drunk girl trying to violently shove her way to the front, and Zac declared "Sometimes having a good time means having one less drink." And sometimes having a good time means one less crazy person in the packed, sold-out crowd.

At the end, Charlie Mars came back out on stage and had Hanson sing and play backup to a new song with a title I can't remember and a dragging I can't forget. Maybe they knew it, too, because they didn't end the set with it and instead came back out and played, well, something else that I'm sure I enjoyed more at the time. Perhaps my lack of memory isn't all in part to the lameness of the performance so much as the fact that it's been a month and I saw a lot since then.

New York City 10/22/11 VH1 Save the Music Event

There's a first for everything, and this show was the first time I saw Hanson play an elementary school auditorium. We didn't bother to try to wait and get good seats for this since the focus of the event was for families and kids. It was cute watching Hanson play for the kids and try to get them to dance and have fun, and they invited the children to stand in front of the front row. Isaac tried to get them to jump on cue to the drumbeat during parts of "MMMBop" and "A Minute Without You," and Taylor taught them to twirl and "get down low" during "Give a Little." It was also the first time I've ever had my view blocked by a dancing balloon, but I happily put up with it just picturing the hopping kid on the other end of the string.

At the end of the show as Hanson was leaving the stage, the host announced that there would be one more song, to which the crowd erupted in cheers and all three Hansons looked like they might throw knives, clearly not being aware of this extra song. The host quickly realized his mistake and added "'--but not by Hanson! YOU guys are going to sing!" And we did. We sang Happy Birthday to Zac as someone brought out a massive cupcake with a candle that they trusted Taylor to light, and for the first time I watched them not smash cake in anyone's face.

Northampton, New Haven, Boston, Portland

2011-11-05T20:59:00.001-04:00

Northampton 10/7/11

Northampton feels like so long ago that I really don't have a lot to say about it. We showed up probably two hours before doors, and since it was seated we went exploring. It was here that we encountered our first "Occupy _____" group. I was completely unfamiliar with this movement prior to this trip, but I'm more than educated about it at this point after finding disgruntled Occupy crews in almost every city we hit. This particular bunch was small in number and gathered in front of the Bank of America, chanting and holding home-made signs but seemed a bit less organized and represented than most others that we saw.

The show was good. We had front row seats so it was nice to walk up and get a good spot without having to wait in line forever, and we were super happy that The Walk won the album voting. Out of all the shows I did, this was the only show I actively voted for on a regular basis, so I was incredibly happy when my pick finally won. "Tearing it Down" was a definite highlight. It's a decent song on the album, but it easily plowed through to one of my favorite live songs as soon as I heard it. We actually sat down during the acoustic set which was another memorable moment because really, how many times do you sit at a Hanson show? There's something fantastic about sitting with your feet on the stage instead of standing with some heavy-breathing girl pressed against your back, screaming the lyrics to "Go" with more energy than Zac gives during "Rock 'n' Roll Razorblade."

New Haven

As soon as we showed up at Toad's and saw a slew of drunk Yale kids, we knew we were in for an interesting night. Several scaled some metal structure and the police had to shine a light on them to make them come down. One ran over to me and Valerie and stole a fry out of our bag before we could respond, and I stopped another from sneaking under the blanket of a fan who had her head turned. The next day, a random girl wearing a banana costume asked "Are you really waiting for HANSON?!" I responded, "Are you really wearing a banana suit?" You know it's bad when you're being judged by a girl in a giant banana.

While I wasn't overly excited about hearing Middle of Nowhere as the winning album, I was pleasantly surprised by how good the show was. It also probably ranks as the loudest show I've ever been to with all of the screaming echoing in the room. Zac later explained to us that it was due to the layout and shape of the room, but I'm not convinced that it wasn't just due to the insane over-excitement of a lot of the people there. At some point during the show, I saw Isaac wiping his nose and filed it away in my head with a simple "huh, they must be getting sick." No kidding, as we would soon find out a few days later.

After the show was this weird phenomenon of girls without pants. I guess the venue opened up to be some kind of dance club after the show because there was a huge line of scantily clad girls and oddly normal looking guys waiting to get in. Almost every girl was wearing the same one-size-fits-none tube skirt, and I saw a whole lot more of New Haven than I ever wanted to that night. Let's just say if you ever hear me say "she must be from New Haven," don't take it as a compliment.

Boston

Boston was the site of my first parallel parking job of the trip, and I was darn proud of it. Unfortunately, it was also the place where my poor mutilated tire decided to fight back (long story---I basically tore my hubcap during the SIO tour last November and never fixed it), so I spent an outrageous $7 on scissors and a good 15 minutes trying to saw off the offending piece to keep it from puncturing my tire. My poor car puts up with a lot for this band.

We were in the balcony for the show and it provided a good view of a surprisingly full floor. I've since heard people say that the show sold out, but I'm not convinced. Still, it was a decently full venue for such a large capacity. The energy was pretty high and the major highlight here was hearing Hanson cover Weezer's "Troublemaker." I expected it to become a tour staple, but this turned out to be the only night they played it.

After the show we sat out by the bus and huddled for warmth like dorks and had a pretty good time just talking to friends and getting to know people. It was here that I unknowingly received the high five of death from Zac that ended up getting me and eventually every person that traveled with me sick. Sorry guys, I didn't want that something either.

Portland

This is the single weirdest city I've ever visited due to the homeless population. Dad jokingly told me to stay away from the "Maine-iacs" but had no idea how much truth was in that statement. There was the guy that offered to sell us drugs and then offered them for free when we refused (for the record, we still refused), the old bald man that fawned over my nail polish before proudly showing off his own, the guy that creepily stopped to say "I like you. You look good," then walked away, and many, many more people that gave a generally weird vibe. I didn't necessarily feel in danger, just more of a "what kind of twilight zone am I in?" feeling.

The one upside was some of the most amazing food at a local restaurant called Sprouts & the Bomb Diggity Bakery. It was so fantastic that we ate there twice.

Of course we got fantastic spots only to find that the show would be canceled halfway through due to the sickness going around to everyone on the bus (and unfortunately me at this point). From what I remember, they came out and played a few songs, then disappeared backstage for a few minutes. At this point, we knew something was up, and not necessarily something good. When they came back out, they announced that Underneath had won the voting, but in order to give us a better show, they would play SIO instead. They only got through one song before quickly realizing that wouldn't cut it, either. I can't remember too many specifics except they seemed to be struggling to do songs with Isaac and Zac leads to let Taylor's voice rest, but with everyone being a bit sick, it was still too much. I watched Taylor mouth "Watch Over Me" to Zac, and Zac shout back "No, it's too much." It seemed obvious that Taylor wanted so badly to continue the show, but it just wasn't in his best interest and his brothers knew it. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed, especially after having camped out and gotten close to front row center, but I'm glad they made the responsible call that might have saved them more sickness and damage to their voices in the long run. Seriously, no hard feelings from me. I know they would never cancel a show without very good reason, and I'm glad they're all okay. I can't say I'll be making the drive back to Portland when they reschedule, though.

The Musical Ride Tour in List Form

2011-11-04T19:55:00.002-04:00

Shows Attended:
1. Chicago 9/27
2. Chicago 9/28
3. Northampton 10/7
4. New Haven 10/8
5. Boston 10/9
6. Portland 10/11
7. Lancaster 10/17
8. New York City 10/18
9. Falls Church 10/19
10. Philadelphia 10/20
11. New York City 10/22
12. Norfolk 10/23
13. Charlotte 10/25
14. Atlanta 10/26
15. St. Petersburg 10/28
16. Ft. Lauderdale 10/29
17. Epcot 10/31
18. Epcot 11/1

Albums Heard:
-Middle of Nowhere: 3
-This Time Around: 4
-Underneath: 3
-The Walk: 3
-Shout it Out: 1

Shows canceled:
.5 Portland 10/11
1. Albany 10/12
2. Pittsburgh 10/13

Trip Casualties:
1. rear hubcap
2. windshield wipers
3. right headlight
4. Hanson pen
5. necklace for Hanson pendant
6. Valerie's hairbrush
7. favorite shoes
8. tent
9. GPS
10. GPS #2 (no kidding...I'm on my 3rd GPS in a month)
11. Silver glitter hairbow

Number of...
-Days on the road: 28
-Times we got lost: 0
-Rotating travelers in my car: ~10
-Energy drinks consumed: 2.5
-Chocolate milks consumed: 20395828
-Miles traveled: OUCH
-States visited: ~15
-Bananas in the bunch: 6
-Priceline deals: ~5
-Terrifying parallel parking jobs: 2
-Cakes/cupcakes smashed: 2
-Hours in my day: 1,440

...okay, just kidding on that last one.

All in all it's been an incredible month and I'm already missing the road. Show reviews and a few photos to follow soon.

Where's the Love?

2011-11-03T21:48:00.001-04:00

I've started and restarted this post because I can't seem to get what I want to say exactly right. I've witnessed a lot of rude behaviors this tour and have been very disappointed at the obvious lack of common decency and consideration for others. There's so much I want to say and so much I shouldn't. Then I realized that Hanson has already said it, so I'll let the lyrics speak for themselves:

Something's been going on and I don't know what it is
You don’t mind the taking girl, but you don’t know how to give
You drove me crazy but I don’t know baby
You’re thinking that it’s me you’re fooling
Where’s the right in, all our fighting?
Look at what you’re doing

Where’s the love
It’s not enough
It makes the world go ‘round and ‘round and…
Where’s the love
Give it up
It makes the world go ‘round and ‘round and ‘round

Can you tell me what you see whenever you look around?
We’re tripping all over ourselves and pulling each other down
We’re separating, consciousness is fading
Are you thinking that it’s me you’re fooling?
Where the right in, all our fighting?
Look at, look at, look at what we’re doing

(Repeat Chorus)

Dark clouds all around. lightening, rain pouring down
Waiting for the bright light to break through
Face down on the ground
Pick us up at the lost and found
We’ve got to change our point of view, if we want the sky blue

We’re segregating, consciences are fading
You’re thinking that it’s me you’re fooling
Where’s the right in, all our fighting
Look at what we’re doing

(Repeat Chorus)

Won’t you, won’t you give it up

No, really, give it up.

Superfreaking Awesome (Chicago pt. 2, 9/28/11)

2011-10-03T00:35:00.005-04:00

There's no easy way to write down a dream setlist, the Hanson fan's fantasy draft of songs. I could probably spend an hour with a pen and paper writing, crossing out, and rewriting without ever coming to a final conclusion. Instead, it might be easier to just sit back and point at this show. Maybe Asheville '08 is still my favorite, if only because I was a new enough fan at the time that I had never heard a lot of those songs--but this show ranks pretty darn close if not higher.

The Story

Okay, so I'm a bit biased because Underneath is my favorite album and this show was the night of the Underneath story. For anyone who doesn't already know, this means fan club members got to enter the venue early and listen to Hanson ramble on about everything from how the album was made to how much Zac loves Mexican food before the actual concert began. Beth and I waited in line all day and ended up in the front row right in front of Isaac, so we had a great spot to watch from.

The story was decently entertaining. The guys assumed correctly that most of us had already seen their documentary, Strong Enough to Break, so they tried to keep any duplicate information to a minimum. What we got instead was a lot of goofing off and a lot of Zac pretending he didn't know what was going on. Isaac ended up doing a Cookie Monster impression (I couldn't tell you why) that sounded a little off at the end, so he joked that it was really a Cookie Monster slash Yoda impression. He did it again and perfectly nailed what some split-personality version of Cookie Monster and Yoda might sound like. Just imagine in ten years when Isaac's had it with Hanson and you're taking your kid to see "Isaac and Friends: The Musical." There would be dancing puppets with gravelly accents. What? It could happen. I wonder if we'll all still fight over front row for that. There was some ninja talk and maybe something to do with Mexican ninjas, but that part is a bit foggy. If anyone remembers more and wants to leave it in the comments--feel free!

For the Q&A portion, someone asked a technical question about guitars that went over my head, and then someone asked how they juggle all the different responsibilities that go along with being a touring band and owning your own record label. They gave the generic "you do what you have to do" answer and commented that there isn't a lot of sleep involved, and sometimes the only person you can rely on to get something done is yourself. The next question that I remember was about the rumor that they won't be releasing any more full-length albums. Their answer was in line with what I've been thinking/saying all along--that nothing is set in stone, and that even if they decide to do something different with more frequent EPs, it doesn't mean they'll never do another full-length album. They're just not sure what they want their next project to be, and seem to be leaning towards trying something outside of the box. Isaac tried to ask the crowd what we thought about them possibly trying EPs versus albums, and Zac shushed him every step of the way. When Isaac finally got the question out, Zac said "Ugh! Now they're all going to think it's happening for sure!" He was half joking, but I think he really did want us to understand that nothing is set in stone.

Somewhere in all of this, Taylor told us about how they decide what projects to take on and tried to use the variable "X" to explain a hypothetical situation. To paraphrase, he said something like "One of us will say 'I think we should try this new idea'." Only what he actually said was "I think we should try X." Now I knew he meant X as a variable, but my brain is always looking for a joke, and boy did it find one in this particular wording. I'm about as straight-laced as they come--no drug or alcohol use here. But leave me to be the only fan to burst out laughing because all I can think of is that Taylor just inadvertently endorsed the use of Ecstasy to come up with new ideas for their music. An awkwardly silent second or two later, more fans started giggling as they caught on, and Taylor finally stopped to laugh and say that he was NOT talking about trying Ecstasy. I was still laughing too hard to really catch what he said, though.

ETA: A youtube video just reminded me that Isaac left the stage twice during the story. Naturally, when he came back, Zac asked if he had to go number two. Classic Zac.

The Show

The show itself was fantastic. Meiko was a great mix of this socially awkward facade with killer "F you" song writing skills. Word to the wise--don't make her mad. She just might write this catchy insulting song about you and look all adorable and naive while singing it, so you really can't be mad. I'm looking forward to seeing Charlie Mars at my other shows, but I'm a little sad that I won't be seeing any more of Meiko this tour.

Hanson's set had me from the beginning because it was mostly songs from Underneath, but the other wild cards they threw in went together really well. The only song that didn't really seem to fit to me was "Carry You There," but I like it well enough to let it go. Perhaps something from "The Walk" would have been better. "Thinking of You" and "Madeline" were some nice surprises, and I'm always open to watching Zac headbang like a crazy person during "Rock 'n' Roll Razorblade."

"Broken Angel" was this really personal moment during the show for both me and Beth. For me, it represents the whole reason I was there, the whole reason I've been anywhere for Hanson in the last four years. It's the song that I stumbled onto on youtube five years ago when I rediscovered Hanson, the one that gave me my first taste of wanting more. Hearing it live for the first time felt really special to me, and I know I stood there for at least half of the song with my eyes closed, just soaking it in and remembering that very first time. I'm not a very emotional person, but I started to feel that prickly tearful sensation that I've only ever felt one other time at a show.

...and then the girl behind me screamed as loud as she could and I turned around and gave her the best death glare I could come up with. She didn't scream again, but if I was going to cry, it didn't happen after that buzzkill of a moment.

If you follow the Hanson world at all, you'll know that the big climax of the show happened when Hanson brought Meiko out on stage and covered "Superfreak." She did a great job giving the song this funky acoustic makeover, and then Isaac rapped a verse of "Can't Touch This" and everybody lost it. I've never been happier to be in the front row in front of Isaac than when that happened. He kept making these hilariously fitting facial expressions, and again I'm convinced he could do some kind of cartoon or puppet character if singing ever fell through.

Not my video, but whoever took it filmed Isaac at all the right moments:

The show ended with this ridiculous display of all three Hansons doing those clapping pushups. I'm impressed, guys, I really am. Because after a killer 23 song setlist (one ending in "Rock 'n' Roll Razorblade," nonetheless), I was ready to fall over and pass out of exhaustion. And then Taylor starts doing pushups with claps like he's still good to go. Has anyone considered the fact that they might be vampires? Because between that display of energy, their ability to "dazzle" just about anybody in the same building, and the fact that they don't seem to sleep, it's enough to have me convinced.

The night ended with a good-humored homeless man shaking a cup at us and doing a little jig while singing "If you're Hanson and you know it, spare some change!" I truthfully told him that all of my spare change had already gone to Hanson.

And We Won't Go Down (Chicago, pt 1, 9/27)

2011-10-02T01:00:00.001-04:00

This pair of shows felt weird from the very beginning, like I wasn't really seeing Hanson. They were a last minute decision and set a week before my real trip begins, so it felt weird to come back home afterwards instead of following on to the next show. Then there's the fact that my plane landed at the same time doors opened the first night, and it was just me and one friend, whereas last time I went to Chicago there were at least nine of us.

9/27

The first night was good. Beth and I managed to stand in a great spot in the balcony behind a roped off reserved set of seats, that, luckily enough, nobody ever showed up to claim. We got in place just in time to really watch Meiko's last song, "You and Onions Make Me Cry." She's quite clever with lyrics, that one. I stood around for a few minutes after the set was over, then decided it was a good time for a bathroom break. By some phenomenon I've never experienced, Hanson was on stage before I got back to my spot. I suppose I'm used to standing and waiting for what feels like (and often is) hours , so this was just completely weird to me. We had a good view and plenty of room to dance, though I suspect anyone that could see us thought we were nuts during "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'."

A definite highlight of the show was when Isaac announced that they were going to play a song they had never played live before and dedicated it to his wife. I spent the entirety of the song feeling a mixture of enjoyment and confusion because I had no idea what the song was and whether it was a new Hanson song or some cover I wasn't familiar with. It had a bit of a country vibe to it, so we suspected cover. After it was over, Isaac explained that it was from a band called "Unamerican," which still didn't ring any bells, but gave us a springboard to go from later when figuring out the song title ("Tonight's the First Night"). He nailed it, of course. Maybe it's due to the fact that his anniversary was so soon and his wife was there (as Taylor let slip before the song), but Isaac was really in his element for these shows.

"In the City" was another highlight. I've never cared much for the album version of this song, but give me a reason to jump and I'm all yours. Speaking of jumping...this song provided the single most terrifying moment I've ever experienced in my life. A few songs prior, a man with a cane had pushed into the reserved area in front of us and sat down. We weren't exactly happy, but security told him he could stay and it was near the end, so we moved over a little so Beth could still see and focused back on the show. We paid him little attention, but it's hard to completely forget the person suddenly blocking your view. All that I noticed was that he didn't visibly react to the music at all, simply sat there without moving while Beth and I put all of our remaining energy into keeping up with Taylor's jumping. And just at the climax of the song, at the very end when we finally stopped to catch our breath, I watched the weirdest thing happen. This guy leans over the balcony in front of him (which was at least a foot wide, like sitting at a bar), puts both his hands and head over, struggles to lift his left leg over, and simply lets go.

Watching this happen was absolutely terrifying. That final second of seeing his feet go over was awful, and I had no doubt in my mind at the time that he was committing suicide. I'm sure this was an overreaction in a tense moment, but I still can't think of much else that would send someone head first out of a balcony willingly without regard to the people below. I won't waste your time with speculations of why, and I think anyone that claims to know why is wasting your time as well--this is simply what I saw and how my mind reacted to the scene in front of me. I had a split-second thought of trying to grab his feet and save him, but thankfully my mind managed to register that I would probably go over with him if I tried, so I stayed put.

And while all this is happening, I'm getting tackled by a security guard trying to stop him. Maybe "tackled" is too strong of a word since I somehow stayed on my feet, but I definitely took a sharp elbow to the head and ended up with hair all in my face and crooked glasses from the blow. The guard took out the short section of rope in front of us and missed grabbing his feet by seconds. Then we all stood there completely flabbergasted with hands clasped over our mouths, and vaguely registered that Hanson was talking about it from the stage.

It was an awkward ending, and Hanson didn't come back out. I was so upset that people were chanting for an encore, but I suppose most had no clue what had happened and just wanted another song. I know from talking to others that night and the next day that no one had any serious injuries, which is a miracle. But I swear, every time I say I've seen the most epic thing possible at a show, something trumps it. If I ever see anything crazier than this, I'm out. Game over. It was fun while it lasted.

Hanson in Friends Format: Seasons 1-6

2011-09-20T15:51:00.003-04:00

I suppose the excitement of my impending Hanson overdose combined with insomnia lead to this particular brand of ridiculousness.

In an earlier blog post, I compared Hanson shows to Friends episodes and claimed that I could pinpoint a defining moment from each show. I know I can, but I’m kind of curious to see which moments make the cut. As a result, I bring you a follow-up post: Hanson in Friends format, seasons 1-6. This will be incredibly vague and/or boring unless you are 1) me, or 2) someone who was with me at some of these shows. This one’s more for me than you.

Pilot (MONA Recording)
-5/5/07 The one where it all started in the middle of nowhere

Season 1 (The Walk Tour fall ‘07)
-10/11 The first one where I was covered in beer
-10/16 The one where I almost got in a fight
-10/17 The one where Zac screamed in my face backstage and a drunk girl climbed on my back

Season 2 (The Walk Tour spring ’08)
-5/5 The one with the granny panties on stage
-5/6 The hometown show with the sinking bridges
-5/7 The one where tour ended on my birthday, the openers stripped, and I drove home with an expired license

Season 3 (The Walk Around the World Tour ’08)
-10/3 The one where Morgen was sent away by the police and the macarena and robot were born
-10/4 The one where I caught a guitar pick and fell asleep in the shower
-10/10 The one where they brought back “Thinking of You”
-10/28 The first one I didn’t mean to go to

Season 4 (The Use Your Sole Tour ’09)
-5/16 The (second) one with the surprise party
-10/11 The one where Cheap Trick played the encore
-10/12 The one where we walked 2 miles to get to the 1 mile walk
-10/18 The one with Devil's Nachos
-10/22 The one with the schizophrenic guy that wouldn't stop proposing
-10/23 The one with Holly sandwich pictures and cupcakes on Laura's face
-10/24 The one where the most memorable part was the exhaustion
-10/26 The one where I spilled pancake syrup in my sleeping bag

Season 5 (Shout it Out Tour ’10)
-3/10 The one where we danced (badly) in a music video
-5/22 The one where I got free tickets and food poisoning
-7/30 The one where I danced (badly) with Taylor and a Blues Brother
-7/31 The one with the cockroach the size of my hand
-10/31 The one that was covered in glitter
-11/5 The one that was perfect
-11/6 The one where we were first in line but went in last
-11/8 The one with free Disney passes
-11/9 The one where I accidentally called 911 on a rollercoaster
-11/10 The one with the sketchy walk in the dark
-11/12 The one where we had a dance party in the balcony
-11/13 The one where we accidentally got front row
-11/14 The one where we fell in love with Noodles & Co

Season 6 (2011)
-3/11 The one where I let a “that’s what she said" joke slip
-5/10 The one with church pews
-5/14 The one with the haunted mountain
-6/30 The one at the fancy hotel

A few outtakes in picture form...

The one where we (okay...Morgen and Beth) danced to "Falling for You" in McDonalds

The one with the impromptu ice cream party

The one where 50 people camped out

The one with the awesome costumes

The one where I accidentally looked like Isaac

Season 6 will resume production September 27th and continue through the month of October.

8 Reasons Why I Follow Hanson

2011-09-07T17:00:00.000-04:00

Because I’ve been asked this more times than not. If you’re reading this, you’ve either asked me this yourself, or you've been asked it at least a dozen times. Here's a completely inadequate explanation of why.

1. Amazing music.

It’s the obvious answer, but it's the cornerstone of this obsession and can’t be left unsaid. The harmonies, the lyrics, the instruments, the energy, the passion…all of the variables they put into making music just work for me on some higher level, and I can’t get enough. If you find something that makes you happy, you hold onto it.

2. Every show is completely unique.

It’s amazing how you can technically do the same thing over and over again without it ever really being the same twice. I can easily pick out at least one memorable moment from every single show I’ve been to. Think of it like Friends episodes—there’s The one with the smashed birthday cake, the one where they played with Cheap Trick, the one where Zac screamed in my face, etc. You’ve seen it before, you have an idea what’s going to happen, but you can’t help but watch it again and again.

3. Friends.

Because it’s impossible to do this and not end up with friends all over the country. Each show is more than a chance to reunite with Hanson, it's a reunion with friends. Whether it’s the fact that we’re all easily persuaded into going to shows (cookies, anyone?), or I don’t bother planning to go to shows without them anymore, I haven’t been to a show alone since 2007. It's about more than seeing three boys.

4. Escapism

es·cap·ism noun
habitual diversion of the mind to purely imaginative activity or entertainment as an escape from reality or routine

No matter what else is going on in my life, for that hour or two I’m in a crowd, there’s nothing else. It's safer and more satisfying than drugs, kids.

5. Sightseeing.

You never just see Hanson; there's so much more on the way. Chicago, Disney World, a giant statue of Superman in Metropolis, Tulsa, Oklahoma of all places, Arkansas mountaintops, Noodles & Company. Next month I’ll visit 7 states I’ve never been to before and a handful of others I’ve already had the pleasure of seeing courtesy of these guys. They’re an excellent excuse to see the world and feel at home at the same time.

6. The joy of randomness and the unknown.

While you may end up in Chicago or Disney World at some other point in life with or without following a band, there are some experiences I never would have had otherwise. Sleeping on sidewalks, showering at truck stops, walking barefoot in countless cities, wearing goofy homemade group Halloween costumes, being extras in a music video, renting a Cadillac and driving it halfway across the country, accidentally dialing 911 on the corkscrew of a roller coaster. All ridiculous, and all things that never would have had a reason to happen otherwise.

Then there's the randomness and unknown factor of being at a show and knowing that virtually anything is possible. They sing a song you've wanted to hear for 10 years, they bring out a special guest you never expected, God forbid that special guest you never expected is YOU, they throw birthday cake, they cover "Oh Darling!" and leave you feeling like you've betrayed the Beatles by liking it more when Zac sings it. And anything could happen until you walk out of the door and leave wanting more.

7. The joy of familiarity.

Sometimes the parts you know are going to happen are just as good as the surprises. The 30th time you spin your hand around during "Where's the Love," the way you've sang Penny and Me so many times that the crowd carries on even when Taylor messes up, the way you respond to the cowbell in TBS like you're one of Pavlov's dogs. There's a reason you always order a number 6 at Wendy's, right? You're okay with the same experiences over and over again because they're the ones you enjoy most.

8. In an MMMBop they’re gone.

It’s cheesy, but I’m not going to be young and free enough to do this forever. I know that one day maybe soon, I'll inevitably end up with more responsibilities and less free time, and I'll be able to do a show or two per tour if I'm lucky. I intend to milk this time for all it's worth and not look back and wish I had done something fun. Because in 50 years, I'd rather still be answering "why did you" than "why didn't you."

Shameless Self Promotion: Help me win tickets!

2011-08-09T14:42:00.001-04:00

Because a month on the road isn't cheap.

Help a fellow fan out and sign up through my link? By signing up, you can win free tickets and prizes yourself, and by signing up through my link, you're helping me win for NYC at the same time. Two birds, one stone. Pretty please? I have a feeling it's expensive just to breathe in NYC (wouldn't know, I've never been); I could definitely use some free tickets.

Click here and sign up if you're feeling generous today :

http://pop.to/63ut

Please and thank you!

94.7 Fresh FM/Gaylord National DC Show

2011-06-20T13:45:00.002-04:00

This show was one of those last minute accidents, the kind where I normally amuse myself by looking up flights, laugh at the ludicrous prices, and admit defeat, all while never really believing I might end up going.

The problem is we egg each other on. With my friends, if one person is considering going to a show, everyone will inevitably entertain the idea of going, even if only for the 5 minutes it takes to look up prices and mileage and count themselves out. One thing led to another, and Valerie and I somehow convinced each other to go. (The $44 round-trip flight I found from Myrtle Beach to DC sealed the deal.)

Let me throw out a literary term to sum up this trip: juxtaposition. The art of placing two things side by side for comparison, or in this case, a stark contrast. Before making it to our final destination, an upscale hotel stay complete with VIP entry to a private Hanson show on Night #2, we apparently had to survive night #1, maybe prove ourselves worthy? Who knows. What I know is that in order to make it to the main event, we had to stick out a painful half hour or so of being lost in a scary area of DC while in desperate need of a bathroom and endure a pretty creepy hotel stay.

We ended up staying at a mildly sketchy Comfort Inn, and I swear we missed some kind of crucial memo about what was really up at this hotel. The desk clerk with crimped hair, massive hoop earrings, and six pounds of makeup probably should have been a warning sign. There were several couples milling around, all dressed relatively nicely for it to be past midnight at a Comfort Inn, and we couldn't shake the feeling that we were getting strange looks and people would stop talking when we walked by. The highlight of the night had to be the moment we ran into a woman outside in the parking lot, who first asked us if the hotel had a pool, then upon finding out that it did, invited us to go skinny dipping with her. The fact that she looked completely normal and was really friendly about it somehow makes it even creepier than if it had been some random sketchy guy. THAT would make sense. Woman in a cute dress in the parking lot? Not so much. Needless to say, we declined, retreated to the room, and didn't come back out until daylight.

We ventured to downtown DC the next day for a little dose of normal after the strange night, and we treated ourselves to Noodles & Co. I blame Rachel for introducing us to this place last fall because it's awesome, and there's not one within a three state radius of home for me. When we were still in the deciding stages, I texted Valerie "Noodles & Co." Quite honestly, it may have been one of the deciding factors of the trip; that's how much we love it. I also had my first DSW experience where I found a belt to use in place of the one that got left on my bedroom floor in a packing frenzy (on sale for $9 down from $42! I think I'm in love).

We checked into Gaylord National around 3 and were instantly blown away by the size and decor of the hotel. We drove past limousines on the way to parking, passed multiple ballrooms on the way to check in. We kept thinking we found the front desk only to find ridiculous things like a Hertz car rental office instead. There was even a Swarovski crystal store with Faberge eggs.

The room itself was a little less intimidating and had all of the usual amenities of a double bed hotel room, only tastefully decorated and clean in a way that didn't leave me sleeping with a t-shirt over the pillow like I did the night before (a useful trick for anyone who can't stand to sleep on foreign pillows but doesn't have room to bring one...or in retrospect, I suppose I could have just packed a pillow case.) One wall was floor to ceiling windows overlooking the big main street and a bit of the Potomac River. This was hands-down the nicest hotel I've ever stayed in.

The instructions we received for the VIP package stated that we could line up beginning at 4:30, so we ate our leftover Noodles & Co, then walked around the hotel and took pictures until it was time. There were maybe 30 people waiting when we got there. The radio host went down the line and took pictures with everyone, then disappeared and came back with a microphone and a guy holding a camera. I swear I must have "pick me" tattooed on my forehead because he came directly up to me and Valerie, asked us our names, then promptly started filming and asking us questions, nevermind asking us if we wanted to participate (this "pick me" talent? Not always a good thing, like when I was randomly selected at the airport for additional screening on the way in). He asked us a few questions about being excited to see Hanson and what our favorite part of getting to see the show was, then disappeared again only to come back a few minutes later and ask for a redo with a few different questions. When the camera was off, he commented that we didn't seem all that excited. We assured him that we were happy to be there and assumed that he was looking for that "OH MY GOSH I'M GOING TO MEET HANSON I'VE LOVED THEM FOR YEARS AND I WANTED TO HAVE THEIR BABIES!" excitement, and we were fresh out. Our suspicions were confirmed after the show when he elicited screams from several girls after offering up Zac's empty drink cup, a sweaty towel, and "lint straight from Zac's pocket."

The were 200 people total, 100 of which were VIP. We ended up behind a rope at the side of the stage on Isaac's side with a perfect view of all 3 brothers, which is a good accomplishment for two people under 5'3". I enjoyed opener Justin Trawick, who reminded me of a mix of Jason Mraz and Stephen Kellogg (this should be taken as a compliment). There didn't seem to be a lot of dancing and the show was a little more laid back, but crowd participation was pretty good for singing parts. They had us sing "And we won't go down" during TTA, and it stayed strong. They told us that American Airlines destroyed yet another guitar on their way over, so we got to hear Strong Enough to Break with just Isaac on guitar while Taylor played a tambourine and a shaker instead. Nobody missed the irony in the fact that the broken guitar was needed for "Strong Enough to Break," so they kept changing up the lyrics to fit the situation ("We just play like broken guitars in a deaf man's charade"). Isaac gave the Give a Little speech, which is something I hadn't witnessed before. It was mostly what Taylor normally says, with the added bonus of a really awkward wording that made for a great that's what she said moment that had me doubled over in silent laughter. Ten songs later, the guys headed upstairs for the massive M&G.

Everyone with VIP passes was given an 8x10 cardstock photo to be autographed as we headed upstairs where the guys were set up behind a table. There were no posed photographs, but the radio station had someone taking candid photos the whole time of everyone shaking hands and talking with Hanson. When it was finally our turn, the guys were kind enough to sign both my wristband and the supplied photo. I intended to just get the wristband signed because I didn't know for sure that the photo would survive my strict no-carry on flight home, but Isaac grinned and reached for the picture after signing my wristband and told me he hoped it would make the flight home (side note--it did). We talked to Taylor a little bit about tour and were a bit rushed with Zac, and then it was over.

Afterwards, we got takeout from Baja Burrito, then sat on the grass behind the hotel and watched the fireworks show. It was a perfect way to end a good day, and the beds were fantastic. My only complaint is that my 6 AM flight meant we only got to spend about 3 hours in them. The flight home proved to be more like your average Hanson show than the show itself, complete with disagreements over the line and two people fighting over a seat that technically belonged to me and neither of them. For $44, I'll gladly put up with it.

MMMecca: The Annual Pilgrimage to Tulsa

2011-05-20T23:01:00.000-04:00

Tulsa is where it all began for me four years ago. I still remember telling my best friend how absolutely nuts of me it would be to go, and then the look on her face the very next day when I told her I was going to call my parents and ask for a plane ticket for my 19th birthday. I remember the begging and the reasoning, the sincere claims that it would be my first and last trip to Hanson's hometown over 1,000 miles away from my own. The words "unique experience" come to mind. I meant every word of it.

I had no idea that it was just the beginning.

I just returned from my 5th trip to Tulsa in 4 years. I know well enough now that it won't be my last.

On the Road

I’ve developed some kind of sick enjoyment for insanely long roadtrips. True, the first 400 miles/7 hours alone is a bit of a downside, but the next 12 hours with friends is half of the fun and well worth the first lonely leg of the trip. I can honestly say that all money and time issues aside, I prefer to drive all 1100+ miles than to fly. I’ve flown twice and driven three times, and the hours in a car beat the infinitely less hours in a plane every time. I was honestly sad when I had to fly out for the TBS video shoot instead of riding with friends.

For this trip, the road fun began with us accidentally renting a Cadillac. Cue cheesy Hanson-related puns about Cadillac blues or not needing a Cadillac to carry us to Tulsa. Basically the rental company somehow sold out of the type of car we had reserved, so we were left with the option of a Cadillac or a minivan. I will forever be impressed with the trunk space of a Cadillac that housed four suitcases, four sleeping bags, and a random assortment of other stuff without difficulty. It was also much easier to drive than the Chargers we usually end up with. Perhaps Enterprise should make this mistake more often.

The trip began with seeing Hanson in Nashville (see earlier post) and spending time with Holly in the city before we hit the road. She tried to introduce us to the wonders of cookie dough egg rolls, but sadly we went too late after the fryer was turned off. The waiter felt bad and actually gave us some of his own birthday cookies and ice cream on the house! It was good, but Nashville still owes me the experience of cookie dough egg rolls. The next day we had chicken at McDougal’s (yum!) and had a good time taking pictures at a random baby picnic table outside.

The initial drive to Tulsa was strangely uneventful this time, and I give major points to Laura for staying awake in the middle of the night as the rest of us passed out. We stopped at a Waffle House around 3:30 AM to try to wake ourselves up and left with stomachs full of greasy food and a side of frostbite.

In the City
I think I convinced myself that there wasn’t much left for me to see since I’ve played the part of a Tulsa tourist before, but I managed to eat lots of good food at restaurants I had never been to. We hit the Dilly Delly, the Blue Dome Diner, and the Brook, all of which had fantastic food, and all of which were politely accommodating to our small caravan of 12 people. My 2^nd Joe Momma’s experience was even better than my first, and we all giggled like teenage girls as one of us left a number for our cute waiter and we constantly cracked him up with unintentional that’s what she said jokes. Before the event, we got to go to the Philbrook Museum (free admission!), and despite the fact that I’m normally fairly indifferent about art and museums, I thought it was gorgeous.

I had also convinced myself that I didn’t need to buy any souvenirs (I already had 2 Tulsa shirts from previous trips), but apparently Tulsa is aware of my weakness for limited edition stuff. I walked into Ida Red and Dwelling Spaces intent on only purchasing a Tulsa is My Graceland t-shirt. I walked out with a t-shirt, a tote bag, and a poster. In my defense, the owner of Ida Red told us that they only produced 25 tote bags period and would not be making any more, and it was reasonably priced. I figured I could always sell it on eBay and get my money back.

Dwelling Spaces got me with a cute, retro-pop looking screen print poster that depicted various landmarks around Tulsa as well as a headshot of Hanson and a shot from the TBS video. I almost got away without it, but then the owner had to tell us that they only made 30 screen prints, and they were numbered and autographed by the artist at the bottom. They later made slightly smaller regular poster prints, but the colors were a little different and they weren’t limited or autographed. Tulsa: 2 (3 if you count the 2009 canvas print still sitting in my closet), Holly: 0.

Facing the Blank Page

I should know better by now, but I’m still disappointed in all of the fans that line up early for these events. It’s a touchy subject for me because I’m well aware that there are multiple people that I actually know and like that do it too, but I still can’t do it or agree with anyone that does. I know tons of people line up early and no one ever gets in trouble over it; I’m well aware that I could get away with it too. But the way I see it, Hanson and the various venues they play put up with us camping out for days on end at every other show, so if they’re going to ask us not to line up early 1 in every 50 shows, I can respect that wish. When we showed up right at 5, the designated line-up time for the 8 PM session, none of us was surprised at the 100+ people already there.

Inside Cain’s, there were rows of chairs on the floor and two small sets of bleachers on either side in the back—we opted for the bleachers. The show was fantastic. It started with some sort of technical difficulty that prompted Zac to sing Happy Birthday at random to stall while Taylor tried to fix something on the drums.

I know my birthday was a full week before, but it was still kind of neat getting to hear it (I loved the climax—“Happy Birthday whoever you are, happy birthday to you”). When it still wasn’t fixed, they went into the Stevie Wonder version of Happy Birthday, and then Jimmy Crack Corn, “Hanson birthday style” (“Jimmy Crack Corn and I don’t care, ‘cause it’s your birthday!”).

They played all of the songs from this year’s membership kit, and I really loved the way they did “Sunny Day” with the stomp-claps and transitioned directly into Cecelia. I really hope to see that combination at regular concerts in the future, but somehow I doubt the chemistry of that moment will ever be exactly right again. There was something weirdly perfect in that moment of stomping in bleachers in heels, praying that I wouldn’t fall and barely catching glimpses of Taylor holding a guitar through raised arms and around tall heads.

I’m hesitant to say that was the best moment, though, because then Hanson did something I’ve been wanting them to do for years. They played Stories. Better yet, they let us sing the first verse, which was another one of those rarely unifying moments as we all stood there singing about having a special connection worth telling your grandkids about. Was the connection between us? Between us and Hanson? Does it matter? Read as much or as little into it as you want, the simple version is I loved it.

And yet somehow my favorite moment of the whole show is one I’ve experienced multiple times in the past. Three words: “Thinking ‘Bout Somethin’.” I didn’t expect them to play it, and we definitely never had any kind of discussion or conscious agreement about what to do if they played it, which is what made the moment we all piled out of the bleachers that much more awesome. As soon as that cowbell started, we all jumped out of the bleachers and into the empty floor beside us without a second thought. There was no special look, no “Hey, let’s get down and dance!” just the same instinct in all of us. We were in the very back and I know no one could see us, and I think that’s part of why it was so fun. It was nothing more than a bunch of goofy girls living in their own little world for a moment and having a blast.

I enjoyed the Q&A session, but they didn’t remember to repeat most of the questions so we had a hard time hearing in the back. I was floored by their impromptu performance of the National Anthem at a fan’s request, and I had a brief thought of how crazy it is that Hanson could almost make the National Anthem be my favorite song. They’re that good. We were the first group picture, and I think we threw Leigh for a loop by requesting to have MORE people in our group than the allotted 10 when most people probably want less. We squeezed in a whopping 18 plus Hanson, and it was over.

Then we spent what seemed like our life savings on merchandise.

On the Road Again

Instead of driving the 12 hours back to return the rental in one day, we booked a tee pee in Arkansas for Sunday night. That’s right, a tee pee. In Arkansas. Like I said, the roadtrip is half of the fun. Unfortunately, Whitney’s allergies were getting really bad, and it was obvious within 15 minutes of looking around the campsite that we wouldn’t be able to stay if we wanted her alive. We did want her alive, so we explained the situation and the staff was polite and refunded our money under the circumstances. It was a little disappointing, but we stopped at a lookout on top of the mountain to take pictures so we would still get a little bit of the experience.

The wind was stronger than anything I’ve ever felt in my life. We take jumping pictures just about everywhere we go, but I’m 100% serious when I say I refused to jump anywhere up there for fear of becoming airborne and falling down the mountain. The wind lifted all 2+ feet of my hair off of my head and even tried to remove my shirt a few times. Laura is a fantastic photographer, so we had a mini photo shoot and took some time to turn Valerie’s sweater into a makeshift cape and do superman poses.

Later, we stopped at a Sonic for dinner. As we waited for our food, I spotted a DVD logo beneath the built-in navigation system that none of us had noticed. I had just bought 5 of 5 at the event, and the idea was born. Sitting and eating hotdogs in the driver’s seat of a Cadillac while watching 5 of 5 is definitely one of my favorite road memories to date.

Back at our hotel for the night after Whit had gone to sleep, Laura, Valerie and I stayed up looking at pictures from the windy mountain. There was a lot of giggling and gasping at some of the horrible faces we made in the pictures. About halfway through, Laura and I noticed that there was a weird stain on Valerie’s shirt in one of the pictures. It hadn’t been in any of the previous pictures, and it was in the perfect shape of a J. Thinking it must have been weird lighting or something on the lens, we continued to look. The J was in other pictures, too—always on Valerie’s shirt, but never in the same place.

We were on a mountain in Petit Jean state park. Jean was the name of a traveler who had died and been buried at the top of the mountain. Make of it what you will, but I could have kissed Whitney and her allergies for the fact that we were making this discovery in a hotel room in Alabama rather than in a remote teepee on the top of that mountain. (sorry, no J pictures for now. They’re Laura’s.)

Well: Done Celebration Nashville 5/10

2011-05-20T01:44:00.000-04:00

This show was one of those last-minute flukes that just sort of works. I was already planning a trip to Tulsa, and I was carpooling with friends in Tennessee, so when Hanson plans to be where I am already going to be at the same time I'm going to be there, who am I to say no?

It wasn't just a Hanson concert though, and I would have been disappointed if I had gone into it with that sort of expectation. Instead, it was a celebration of a vision, a passion, and an accomplishment after countless people joined together to contribute to the building of 1,000 wells. Hanson was just one of many guests including Jars of Clay, Derek Webb, Sandra McCracken, and Eric Wainaina to name a few. Each performed a short set and spoke a bit about the inspiration behind building the wells, encouraging audience members to get involved and thanking them for doing their part. I enjoyed all of the performances, but I was especially moved by Jars of Clay's performance. They were full of passion and had a bit of a spiritual theme going which I loved. One song in particular stood out to me at the time (I think it was called "Oh My God"?). I'll definitely have to check out more of their music

Eric Wainaina was last and definitely an interesting performer. He is from Kenya and brought a full band including a backup singer that doubled as a backup dancer, so it was a completely different style of music than I'm used to. I loved watching the dancing, and got a huge kick when he had the audience play imaginary violins (not so much when he pointed right at me and my friend for not doing it along with them, but we were two of about 4 people in our entire section, and it felt weirdly exposed).

Hanson went on before Jars of Clay and gave a brief explanation about their walks and how they contributed to building a well through takethewalk.net They played a short set of songs that related to the celebration at hand, and their voices blended together as well as ever.

1. Carry You There
2. Waiting For This
3. This Time Around
4. Great Divide

It was definitely more laid back than your average Hanson show, and everyone stayed seated with the exception of two girls I saw who were on their feet and jumping around the whole time. It didn't really seem like the right time and place for that, but to each his own. The guy that introduced them to the stage mentioned that their new single "Give it a Little" had reached number one on the VH1 countdown, and I couldn't help but giggle a little at the new title, especially after the mock GAL tee was misspelled just days before. Who knew those three words were so difficult?

At the end of the show, all of the artists came back out and sang along to Jars of Clay's "The Shelter." I've never seen a stage so packed full of performers in my life; everyone was shoulder to shoulder and there were a few behind others. Everyone on stage and the audience sang along repeating "In the shelter of each other, we will live, we will live," and it was a fantastic moment to be a part of. I felt like we were supposed to all link arms and sway or something, and I mean that in the most complimentary way possible. It was just a good, tangible moment of solidarity between everyone on stage and in the audience, and the whole thing was about so much more than just Hanson. It felt like a true celebration of unity and a job well done.

After the show, some of the girls I was with wanted to wait outside to try to meet Hanson. There wasn't really a designated area to do this, so it got chaotic fast with everyone crammed onto the sidewalk to stay out of the way of traffic in the parking lot. There were lots of people in a small space, so I tried to hang back and out of the way with no intention of pushing towards a Hanson. I watched from a distance as the guys came out and Taylor addressed the crowd as someone immediately asked for a picture. He politely said that they would only be doing autographs, and I watched as his polite smile revealed the briefest flicker of annoyance as the girl he had declined shoved her face next to his anyway and a flash went off. I was angry for him, but he simply smiled and continued to sign for the mass around him. At one point Isaac headed straight towards where I was standing away from the crowd and said "Sorry, guys!" as he made his escape. I stepped aside to let him pass and absentmindedly echoed back, "Sorry, Isaac!" as if it were my place to apologize for everyone who had crowded him.

I ended up holding a friend's camera to take pictures for her and got my program signed by Taylor and Zac along the way. I told Zac how much I loved the final group performance and that I would see him in Tulsa, and he promised that it would be a good show and worth the trip (side note: it was). Later I learned that Holly had a rather interesting discussion with Zac about diarrhea etiquette on the bus. Apparently the rule of thumb is just don't. Only Zac. Or maybe only Holly.

"I'll be right here waiting for something more"

2011-04-12T03:21:00.000-04:00

I should know better by now than to post some kind of deep entry at 2:30 in the morning; that's how I end up saying more than I ever meant to say in a public place, but I'll say it anyway. After all, my intention with this blog has always been to document the phenomenon of becoming a Hanson fan--how it started, where it has taken me, and all of the little changes along the way. I suppose this is part of the process for me, and you're in no way obligated to read this late night rambling.

I love Hanson...that much goes without saying and is hardly necessary for me to reiterate at this point. I respect them and their seemingly infinite talents--those voices, all of the instruments in their small collective arsenal (seriously, is there anything they don't play?), their ability to compose a song and write good lyrics, etc. And yet somehow, I still feel silly being able to be boiled down to a few lyrics in a Hanson song. As much love and respect as I have for these guys and their talents, I hate that a single Hanson song can sum me up in a good bridge and a verse or two, and yet they've done it again.

Up until a few months ago, I had never felt that feeling before. I had read countless fan testimonies about how Hanson songs brought people through periods of depression, got them through everything from simple angsty teenage years to the death of a loved one. I've read about these experiences, and yet every time I read them, I always acknowledged in the back of my mind that I had never felt that way before. Yeah, I could connect on the surface level; I "got" the lyrics and the meaning, but the connection always ended there.

And then I went through a time where I had to make a tough decision about what direction my life should take. I got myself into a career that instantly felt wrong, and for the first time in my life, I wasn't sure about everything (no, this is not the point where I tell you I felt a deep connection to "Sure About It"). One night, I was trying to get through my work without giving myself enough time to stop and think about how miserable I was. I liked Hanson music, right? It made me happy. So I turned on my iTunes in the background as I worked and tried to block out all of the things building up inside of me. And then "Breaktown" came on and it was all over. That numb wall I had built? Gone. Every single lyric in the song seemed to fit my situation perfectly. Next came "Strong Enough to Break", and then "These Walls". So I sat there sobbing and feeling sheepish that a few Hanson songs I had already heard a hundred times each were somehow capable of turning me into a blubbery mess when I had done such a good job of locking out all of those feelings that Taylor was crooning back at me. I can't say the music "got me through" that hard time; in fact, I'm not sure it did anything at all other than depress me more and make me face the feelings I was trying to ignore. But for the first time, I felt something stronger than an aesthetic appreciation for the music. I didn't just "get" the lyrics; they "got" me.

Within days, I had my own strong enough to break moment. I won't credit Hanson for the decision, but that choice is a necessary part of this story.

Fast forward to now. I know I made the right decision; that career path wasn't the one for me. But now what? I have faith that everything will work out. I know I can't see the map that I'm following, but I trust that I am in fact headed somewhere worth going, even if I can't see the big picture yet. I can rest assured that the choices I've made so far are the right ones, but what comes next? I have no idea. And as I'm voicing all of this to my friends and one makes an analogy about looking into the future being like looking around a corner--something good is coming, we just can't see it yet--Blue Sky inexplicably enters my mind, and I'm having one of those moments again. It's not life-altering and I hardly expect Blue Sky to somehow solve all of my doubts and worries, but once again I feel like dear Taylor and Isaac are narrating my life with the help of a choir of African school children. I probably shouldn't be surprised since this isn't the first time now, but it's a little unsettling to have a song I never really thought twice about before suddenly sneak up and know what I'm feeling better than I know it myself. Now if only the next song I connect with could be a little more upbeat and happy. If anyone's taking requests, I could settle for "Give a Little" or "Musical Ride," please and thanks :)

Hanson in Charleston, SC at 98.9 Chick FM

2011-03-14T03:04:00.004-04:00

This experience is in true If You Give a Mouse a Cookie form, only I'm not a mouse, and the cookie certainly wasn't given to me. Cue the less successful spin-off of If You Dangle a Cookie on a String in Front of a Mouse, and well, you'll get what the the first half of March looked like for me.

Hanson in Charleston is almost as good as Hanson in my backyard. I don't live there now, but I spent the last four years of my life attending college there and falling in love with the city, and I still make frequent trips back to visit friends. To add to this awesomeness, 98.9 Chick FM was my favorite station in the area when I lived there, too. My favorite people in my favorite city hosted by my favorite radio station? Yes, please! The only problem? The appearance was only open to 30 contest winners, and the only way to win was to listen to 98.9 and call in at the right time. Being the determined fan that I am, I immediately emailed Dominica, one of the radio hosts, and asked for details. Tickets could be won from 6-9 AM and 3-6 PM. Guess who listened to the radio at 3 hour increments every time tickets were given away. The fact that I had to listen every time should probably tell you that I didn't have that immediate luck I'm somehow used to having.

After being caller #1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 multiple times (but never the necessary caller #9), I finally got lucky the day before the show. Moms in the Morning decided to do something a little different for tickets that day. Instead of waiting for caller #9, they decided to play the "Duh Uh" game, a game requiring the contestant to speak for 20 seconds on a random assigned topic without saying "duh" or "um" or making any really long pauses. As soon as I heard those directions, I knew I had it in the bag. As a senior in college, I took an introductory theatre class. One day as I sat dying along with the English language as a fellow classmate delivered a speech where approximately 50% of her vocabulary consisted of "like," our professor made up a new rule. Any time a student said the word "like," "um," or anything unimportant to the meaning during a presentation, we as a class were to clap once. So when this girl was, like, describing how the lighting was like, super bright and like how her set was like totally amazing, we all clapped and felt some severe secondhand embarrassment. This went on for every. single. person. and a very painful class period. Somehow, I managed to be the last to present. And somehow, I also managed to be the only person in the class who didn't throw in any extra words. This is how I knew the "duh uh" game was meant for me.

So when I called in at the prompt and heard "Hello! You're caller number two. Caller number one wasn't able to complete the challenge. Are you ready?" I really wasn't surprised. When I voiced that I like to eat ketchup on my "um, hamburgers and hot dogs," I was surprised and furious with myself (note to reader--I was told to speak about ketchup. I'm not THAT random). I hung up and tried again, only to be met with a busy signal until my embarrassing flub was aired on the radio, and I heard caller #3 win while rambling about license plates. It was the day before the show, I finally had my chance to win, and I blew it.

But like any determined Hanson fan, I try not to take no for an answer until it's the only answer left, and if you're determined enough, you can usually find that "yes" and "no" aren't the only viable options.

A little street team planning and a brief message to and from Zac assured me that it would be okay for a few of us to go and show our support, even if we didn't win tickets and ended up just standing outside. Either way, it would be a good opportunity to spend some time getting to know the girls on my street team, and the trip wouldn't be in vain.

Friday morning, I dragged myself out of bed at 6 AM for one last attempt to win the elusive tickets being dangled just out of my grasp. When I heard the cue to call around 7:30, I paused and took a breath before dialing for the final time, just ready for the anxiety to be over one way or another. It rang on the first try.

"You're caller number two, try again." I heard, not for the first time. I hung up and dialed again. Busy. Again. Busy. Again. It started ringing, and my heart was pounding hard.

"Hello, you're caller number nine! What is your name?" I gave the man my personal information before being transferred over to the Moms on air, hardly able to believe that I had somehow snagged the last pair of tickets after trying religiously for a over a week.

In Charleston, I picked up the tickets from the radio station, then proceeded to meet my friends at the Aloft hotel where Hanson would perform. Dominica, the afternoon radio host, was amazingly friendly and was kind enough to give my friends two extra pairs of tickets to get in. After a week of worry, it finally all came together.

The performance itself was short, but nevertheless exciting. After reading the boys' tweets about being stuck in an airport for 18 hours, then having the Charleston airport lose their luggage, I couldn't help but admire their drive to push through and do their best for us anyway when I knew they must be exhausted and frustrated.

As they sat down, Taylor made a jokingly suggestive comment about how we had all been invited to Hanson's hotel. Zac added "You know, you guys might be the first fans we've ever invited back to the hotel," he said in a flirty voice. "Publicly, that is," he added.

They began with "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'," then played "Make it Out Alive." For the third song, they gave the audience the option of "MMMBop" and "Where's the Love," and completely against all nature of Hanson fans, nobody voiced an opinion. There was light murmuring and some looking around, but no one shouted the name of either song back at the guys. I myself gave them an obvious shrug of indifference, not because I don't like the songs, but because I like them both and don't have a real preference between the two. They ended up choosing "Where's the Love" all on their own, making this one of the few times I've seen Hanson without hearing "MMMBop." They closed out the set with "Give a Little" as expected to promote the new single, and I couldn't have been happier.

After the performance, the guys made their way over to the side of the room, and a woman directed us to line up and form groups of six. No one actually followed this rule, and I joined a group of three of my friends when our turn came. A few quick autographs, a rushed picture, and an awkward that's what she said joke later, it was over.

Our picture turned out great, but I'm a little disappointed at how it went down. Four friends and three Hansons seemed like a good ratio to spread out and not crowd any one brother, right? Consider it a pet peeve of mine to see a Meet and Greet picture with seven girls and five of them are crowded around Zac, and the sole girl next to Isaac is leaning away from him. The formula of which brother is hoarded and which is neglected changes frequently, but you know exactly what I'm talking about. Unfortunately, I was too slow to put any thought into the picture at all. Apparently I was person #4 in the 4:3 ratio, meaning when I finally got to Taylor to get my ticket autographed, everyone else had already been to all three Hansons, and I missed the memo that it was time to take the picture. As I stepped up to Taylor and held my ticket out towards him, instead of reaching for my ticket, he reached for my shoulder, turned me to face the camera, and told me to stand there for the picture.

It's easy to get over the unbalanced picture, though, because for once every single person in it looks great, and I actually know and love all of the people with me. I can't say the same for any of the other group pictures I've been in from member events.

Afterwards, a few of us went out to dinner at Buffalo Wild Wing's and had a good time talking about the show and past tour memories. I'm glad I went, and even more glad that it worked out so nicely for everyone else that went, too. As good as it was, I already find myself missing them and wanting more; not just missing Hanson, but missing the hours in the car with friends, the ridiculous conversations held on sidewalks at 3 AM, and the exhaustion of jumping and dancing for two hours. This mouse already has her eyes on that next big cookie.

Give a Little Pro-o-mooo

2011-03-01T01:20:00.000-05:00

Okay, so the title's cheesy, but I've watched the video enough in the last few days that the tune is permanently embedded in my brain. I swear I've been walking around with even the most random thoughts in my mind synchronized to that infections little "oh-oh-oh" bit.

It's March 1st--the video has officially been out for a week. This time a week ago, I was sitting on a friend's floor in Nashville watching the video for the first time with three fellow fans. We giggled at the random buffalo, the floor sweeper, Isaac doing a flip, and Zac stroking the stereo with his face like a cat. It's about as random as you can get as far as dancing goes too, with everything from a ballerina to break dancers to babies rolling around. That being said...it's awesome.

I've been in love with this song from the moment I first heard it on May 22nd at the Bamboozle Festival in Charlotte. It's light, it's in no way deep or philosophical, it doesn't make you think--it simply makes you dance. I wanted to contrast it with some of the mainstream popular music of the moment, but I'm suddenly realizing that there seems to be a trend of light, dance and party-themed songs going on right now; perhaps the timing is more than coincidental. Still, the energy and overall feeling of "Give a Little" is several steps above the average cluster of songs full of references to dynamite and glitter, and Enrique Iglesias's albeit similarly dance-infused "I Like It" is a little too adulterous for my taste (and let's face it--I'm not much of a fist-pumper). I definitely see this song going places in a more public way than Hanson's music has been in the past several years if people will give it a chance.

There's just something about the constant beat paired with that catchy guitar riff that makes you have to move, regardless of your skill level or reservations--and that's exactly the vibe the video gives. I decided early on that this song was meant to be danced to, and perhaps that's why I let go and danced like a fool in the crowd the first time I heard it at a full concert--the time I ended up on stage minutes later. The eclectic dancers in the video make me feel a bit more at home with my quirky dancing, and I think that's the point. It goes back to the old cliche: live like you're dying, dance like no one's watching, and all of that jazz. It's the same feeling I get when I travel to see Hanson, the reason I keep coming back over and over again, a sort of catharsis in letting go of responsibility and worry and just being for just three minutes and forty-four seconds. Maybe this is just the ramblings of someone who needs another Hanson fix to stifle the crazy, but this song rocks.

It must be the end of the road...(Baltimore 11/13 & Falls Church 11/14)

2010-12-07T23:24:00.015-05:00

BALTIMORE

People warned us that the Sonar is a crappy venue in a sketchy part of town. I didn't think much of this warning because someone always seems to say every venue is in a sketchy part of town. When we got there, I realized it was true. I was immediately glad we didn't bother to come early. There were homeless people everywhere, and even walking in groups was a bit scary. The closest bathroom was at a subway a few blocks away, and you had to ask for a key in order to use the bathroom. The key was given to us wired to a set of metal tongs, which further cemented my opinion of the area.

We didn't arrive until some time in the afternoon, and we were somewhere around the 60s in line. There was no walk, so we considered trying to go to the in-store performance and signing, but we didn't want to move our cars and we weren't about to walk a mile (ironic, huh?) and risk getting lost. It was cold and we were miserable and exhausted (Valerie and I drove all night with less than an hour of sleep), so we gave up trying not to be the oddballs and laid out some blankets in an attempt to catch up on a little sleep. We gave ourselves an hour to take a nap and ignored the handful of strange looks. Of course we were all so delirious at that point that instead of sleeping, we kept talking and giggling, and maybe a little of ducking and hiding, followed by more giggling. Needless to say, there was no sleep, but at least it was warm.

When we got inside, we realized there really wasn't any raised area or place to stand off to the side where you could see. You were either up front with a good view, or you weren't. There were already 2-3 rows of people filling up, but we spotted empty space by the barricade on Isaac's side, though it was very far to the left. I had to choose between standing in 2nd row behind some taller people to have an obstructed view of all 3 Hansons, or standing at the barricade and know I wouldn't see Zac at all. I decided I'd seen enough of Zac and would see him again in Falls Church and opted to stand in the front instead. It turned out to be a wise decision because somehow by the time Hanson hit the stage, the crowd had shifted enough that I could see all 3 of them just fine.

There was a door to our immediate left that seemed to lead outside, and before Hanson came on, there was a commotion and someone from the venue pulled a curtain from the stage and held it over the door, while Hanson clearly sneaked through. It kind of reminded me of someone holding up a sheet while someone changes behind it--it might cover enough to get the job done, but it's pretty obvious.

It's hard to know what to say about the concert itself because while the experience is different every time, there are only so many ways to express how awesome Voice in the Chorus is, or how much fun I had jumping during If Only, you know? I guess a few things that stand out would be Taylor getting distracted and messing up the lyrics to Penny and Me. I feel like he messed up something else during the acoustic set or shortly after as well, but I can't remember what. At the end of the acoustic set, they left the stage to Taylor for a solo, so I got pretty excited because I think this was the first solo of this leg of the tour for me. He said "Hmm, what to play..." so I attempted to shout "Believe!" but it didn't come out very loud. I'll leave it at the top of my list of songs to hear for now. He played Never Let Go instead, which of course made most of the crowd go wild, though I think it should definitely leave behind it's "rare" title by now.

At some point during the show, a really drunk girl shoved her way up to where we were and tried to get in front of us, saying she was trying to get to her friend or something. I guess that works when you're in the middle of the crowd, but she hardly needed to get between me and the barricade to get to any "friend". Rachel leaned more in her way, and I told her to get lost because we weren't having it, and somehow she did and we didn't see her again. She knocked Sam's purse out of her hand, and sadly we haven't seen her camera since, so part of me wonders if the girl was just playing drunk fan in order to do something a little more underhanded. There was also a lovely girl behind us shouting "Kiss me, Taylor!" But there's always one of those in some variation, isn't there?

The encore, Gimme Some Lovin', was a good surprise. We were all singing and dancing to it as it was played between sets, so it was nice to hear it from Hanson, and it was also a first for me.

Overall it was a good show. Not the best area I've been to (this is what English teachers call understatement, folks), but there was zero line drama, we got a good spot without trying, the setlist was pretty good, and we weren't around anyone particularly obnoxious during the show (minus Taylor girl, but she didn't last for long).

FALLS CHURCH

We were all so tired and cold that we didn't bother to show up early for Falls Church either. I had my first Noodles & Co experience instead, and I'm sad to say I'm hooked even though there isn't a single one within a 3 state radius of my hometown. We joked about making tour plans revolve around which cities have a Noodles & Co in the future. Why not?

We made it back with minutes to spare before the walk. Surprisingly they were still giving out numbers, and I was #121. You can see a definite decline in caring over the course of the whole trip--I started out as #1 at the first show, then fell to 121 by the last (the decline in temperature may have been directly proportional to this decline too, however). Valerie and I got in line to pick up her tickets from will call, and Hanson came out just as it was her turn at the window. Zac turned and looked suspiciously at those of us getting tickets and asked, "Are you guys going to walk?" I told him yes, that we were just hoping to pick up our tickets first, which seemed like a satisfactory answer because he turned and followed his brothers after that. I guess maybe he thought we'd rather stay and pick up tickets? Or maybe he thought we were in line for the show already, who knows.

The walk was good, and my feet were on their way to being numb, though I vividly remember the walk I took there in October 2008 being much more brutal on my feet (or quite possibly, my feet were just wimpier back then). I managed to see the grossest debris yet on this walk as I narrowly escaped stepping on a freshly dead squirrel. I'd rather not think about the number of people who may not have been so lucky. This particular walk speech stood out to me a little more than usual because Taylor referenced the way he snapped at some fans on the St. Louis walk for not wearing their shoes. He told us he was going to deliver the same message to us, only without yelling. The rest of the speech just seemed very clear and well spoken to me, and I'm glad I went on this walk. Near the end Taylor said something about the walk not being about Hanson, and Zac, who was standing in the very back of the crowd shouted "Aren't those guys 12?" It was definitely a well-timed moment for comic relief, and so dead-on that I think several of the turning heads weren't expecting to see Zac as the source, but rather an insulting bystander.

Back at the venue, I spotted Nikki Reed standing a few feet away from Taylor, grinning, barefoot, and aiming a camera at him--all things I'm extremely used to seeing from any other fan. I heard she was coming to the show, but I was impressed to see that she took the walk as well AND did it barefoot.

Once we got inside, we debated which area would deliver the best view. Having been on Isaac's side for the vast majority of these shows, we opted for Taylor's side and stood at the front of the bar area. In retrospect, I'm not so sure I'd make that same decision again. I guess I'll pare down the rant I had going and just say that there was an extremely drunk girl who was using one of the poor guys William walked in from the VIP door as a human stripper pole. Needless to say the guys William brought moved shortly after the show began, and I don't mean Hanson.

Unfortunately, this same girl was a little distracting throughout the whole show, straying into the walkway in front of us where security had to continuously remove people. I tapped her more than once to let her know she needed to move, and I'll give her a little credit by saying that every time I tapped her, she moved without putting up a fight. I think she was just honestly so far gone that she didn't know she was being obnoxious or in the way. She definitely had a good time, at least, though I bet her morning was a bit rougher than mine.

One thing that definitely stands out to me show-wise was Zac playing Go solo on the guitar. It was absolutely beautiful and blows every other time I've heard that song live out of the water completely. At the end, he spoke to the crowd and said that since we probably knew the words, we could sing the chorus in the background as he sang the main verse. I was really impressed with how well the crowd pulled this off, and seeing the huge grin on Zac's face while hearing us was priceless. It was a really neat moment to witness and I'm glad I was there to be a part of it. Taylor singing Love Me was another highlight, though my memory of hearing it in Atlanta in 2007 has me thinking it was somehow better the first time.

The encore was ridiculously amazing too. There was a poll on hanson.net and people could vote for which album they wanted the encore to come from. This Time Around won, and though I had voted for it as well in hopes of hearing In the City, they took the closing in a different, more subdued direction. They closed with Save Me, Dying to Be Alive, and A Song to Sing, all of which they livestreamed on their website. It was different from the usual crazy energetic encore, but it kind of made me sad winding down my last show like that. A Song to Sing definitely had me missing these guys already.

Since it was our last show and Lacie's birthday, we really wanted to wait by the bus and say goodbye. Zac was the only one that came out while we were there, but for what felt like the hundredth time, he politely took his time signing autographs and taking pictures with anyone that asked. When he made his way to us, Rachel and I ended up saying that it was our last show at the exact same time, then laughing because we kept doing a lot of the same things over and over as the trip progressed (in addition to being the girls with long hair, glasses, and grey sweatshirts at any given moment). I laughed and explained that I thought we were slowly becoming the same person, and he told us we were a couple of lemmings.
And while I'm sure he was going on the general connotation of the word as beings that are identical and follow each other, the actual definition is frighteningly close to what some might say of Hanson fans:

Lemming: (n) a member of any large group following an unthinking course towards mass destruction

Cue the image of a bunch of fans running off a cliff, ironically chanting "And we won't go down!"

We said goodbye to two friends that had to hit the road right after the show, then got some ridiculously good sleep and made a last trip to Noodles & Co. before hitting the road for the last time. Or I guess I should say, for the last time this tour ;-)

*I started this blog after my 11th concert. I realized there would be many more to come, and I was starting to lose little details and memories from each show already. 20 shows later (bringing the total to 31), I'm glad I started this. I know most of it doesn't mean anything to anyone but me, but I'm okay with that. It's fun to look back and remember little things I had forgotten and see how my perspective has changed over time. Here's to 20 more and then some!

Atlanta 11/10/10 & Charlotte 11/12/10

2010-12-04T01:26:00.013-05:00

These shows were great because I got to spend time with more friends I hadn't seen (okay, hadn't seen since Halloween, at least).

ATLANTA

We got up early the day of the show and drove to Atlanta from Orlando. Even with a good night's sleep behind us and driving during daylight hours, it felt pretty long. We arrived around 2 or 3 PM and were in the 60's in line. We also had pretty perfect timing and ended up directly next to our friends in line even without making any specific plans about meeting up.

This walk was the first I took on the trip since I worked the walk table at the FL shows, and it was also the first walk that was pitch dark outside. Bare feet + night time + Atlanta = scary combination, but I did it anyway. Atlanta was actually the first city I ever took the walk in over three years ago, so I was glad I got to participate. As per my usual, I ended up at the back of the walk before the halfway speech, which added an extra layer of creepy. As we neared the end, a small group of us got stuck at a red light with Zac leading the way as everyone else got away. Or was that Charlotte? I'm not sure anymore, but it's entirely possible that it happened twice.
Getting in line after the walk was, once again, chaotic. This time I had a will call ticket that wasn't released until 6 or so, so after we came back from the walk, there was a massive crowd taking over the front of the venue. The venue/Hanson tried to separate the line in two, with walkers on the left and non-walkers on the right. The box office was located directly between the two lines, so you can see how this got messy fast. It was impossible to discern who was trying to get a ticket and who was trying to smash themselves into the walk line. I talked to the people around me and found that I was standing behind 3 people who also needed tickets, so we reasoned that we were as "in line" as we were going to get. We stood waiting for what had to have been at least 15 minutes without ever moving, even though it was obvious other people were managing to get tickets. It was so packed that when I looked back, I saw Taylor and Isaac looking around looking like they were trying to assess the situation to find a hole in the crowd so they could get back inside. Instead, Taylor had to push his way through, and I ended up sandwiched even closer than I already was when he went past us. In the end, those of us needing will call tickets had to forcibly push past lots of people who were "in line" for the show.

As soon as I got my ticket I got out of the mess and found my other friends in line, past the big cluster of people, thankfully. Being in the front is great, but sometimes it feels equally as great to relax further back and not have to worry about all of the chaos.

When we got inside, we saw that each side of the venue had raised sections with chairs and tables. There were probably 4 on each side, and each one was raised slightly higher than the one below it, so they offered a good view. It was the perfect size for all 6 of us to spread out across the front of one. It was so nice to be able to sit before the show and during the set change, and it was especially nice for the pregnant one of the bunch.

The show was great, with the exception of closing with The Ugly Truth. I love my Hanson, but I can't love that song no matter how hard I try to. I think Taylor loves it because he gets to run around the stage uninhibited and jump from the piano, but it's a little bit of a crowd killer. People don't seem to sing along so much or jump around, and it's just generally not one of my favorites. I had a great time dancing with my friends during the rest of the show, though. We all did the TBS dance, or what we could in a confined space, anyway. Though I've heard Strong Enough to Break probably a dozen times in the past, it felt more special that night after having quit my job recently. It was definitely my own personal anthem for a little while during that time. We were all a little ridiculous acting out Oh Darling again, and of course we danced during Give a Little.

This was the 2nd time I watched as a guy and a girl were pulled on stage (not counting my own experience), and the whole thing ran pretty smoothly. Taylor picked the guy out first and then let the guy pick the girl, which I thought was cute. They did a good job going with the flow and looked like they had a good time up there. Suddenly I wonder if a lack of guys near the front ever has any impact over whether or not they do the whole dance bit on a given night, but this guy was in the front row ready to go, so it worked out. (after seeing the stage in Baltimore and St. Pete, I realize that stage size must be another important factor in the planning. No way would they want someone tripping and ripping out important cords on on of those tiny stages!)

We waited out by the bus with Heather because it was her last show, and we were thoroughly entertained by some cats as we waited. Someone had propped the stage door open with a brick, and we all watched and laughed as a cat stealthily sneaked (that's right, sneaked. Snuck isn't a word no matter how much better it sounds) past the door and into the venue. When a worker came out, we let him know, and we laughed even harder as moments later we saw the cat come running out after clearly having been chased. It gets better, though. Instead of being scared off, the cat returned with a tiny cat gang, and we watched incredulously as not one, but THREE cats slipped through the door a second time. This time when they were chased out, the door was shut firmly behind them, lesson learned. There was also the creepy remains of what must have been some kind of Halloween costume laying off to the side in some overgrown weeds. It was metallic silver and looked like some kind of space suit without a head, but the body still retained shape, so if you didn't look carefully, it looked like a shiny dead body thrown by the wayside. I should have taken a picture for sure. Zac was the only Hanson to come out, and once again he took his time with the fans, giving out both autographs and pictures. I caught a random piece of conversation where he mentioned having been naked at some point, and stating that he couldn't remember whether or not he was in the shower at the time. No idea what that was about! He also seemed enamored with Megan's little brother and was all smiles while talking to him. Her brother got Zac to autograph the back of his hand, and Zac warned that he was a little sick and didn't want to spread germs. A few days later when my cough came into full force, I realized he wasn't lying.

CHARLOTTE

I can't remember what time we showed up for this one; some time between 12 and 3 is my best estimate. I think we were somewhere between 50-70 in line (this is why I need to start forcing myself to write this stuff down closer to when it actually happened). It was Valerie's Birthday and we were all really excited to be there. Two friends even came to surprise everyone else and didn't let it slip that they were coming, which was fantastic. I think in all there were...8 of us that stood together in the balcony. I'll cut off the numbers there because I think we'd reach the upper teens if I included everyone we were collectively friends with at the show; it was definitely like a big party!This was dark walk #2, and this time I smartened up and fished my flashlight out of the trunk (or rather, Rachel mentioned how useful it would be to have a flashlight, and I realized I actually had one somewhere in the car). It got really cold that night for some reason, and stepping in freezing mud wasn't one of the highlights of the day. Once again I ended up in the back of the walk, and I think Valerie and I were actually dead last at one point. I think Valerie or Rachel commented on the lack of fire ants since previous Charlotte walks, and Isaac turned around and added that it was probably too cold for them. I'd believe it. On the way back, our group got cut off from the front portion by a red light and traffic once again, and Taylor waited impatiently on the other side of the road. As we finally crossed, Taylor stood defiantly in front of a big truck to make sure we made it. As we passed him, the guy in the truck actually started revving his engine in a threatening way. As Taylor stepped away and the truck drove off, I heard "Hey, ya'll, I've got a big truck!" in that mock-hick voice, followed by a chorus of giggles. Back in line, I met back up with all of my friends and found out just how awesome Taylor had been to Morgen, and my respect for them grew even more.

When we got inside, we headed for the balcony on Isaac's side and got decent spots where we could see (well, as decent as you can get at Amos's without being on stage. There really is no decent spot in that venue between the random poles and high-mounted speakers). I thought the crowd was going to be horribly dull watching their reaction to Jarrod Gorbel, but they perked right up for Hanson. Oddly I think out of the whole trip, this was the worst reaction I saw for Jarrod, and the best reaction I saw for Hanson. How sad.

The show had great energy and a great setlist. I'm tempted to say it was my favorite of this leg because of the people I was with; we had so much fun that night. Change in My Life had several of us in tears; it was an awesome moment for sure. Give a Little and Lost Without Each Other brought a full on dance party where we quit looking over the balcony at the stage all together and just let loose. I think I had my back to the stage for the entirety of both of those songs. To anyone else, we probably looked like crazy drunk people, but really, we were just ridiculously happy. In the City brought the perfect end to the perfect show, and Rachel and I had just been talking about how we wanted to hear it as a closer. We jumped like crazy after dancing like crazy, and we walked out feeling like we had been beaten up, but in a good way. That is probably the most tired I've ever been after a show, which was really unfortunate since we had a 7 hr drive to Baltimore and we planned to leave immediately. After cupcakes and hugs, a few bittersweet goodbyes and a cracked hubcap, we hit the road yet again.

*1/18/11 I'm not going to edit this entry because it makes for a good laugh, and quite frankly, I obviously don't really remember enough details to correct the error anyway. As Valerie pointed out in the comments, she didn't even take the walk in Charlotte, so scratch all of the stuff I attributed to her on that walk. I think maybe it was Whitney U.? How the heck do I not know who I walked with in Charlotte? I guess when the number of friends I saw matches the number of shows I went to on that leg, things can get confusing.

Epcot Food & Wine Festival 11/8 and 11/9

2010-11-27T01:08:00.022-05:00

Initially, I had no intention of going to these shows due to the price of Disney tickets. In the end though, a friend was able to get us in for free and we were able to help her out by giving her a ride to a few shows. Everybody wins! Let me mark that down on the list of things I'm thankful for this Thanksgiving. I knew it was just going to be a few shorter sets, and we'd most likely hear a lot of the same songs each time, but I'm glad I went. Rachel and I had each only been to Disney World once, so we didn't bother to wait in line either day, and instead we rode as much as we could in the little time we had.

We spent the first day exclusively at Epcot. We saw Captain EO, which was hilariously cheesy. The first time the screen showed Michael Jackson's face, a little girl behind us whispered loudly, "Mommy, is that a girl?" We couldn't help but burst out laughing at that. Completely priceless. We also rode Test Track, some kind of boat ride featuring Donald Duck in Mexico, another boat ride through Norway, and I put on my big girl pants and opted for the more intense version of Mission Space, which turned out to be much more intense than I remember it being when I was 16. Soarin' was probably my favorite, though.

Since the Food & Wine festival was going on and I managed to not spend any money on tickets, I decided to let myself try out a few things. The prices were actually pretty decent, but the portions were small. This actually works well for someone who has spent the day riding rollercoasters and intends to jump and dance wildly for an hour or so. My first choice was a potato pierogi with sour cream, caramelized onions, and sausage from Poland. Yum!

Next was chocolate mousse from France, which was so delicious that I made an involuntary sound at the first bite. It was so good that we went back to France on the 2nd day and I tried a Napoleon, something I had been eying the first day when I got the mousse. It was good, but not nearly as good as the mousse.

We chose to wear Hanson t-shirts that day, which sparked a lot of random conversations with the Disney staff. The girl at the Kim Possible station talked to us for a few minutes about how she didn't know they were still making music, and she had just seen them in the break room and was excited about it. Apparently "the young one" was buying a Snickers from a vending machine. The guy taking our picture with Duffy (apparently Mickey's new teddy bear? Ploy for money if I ever saw one) asked if we were going to see Hanson. I told him no, so he got defensive and said "Oh, I just thought you girls look a little young to like Hanson." I asked how old he thought we looked. He said 20, which led us to question how old he thought Hanson was. Normally people think we're too old to like Hanson, so it was just weird that he thought Hanson was older. I think he had Hanson pegged about right, he just thought we were all younger than we are.
The conversations with the staff turned out to be helpful, though, because Kim Possible girl let us know that you're allowed to sit on this wall off to the side at the venue the show would be at, and she said most people don't know it. It was on the far far left, past all of the seating, but it was separated from the seating enough that we could see the whole stage without anyone blocking our view, and no one would be allowed to stand in front of us. If we had cared about being up close, it would have been a sucky place to stand, but instead it provided a good view and a lot of room for ridiculous dancing. We asked the venue staff if it was okay for us to be there just to make sure, and they said it was fine. We ended up standing in the same spot all 6 shows without any trouble and without waiting in line at all.

I was happily surprised at how many people turned up to watch the show, and I think Hanson felt the same way. Taylor made several comments on stage that led me to believe that he didn't expect a lot of regular Hanson fans to show; he seemed impressed to see familiar faces and a sea of Hanson t-shirts in addition to plenty of curious vacationers. We ran into some other friends that didn't care about where they were going to be and also like to dance, so we had a blast rocking out by the wall for every show. We had our own little flash mob every time they played TBS (which was every single show, so 6 times total). Because of where we we re st anding, we were mostly surrounded by the random vacationers, and there were a few times where we were getting more attention than Hanson during TBS. The 2nd day, the awesome girls we met up with brought glow sticks and we had a blast dancing around like fools once again. I've come to the realization lately that people probably peg me and my friends as the drunks at any given show, but we're just naturally awesome.

I also couldn't resist splurging on some sequined Minnie ears.

Ft. Lauderdale, FL 11/6/10

2010-11-24T18:05:00.009-05:00

This show was about as unlucky as St. Pete was lucky, but it happens. Besides, the lucky days wouldn't seem nearly as awesome if there weren't a few downers mixed in, right?

The drive to Ft. Lauderdale from St. Pete was an experience in itself. Surviving four years of college with insomnia (which is now more or less cured) left me with the ability to stay awake for long periods of time and get by on minimal amounts of sleep. It never fails that when I'm on the road, everyone hits that point of passing out from exhaustion before I do, and even when I hit it, a 30 min.--1hr nap will usually cure me long enough to get me to the next destination. That being said, I drove the whole way from Ft. Lauderdale to St. Pete with one passenger completely passed out, and one who was in and out of sleep but was only semi-conscious at best. The GPS somehow took us on a two-lane back road the whole way there, and the signs for panther and alligator crossing didn't make me feel very safe.

We finally pulled up to the venue around 6 AM, and I was shocked to realize we were the first ones there. While we had every intention of being early in line the day before, the purpose of driving through the night to Ft. Lauderdale was more of a way to not spend money on a hotel than anything else (FYI--we showered at a friend's house later that morning. No hotel does not equal no shower!). I got a little sleep early that morning, but no more than an hour or two, and I was also having that queasy excited feeling that means I can't eat much. Not a good combination.

The line was pretty laid back and I fully enjoyed meeting a group of teenage guys and girls that were at their first Hanson show. The guys seemed the most excited about being there, and they were absolutely adorable about it. I guess one was #31 in line because I remember hearing him say "Hey guys, little known fact! Hanson's favorite number is 31! Now who wants to trade with me?" No takers, obviously, but I got a kick out of it. They also ran into Taylor at some point in the day and were really excited about getting a picture with him. One of them mentioned wanting to hear Save Me live, and they were definitely the reason it got played later during the show. They seemed really impressed that I was first in line and had a sleeping bag, though I tried to explain that it wasn't anything special and showing up at 6 AM was actually nothing for lots of fans.

My friend and I were working the walk table again, but this time things didn't go so smoothly. I was under the impression that we were to get everyone registered before the walk if at all possible. We did our best and took turns going up and down the line asking people to register if they hadn't already. By the time the guys came out, no one had signed up for a while so it seemed like we got everyone that was present. While the walk was gone, the venue had us move the table to the front of where the walk line would go in and asked that we would put the walk stuff away so the line could be ready to go when they got back. We boxed everything up and asked them to either get it to Machine or find him for us. Instead, they told us to go in the venue and find him ourselves. We tried to explain that we weren't with the band, we were just fans that volunteered to help, but they still insisted that we take it inside ourselves. We didn't want to roam the venue and get in trouble, so we walked just a few feet in and gave it to the nice girl that was selling merch for Jarrod Gorbel and asked if she could get it to Machine. She took it and said she would make sure he got it, so we went back outside.

When the walkers came back, we were standing in front of the empty table where the walk line would begin since we were the first people in line anyway. Taylor came up and asked us where all the walk stuff was and seemed confused about why it had all been put away. He explained that people had indicated that they hadn't registered yet, so in the end we had to get the registration stuff back out and stand by as the line went in to register anyone who had been missed. There were a few extra people who hadn't registered that were able to do it before the line went in, but only 2-3 people actually got out of line to register. It was a little frustrating that it worked out that way, but we had such a great night in St. Pete and I knew we had more shows ahead of us, so we just kind of shrugged and went with it instead of being worried about our spots in line. We got in after the walk line was done, and some friends manged to save a spot for me up front, but there wasn't room for both of us and we got split up. The stage and barricade were both pretty high and I was pretty squished, so in retrospect I honestly wish I had gone with Rachel to stand off to the side instead of staying in the front row.

The show was good but I think my mood was killed a little bit by that point, and watching a bra fall from the balcony almost onto Taylor didn't really lift my spirits. The one highlight I recall was Save Me as the encore because the guys we met earlier kept shouting for Hanson to play it throughout the show. At one point, Taylor even shouted back "Hold on, it's not time for that yet," or something to that effect. It was cute, and I was excited to hear it for the first time.

Out by the bus after the show, all 3 guys came out again, and Rachel and I decided to get our inflatable keyboards signed by Taylor in addition to a microphone from our "lead singer" of the 80s Hare Band who had never had the opportunity to meet Hanson or get an autograph (see my Halloween post if that makes no sense). The crowd was much larger and was held back behind a barricade, so the guys were pretty quick to come out, but they were also pretty quick to leave. We could tell Taylor had no clue what we were giving him to sign, but there were so many people around that there wasn't really a chance for us to explain. It makes me wonder how many things they've had shoved at them where they walk away thinking "What the heck was that anyway?" or "Why did they want THAT signed?" Plenty, I'm sure. Zac took the longest again and since it only seemed reasonable to get Taylor to sign the keyboard, I got a picture with him instead. Isaac was too crowded/occupied to ask for a picture, so I decided not to crowd him. I have to say I'm really appreciative of how much they put into trying to please their fans. It only took a few seconds, but he was very nice about it and it's crazy to think just how many people's days (or weeks, or heck, even lives) they make just by taking a moment to smile for a camera.

St. Petersburg, FL 11/5/10

2010-11-23T23:54:00.004-05:00

This got long, but I had a really good time. Deal with it.

(That's what ~~she~~ he said)

This was probably the luckiest I've ever been at a show. Alright no, I take that back, but it was pretty close. Top 3 at least. Everything just seemed to strangely fall into place for us.

I went with two friends and we showed up the afternoon before the show to camp out. We stuck around for a few hours while a crowd for another show (Birthday Massacre?) went inside. After they went in, we talked to the venue staff and they more or less laughed and told us we couldn't camp out. After an interesting yet polite conversation with them about how it's actually common for fans to camp out and it wouldn't be a first for us, they assured us that if we left like they asked us to do, they would help us out the next day. They told us to come back around 3 PM the next day and to go get some sleep at a nearby hotel. We weren't entirely sure we should believe them, but what can you do? We left and hoped for the best, but prepared ourselves for the possibility that it wouldn't work out.

Though they told us to come back the next afternoon, we knew it would get ugly if we came back that late in the day and expected other fans to be okay with us jumping the line. Instead, we got some sleep and returned the next morning. It turned out 2 out of 3 of us won pairs of tickets from a local radio station, so we stopped by and picked them up on the way to the venue. When we got there, there were only 5 other girls in line. We let them know that we had been there the night before but just took numbers 6-8 without complaint and decided to just roll with it and see what would happen. It's not like #6 is a bad spot in line, so no big deal.

It was a pretty lazy day in line; the weather was okay though a little cold for Florida, and I enjoyed talking to the girls ahead of us who seemed pretty normal. A friend and I worked the walk table, and we even convinced the guy from the venue who was giving directions to fill out the walk sheet to make his mile count. Things got crazy when the walk returned. The walk was at 5:45 and doors were at 7, so it returned pretty close to time for doors to open. As a result, there was chaos instead of a line as the walkers returned. People were packed up against the doors and some got behind the table and we were even being pushed as we tried to finish registering walkers and pack up the walk stuff.

Just as we were closing up shop on the walk table, I felt someone yanking my arm and looked over to see that the staff guys we had talked to the night before were trying to pull the 3 of us inside. I was surprised and thankful but things got really chaotic and I really hope we didn't make too many enemies with how that must have looked to others in line. So just for the record, if anyone saw that happen and thought we must have done something underhanded to get ourselves in first, we didn't, and it had absolutely nothing to do with working the walk table either.

It wasn't time for doors to open yet, so we took advantage of the opportunity to use the bathroom and then sat awkwardly inside the lobby waiting for permission to go into the venue itself. We were given a few minutes head start, and I was a little shocked to see the front row already pretty much full when we walked in, even though we were the first people from the line to get inside. At first we were pretty far over on Isaac's side, but as it turned out the two girls that were dead center were only there for Jarrod Gorbel, so we stood behind them instead and took their spots when they left. It was neat to meet someone who understood our passion for Hanson that felt the same way about Jarrod. I believe the girl in front of me said it was her 7th show, and later when we talked to Jarrod, he mentioned her by name as being a loyal fan. Hanson's got a lot of work to do if they're going to remember the names of everyone who has seen them 7 times ;-)

The show was really good and it was definitely the best spot I've ever been in during a concert. There was also no barricade and it was a small stage, so it felt pretty intimate. The girl and her boyfriend standing directly behind us were great and we had a blast dancing like fools and rocking out together. They also got in on our ridiculous "that's what she said" addiction that lasted for the whole trip. Unfortunately, small stage + front row center+ no barricade = whoever's on stage can hear you. So when I cracked a that's what she said joke while Jarrod was talking and we started laughing loudly, he heard us and stopped to ask if it was a pity laugh. Oops. We took the time to explain ourselves and apologize after the show. There was also an awkward moment where Jarrod realized there was a big gap in the crowd to my left where two girls had sat down. At first it felt like he was staring right at me during the song, and I had a moment where I thought okay, this is one of those times where he picks some random girl in the audience to sing to or whatever, and I'm in his line of sight. Then he stopped singing dead in the middle of the song and said "Is everything okay? Did somebody fall down?" and looked to my left, and I realized he had been trying to figure out the lack of people next to me. I gave a pitiful thumbs up as someone else yelled out "People are just sitting down!" Ouch! Oh well, he was a trooper and kept playing.

I don't need to add that Hanson was awesome. Rachel and I were a little bit ridiculous with our dancing, definitely moreseo than I'm used to, but I've got to say I loved it so much that I adopted it for all of the rest of the shows. I'll forever be in love with Thinking 'Bout Somethin', Give a Little, and Lost Without Each Other from now on (not that I wasn't already, but the ridiculous dancing sealed the deal). I fully loved Voice in the Chorus and Isaac and Zac's crazy headbanging; Isaac's hair is just perfect for it. I didn't fully love Taylor shoving Dimitrius right into our faces for his guitar solo during the band intro (no barricade and the height of the stage put his crotch right at our faces), but I'd be lying if I didn't say it was an entertaining surprise. It was equally terrifying when Isaac came up to the center to encourage the crowd during Hey because it felt like we might punch him when we were throwing our fists up.

It was a really awesome experience for me personally just because I think I had the perfect spot in the venue, but I didn't get the feeling that the rest of the crowd was all that excited to be there. It felt like all the energy was coming from us and a few other people nearby, but there were several times where it felt like we were the only people jumping (during appropriate times; I swear. We weren't just hopping during Carry You There or anything obnoxious).

We were somehow just as lucky after the show. Heather had caught a guitar pick from Isaac, Rachel got me my first setlist from Muff, and one of the awesome venue guys went backstage and grabbed her a call sheet. We went out by the bus in hopes of getting the setlist and call sheet signed and Heather wanted pictures. I don’t think I’ve ever been at the bus when all 3 came out in the same night, or when it has happened, they were all in a hurry or I managed to miss one of them while I was getting something from the car. Somehow, they all came out and were all pretty leisurely about it. Isaac was first and quickest, but he took the time to sign autographs and take pictures. Zac came out when Isaac was almost done, and he stayed out for what felt like a long time and seemed to be pretty chatty. Taylor came out a good bit later after the crowd was significantly smaller, but he signed autographs and took pictures as well. It seemed a little cheesy, but I debated asking him to sign next to Give a Little. Before I could make up my mind and ask, though, he had already taken the setlist from me and signed it. When I took it back I saw that he had indeed signed right over Give a Little and had dated 2010 directly next to that song. Probably just a lucky coincidence, but I’ll take it. I actually had a lot of fun just talking to everyone I knew as we waited around, and I had that awesome excited feeling of just having finished and awesome show and knowing that I had several more ahead. Our luck carried over to parking when we got to the car and didn’t have a ticket even though we’d been parked in the same spot for way more than the allotted 2 hours. The whole day was definitely a success.

Make it Out Alive (a Hare raising event)

2010-11-22T00:33:00.008-05:00

As soon as I heard that Hanson was going to have a member event in October, I secretly wished it would be on Halloween and I could somehow go to it. As soon as I found out it was true, I started plotting. When I realized tour started the next day, things got dangerous.

Long story short--my desire to go to this one show somehow spawned into me hitting 9 shows and being on the road for over 2 weeks. I'm not sure how it happened, but I'm glad it did.

For this show, I ended up going with 6 other awesome girls, and we came up with what I still hold as the best group costume idea ever. And okay, so nobody else seems to get it, but I still think it's genius. Are you ready for this? 80s Hare Band. Basically we were an 80s Hair Band, only we substituted "Hare" for "Hair" and added bunny ears and tails to the ridiculous 80s attire. If you want to add another complicated layer, you might call us a "hare band air band" because we also carried inflatable instruments, but we left that part off of the contest card. We'd like to think that we didn't win (or even rank, sadly enough) based on the fact that 1) whoever did the judging didn't get the genius idea, or 2) nobody wanted to shell out 7 prizes if we won. The truth is it probably just wasn't as awesome as we all thought, but like I said, I still think it was an amazing idea.

Anyway, it was a blast. How often do you get to scout out ridiculous clothes at thrift stores and glue glitter and sequins to anything they'll stick to? Maybe once a year for Halloween enthusiasts, but my Halloween experience as an adult started and ended with my tiny Alice in Wonderland costume from freshman year of college. Lesson learned. This was a lot like prom--most of the fun was in buying and wearing the dress. There's just some kind of inner joy that only a girl can comprehend in walking into a thrift store, finding the perfect pair of $1.50 80s heels, and then bedazzling the heck out of them with multi-colored glitter. Try it some time.

We didn't line up until 6, but of course there were already a bunch of people in line. We got a big kick out of poor Machine soldering locks off of the trailer hitched to the tour bus. I'll never know what went wrong, but it was entertaining to watch. The costumes were really interesting, and I was impressed that I didn't see a single person in line not wearing a costume. I was also impressed with the obvious lack of 1) slutty outfits, and 2) people dressed as Hanson. I guess I should have a little more faith.

As we walked in the venue, I stepped on a knife, and it just didn't quite register in my mind that it was fake at first. I stopped and had a bit of a "Did I just step on a knife?" moment, and then a random guy carrying a box of merch inside stooped down, picked it up, handed it to me, and said "Here, this is for you!" then walked away smiling. So of course I did what any 80s clad girl with bunny ears would do; I gave him a WTF look, tucked the knife into the waistband of my skirt, and kept walking to scout out a good spot. The whole thing was weird and I'm still not sure what exactly happened or why. What I do know is there's a rubber knife somewhere in the trunk of my car and some person out there without one.

We ended up with a good spot on Taylor's side, technically front row just behind a speaker. It ended up being the best spot possible for us. Earlier I debated whether to take an inflatable keyboard or an inflatable guitar. The piano player in me wanted to take the keyboard, but the practical part of me (is there such a thing anymore?) knew it would be easier to fake rock out on a guitar than on a keyboard in the middle of the crowd. The pianist in me won out, so I took the keyboard and hoped for the best. With the speaker directly in front of us, we were able to stack the keyboards on top of it and create our own mock piano right in front of the real one. We were ridiculous rocking out on the keyboards and guitars the whole show, and one of us even had an inflatable microphone to sing into. The show wouldn't have been nearly as good without the amazing girls I was with.

Of course Hanson was awesome too. They managed to play both songs that have been at the top of my "must hear live" list for the past three years: Dancing in the Wind and In the City. It was also really neat getting to hear the Ghostbusters theme song, and I had never heard Hand in Hand either, so overall the setlist was pretty killer. We were slightly disappointed that they didn't play Evening at the Big Top, but I decided that they probably didn't even remember that it existed, and I'd rather hear Ghostbusters anyway. Their costumes were cute and clever with Zac as the 3 musketeers candy bar, and the expected sword jokes just kept coming. As soon as he said "rapier," I immediately knew there would be lots of misinterpretations since I doubt everyone knew that a rapier is a type of sword. Not gonna lie, the rape jokes could have stayed home.

It was a blast, we took awesome pictures, we rocked out on inflatable instruments, we ate great mexican food and pizza, and we left the crown plaza (and the back seat of my car) with about a pound of glitter.

Raleigh 7/31/10

2010-08-04T22:12:00.005-04:00

We arrived around 12:45 PM and I was #44 in line. Since we went all out for Asheville, we decided to take it easy in Raleigh and aim for a good spot in the balcony. I helped with the walk table again, and though the walk looked smaller to begin with, I think we ended up with more cards filled out than in Asheville. I also noticed a good bit of children on the walk, and it was so cute getting to stamp the hands of a pair of brothers who must have been around 4 and 5. I said "Hey, you guys are going to get some stamps. Would you like that?" They nodded shyly, but then shouted "Look, mom!" and showed them off as soon as I was done. So cute! I even stamped the hand of an infant asleep in her mother's arms, and noticed that two of Taylor's children attended the walk (even barefoot, I think) as well.

Instead of the blistering heat from the day before, this walk had clouds and a little rain. It still seemed to be shorter than any I remember going on, but I forgot to check my watch this time.

Isaac was one of the first ones back from the walk, (I recall someone shouting "Isaac won!") and he came up to me and complimented me on my dance moves. I joked with him about how those dance moves were pretty nonexistant and told him I was slightly mortified, but he was really nice about it and I thanked him for having me up there anyway.

The line was dramatic again, but I tried not to worry about it since we were headed for the balcony anyway. It was a little nerve wracking because once again, they didn't open the box office or will call tickets until the same time doors opened. One friend had a will call ticket, and one had to purchase one.

Let me say that the Lincoln failed as a venue in my eyes. We were told different things by different people all day long regarding camera policies, the number system, and even box office times. When we got inside and my friend tried to buy a ticket (after waiting in line for ~6 hrs and being told the box office would open with doors), she was told "I'm sorry, but I'm not sure we have any left to sell." Really? How can they not be sure if they have tickets? I got pretty angry though my friend seemed pretty composed. I think I mentioned to the employee that it was completely unacceptable that we had been waiting in line for 6 hrs and had specifically asked about tickets, and no one told us it was sold out. Another employee tried to get her to just sell us the ticket and let us in (since we were clearly mad), but the first employee was adamant that they get permission first. She said something along the lines of "But we've oversold already!" Yikes! In the end, we all went inside without the one friend and saved her a spot. She was able to buy one from someone outside and get in just fine, but I'm beyond disappointed that the Lincoln would open the box office without knowing whether or not they had tickets. Completely incompetent!

We ended up with good spots at the front of the balcony as planned, and the show was great. It was indeed packed, and I'm glad I was upstairs rather than in the crowd. I was so tired at this point that I actually fell asleep sitting on my stool leaning against the railing between Rooney and Hanson's sets. Pitiful, right?

The setlist was great and the energy was great, but I think my tiredness and the epicness from the night before made it seem less amazing than it really was. They played a new cover for the first time called "Roll With It," and once again invited girl on stage to dance--this time with Robert from Rooney.

One song that got me excited that I had no idea would have such an effect on me was "Hey." I guess I got so used to hearing it in 2007/2008 that it turned into a staple, and I didn't realize when it was gone. I definitely noticed its presence, though, and it really stood out to me for some reason. We also got "A Minute Without You," "If Only," and "Lost Without Each Other," the three songs that I could hear over and over and over and be happy. LWEO was made to be an encore song and it always ends a show on the perfect note for me.

Afterwards, we went out to the busses because I wanted to get a picture with Taylor since it was my last show. Somehow, it just seemed right that I get a picture and a chance to talk to him after the whole crazy dancing thing.

It rained and we got split up and I seriously considered giving up and going to the car--especially since my umbrella was inside it. Unfortunately, I realized I gave my keys to friends who had to walk several blocks, so my options were pretty limited after that.

Isaac came out first, and a few friends and I got a group picture with him. He was pretty talkative and extremely nice to all of us. Points for Isaac!

It started raining a little harder and my keys were still MIA, so we all huddled under a tree to keep the rain off a little. I also met a really nice fan who hadn't been to a show in years that shared her umbrella with me. I don't rememer her name or have any way to contact her, but whoever you are, thanks!

Taylor finally came out and announced that Zac wasn't feeling well, but he took the time to sign autographs and take pictures. My friends and I got a group picture and I got an individual picture as well since I didn't have any. We talked a little about the whole dance idea and I asked if it was something he was going to start doing regularly. He grinned and was cryptic and said you could never really tell.

We finally left after he moved on, and as exhausted as we were, we went in search of a hotel. We turned down two due to the price, but finally found one that was pretty cheap. Strangely enough, as we checked in (around 2:30 AM), a few guys standing on the balcony asked us what brought us here. We told them Hanson, and one of the guys told us he was good friends with one of Hanson's good friends (Shannon Curfman), and he said he had been offered the opportunity to play bass for Hanson 9 yrs ago but had declined. He joked about how if he had taken them up on the offer, he wouldn't be staying in a motel like that now. No kidding! Small world, though.

Inside the room was grosser than the streets I've slept on for Hanson, I'm not even kidding. There were scuff marks on the walls, it smelled bad, and the comforter on the bed felt a little damp to touch. We quickly decided we'd be sleeping on top of the beds in our sleeping bags, and joked that we'd rather be back at The Orange Peel.

As tired as I was, I was even dirtier, so I opted to take a quick shower. I took off all my clothes, jumped in, pulled the curtain shut, and promptly screamed and jumped back out. The largest roach I have ever seen in my entire life--and I live in Charleston--was staring down at me from the top of the curtain. I swear it was about half the size of my open hand, and I'm not exaggerating at all.

We packed up all our things and packed them back up, and when I "demanded" a refund, the clerk didn't so much as ask any further questions. She obviously knew how gross it was.

We ended up at a Wyndham for a higher price, but that's probably the best sleep I've ever had in my life and the beds were great. I'll definitely keep that chain in mind for future Hanson trips. :)

Asheville 7/30/2010 (a.k.a. I danced with Taylor Hanson and all I got was this stomach ulcer)

2010-08-01T22:10:00.023-04:00

I was extremely excited when I found out Hanson was playing at the Orange Peel again. The concert there in 2008 was hands-down the best Hanson show I've ever been to, and the venue and staff were great, so a few friends and I decided to go all out for this show and get there early enough to be up front.

The camping part was actually pretty fun. One of my all-time favorite camping moments has to be when I woke up to hear a pedestrian telling someone "Tell them they don't have to camp to see Jesus!" in a very serious voice. I considered getting up and telling her not to worry, that I was totally capable of seeing both Hanson and Jesus one day.

The staff was so friendly and supportive of us, and they brought us water in a cooler and let us use their bathrooms multiple times. They also gave us a lovely chair leg "just in case." The night before the show, someone had rented out the venue for a sweet 16 birthday party, and we were kindly asked to disappear for several hours. They gave those of us who were there wristbands, and we went out and had some fun around the city.

There was also this neat little locally owned organic grocery store across the street and their ice cream freezer had broken down. It was horrible for them, but they started selling all of their ice cream (lots of brands including ben and jerry's, yum!) for $1 regardless of size/price/brand before it was all melted. We picked up several and sat around sampling them. I have to say the chai vanilla was my favorite.

I can't say much for the walk because I worked the walk table for the first time. Before the guys came out, William casually walked up unnoticed and asked what we were doing and what the table was for with a completely straight face. I played along and explained how Hanson would donate a dollar to one of five causes if he would fill out a card. He grinned, said he was kidding, then left. It was definitely an interesting experience, and much busier than I had anticipated (amplified a little by someone accidentally spilling an entire cup of coke all over the table during registration). By the end when the walkers returned and Taylor was telling everyone to register, we had to tell him that we were almost out of cards, and he ran inside to get someone to get more. There was a pretty big turnout, but it was also the shortest walk I've ever witnessed. Not counting the beginning or ending speeches, the walkers were gone for a total of 20 minutes! I hear it was pretty blistering, so maybe that's why.

The line got dramatic closer to the show because there were a lot of M&Gers and the will call tickets weren't released until 30 min. before doors, meaning there were tons of people milling around the front of the line who may or may not have belonged there. They came out and got those of us with wristbands and we got let in right behind the M&Gers, but I hear that things got chaotic after that. As happy as I've been with the Orange Peel, I'm sad for everone else who may have lost their spots. They were definitely more organized in 2008 when they gave the first 100 people color coded wristbands, but I can't be angry with how well I was treated personally (even got a high five and a "you made it!" from one of the employees when I thanked him as we entered).

My friends and I all ended up in the front row, and I was just a little to the left of the center. I didn't have high hopes for Delta Rae because I had lisetened to their demo while voting for the opener, and I just didn't like it. I'm SO glad they won, though, because they were pretty amazing. They had very strong voices that blended well together. I've loved Rooney for years, so I was very excited to see them too. They rocked, but it felt so short. I guess I got used to a long wait for Hanson during the Use Your Sole Tour.

It was SO hot waiting for Hanson to come on. The staff kept spraying the crowd with water bottles to cool us down, and it was much appreciated. I didn't even care that I got sprayed directly in the face at one point. The show itself was amazing and has definitely replaced the last Asheville show as my favorite show of all time.

The setlist was awesome. We got to hear Dancing in the Street for the first time, and I was really excited to finally hear Man from Milwaukee. The crowd was pretty energetic and the guys seemed really on as well. Things got really crazy when Give a Little was played.

At the beginning of Give a Little, Taylor walked off the stairs on the side of the stage and came back with a guy dressed as one of the Blues Brothers. The guy proceeded to dance to the whole song--and very well, might I add. It was so entertaining and I couldn't stop laughing (in a good way), and at about that point, I decided that this show just might knock the last Asheville show out of its #1 spot in my mind. After the verses ended, the guys kept playing in the background while Taylor talked. He said something to the effect of guys needing a little encouragement, and he rubbed his body seductively showing how one should dance for the right effect. Then he pointed at me and motioned for me to join him on stage, and at that point, I knew it was going to be my favorite show forever. This could never be topped for me, and I'm okay with that.

For some strange reason, it didn't occur to me to turn him down. When Taylor Hanson is asking you to get on stage with him, you don't stop to weigh the pros and cons (or at least my adrenaline rush prohibited me from doing just that). I used my arms to boost myself up on the barricade (which came up to just a few inches below my shoulders--I'm 5'2" as is evident in the giant gap between our heights), and with a combination of my arms, my friends around me shoving me upwards, a security guard spotting me, and Taylor pulling me from the stage, I managed to get up there without falling and breaking anything.

It was completely unplanned (on my end, at least), and I had no clue what he was wanting me to do. I assumed he was about to teach the crowd a dance or something and use me to help lead. I thought that was doable since I did live through the TBS video shoot. Once on stage, I couldn't hear a word he was saying into the microphone. I can't tell you how nerve wracking it was to be standing up there, watching Taylor talk and point at me, and having NO CLUE what he was saying. I got really worried that he was somehow explaining what I was supposed to be doing and was completely unaware that I couldn't hear him. I got even more nervous as I heard the crowd respond to whatever he was saying. They would intermittently erupt with cheers and screams in response to something he said, which was both exciting and worrisome. I knew SOMETHING exciting was happening, but had no clue what, and it suddenly seemed like I was the only one in almost a thousand people left clueless. I was shocked when he came over and started dancing with me. It was just so sudden--no explanation, no time to react--and there was no easing into it.
If you've seen the videos, you'll know I can't dance. My apologies for any awkward second-hand embarrassment. Had I known what was going to happen or had enough common sense to outweigh the adrenaline rush of the invitation, I might have declined. But as awkward as it was, I'm glad it happened.

Speaking of awkward, have I mentioned what a bad dancer I am? I'm talking sat-glued-to-a-chair-to-avoiding-dancing-at-prom bad. Or maybe it's not that I'm so terrible, but more of a mixture of moderate terribleness and severe lack of self confidence in that department. I'm going to blame part of the awkwardness from this particular occasion on the whole taboo of touching Taylor, though. He's a married man that I don't know, and it's always just been law in my mind that you don't touch the guy. Why else would people get so excited over having him shake their hands, or put a hand on their shoulder in a picture? He's off-limits. Even with him clearly trying to dance with me, it felt wrong or dangerous to get too close, like I might be misinterpreting his actions and do something to get in trouble. I remember pulling back at one point when he spun me and tried to pull me into him again because my brain was still shouting at me that I was crossing lines that I wasn't supposed to be crossing.

So Taylor tried his best to lead me, and I tried my best to follow. I'm not sure if anyone could tell, but I forgot to change shoes before the show and was actually wearing rainbow flip flops. How I managed to step on the slick barricade and not fall on my head is something I can't explain. Seriously--one wrong step would have been the difference between becoming "that girl that Taylor pulled on stage" and being dubbed "that girl that pulled Taylor off the stage." Let's not even think about how badly that could have gone. Anyway, I actually lost one of my shoes while we were dancing and had a fleeting thought about how this was taking the whole barefoot thing a little too far. I debated trying to retrieve it, but thankfully realized how awkward it would be to stop dancing to get my shoe, so I let Taylor step all over it instead.

I was more comfortable with "Elwood" because he wasn't trying to do anything too complicated, thankfully (maybe wisely learning from my ineptness with Taylor?). There was an awkward moment where I tried to twist down (during the "oh oh oh" part), only I didn't realize we were so close that his knee was directly underneath me. So instead of doing a cute twist, I created a pretty awkward PG-13 grinding motion down onto him by accident. Oops! When it was over, there was lots of hugging and general happiness on stage. I was directed to the stairs to leave because it would have been too difficult to get back in my spot over the barricade. On my way, I was congratulated and high fived by a few women standing off to the side near the stage, and no one gave me a hard time about getting back in my spot up front.

The whole "what the heck did I just do?" mentality didn't set in until way later, and I went through the rest of the show kind of dazed. I'm generally a calm person, so I can honestly say there was no crying or screaming on my part (thankfully, right? Just how awkward would it have been if he pulled a screamer up there?). Instead, I couldn't stop thinking about it, and I still can't. About halfway through Dancing in the Street I realized I had been replaying the whole thing in my head and not enjoying the awesome new cover, so I snapped back into it a little and was able to enjoy the show in front of me again.

I've also got to say that as shy and nervous as I usually am (I used to literally shake when I had to give a presentation in front of a class of 20), I wasn't nearly as nervous as I should have been up there in front of so many people. I think knowing that the crowd was just as shocked as I was made it a little easier. I also knew most of the people in the front row, so when I looked out into the crowd, really all I was seeing was my friends being excited for me (side note: the handful of goofy faces I made were in response to people in the front row giving me that "can you believe this is really happening right now?" face. I should have saved my "no, I really can't" faces for later, but what's done is done). Which leads me to another revelation I had--Hanson actually can see us in the crowd. I was always under the impression that the spotlights make it pretty hard to see the crowd. Not the case, at least not for the people up front. I could see them just as clearly as when I was standing beside them.

But I digress.

The day ended with my friends and I sitting in a parking lot taking pictures with each other, and a horrible moment where I borrowed one of their SD cards to upload to my laptop and in a rush of excitement, stuck it in my disc drive. With some tweezers and a hairclip, we were able to retrieve it. It's kind of a miracle that I was able to operate a car after that, but none of us lasted too long and we had to stop to sleep after hitting up a Waffle House looking like a bunch of crazy people on drugs.

Random Ramblings/ Tour Talk

2010-07-26T22:45:00.000-04:00

I’m a writer. Not by profession, but by nature. When something touches me in some way, my inclination is to write about it. I’ve written about Hanson and the way their music affects me a few times, but I’ve never tackled the subject of their tours specifically. It’s worth its own write up, because there is something inherently different in hearing a song you love through the medium of stereo speakers or headphones and in hearing it live with no buffer between their lungs and your ears.

But I would be lying if I led you to believe it’s about sound quality. It’s not. Sometimes the sound levels are so skewed and off-balance that I only know what they’re singing because I know each song by heart. Sometimes there’s one speaker in my face and another in my ear, and it’s all so loud that it starts to make my head pound. Sometimes someone forgets the lyrics and messes up an entire verse from my favorite song, or a guitar string breaks, or a mic loses signal. And more often than not, there are people screaming and drowning out the sweet music I traveled so far to hear, but it’s all part of the experience.

So I’ve effectively described what it’s like to see a live show—any live show—but that’s only part of my goal. For me, it’s more than just a show. Literally, it’s usually more like five, depending on the circumstances. To see Hanson live is to go on a mini-tour with people that feel the same way I do. It’s a vacation from all of the stress of your job, or your family, or your school work. It’s an excuse to forego makeup and healthy food and a good night’s rest and several social norms (such as the stigma that lies with dancing in streets, walking barefoot in public, and sleeping on sidewalks). Above all, it’s an opportunity to just let go and be. Call me crazy (you wouldn’t be the first), but there’s something so liberating and transcendent about standing in a room full of people who feel the same way I do, people I’d never cross paths with otherwise, and just letting go.

For me, it’s an opportunity to be something I’m normally not: uninhibited. I’m an adult, a college graduate, a professional with responsibilities and bills and worries, just like the majority of the population. I wake up, I dress conservatively, I smile, nod, explain things, and maintain composure throughout the day. I return home, I eat a modest meal, I plan, and I go to bed. Wash, rinse, repeat. But when tour time rolls around, I’m something entirely different. I wake up in the middle of the night and drive six hours to meet up with fellow fans. I wear ponytails and t-shirts and flip flops, and I laugh so hard that I snort. I take part in the most ridiculous conversations I’ve ever heard in my life regarding llamas, beef jerky, and stinky feet. I eat burritos and gas station hot dogs. I sing at the top of my lungs. I’m happy.

When I first started writing this, I intended it to be some kind of praise for Hanson’s music, but I realize it’s more than that. In fact, half of the things I love about tour so much aren’t even directly related to Hanson at all. It’s crazy how much can be built around a piece of music, but here I am, 20 shows, thousands of miles, and hundreds of hours later, completely taken away by these guys and what they unknowingly do for me. They give me an outlet to be something I’m not brave enough to be most of the time—my own, quirky, self. And that’s something worth chasing for the rest of my life.

Shout it Out Release 6/8/10

2010-06-09T00:06:00.006-04:00

This is bound to get sappy, lengthy, and/or boring, so as my Spanish teacher used to say, "forewarned is forearmed."

Today was a day kind of like Christmas, only we're not lucky enough for it to be an annual occurrence. Hanson's fifth studio album, "Shout it Out," was released in the U.S. I feel like I'm cheating on a long-time relationship with "Underneath" by saying this about an album I've just "met," but I think I've got a new favorite. :)

My exposure to this album was very different from any other because I heard most of these songs in live settings the very first time I heard them. In the past, I've heard clips of songs, seen parts in podcasts, at least seen a tracklisting--but last May, I didn't as much as know a single title or note from the new album. The whole experience of hearing so many songs for the first time without any tainting from others' opinions was amazing. I don't think I can ever love any song as much as I loved the song "Use Me Up" in that moment. After hearing it live several times on tour and finally playing it directly from my own CD, I still can't love it as much as I did that first time. The word "Epic" is overused these days, but I mean it when I say that moment was epic for me, and not in the casual sense.

Of the album, I heard ten out of twelve songs in live settings for the first time ever:
Waiting for This (Tulsa)
Thinkin’ ‘Bout Somethin’ (video shoot)
Kiss Me When You Come Home (Tulsa)
Carry You There (Tulsa)
Give a Little (Bamboozle)
Make it Out Alive (Tulsa)
And I Waited (Bamboozle)
Use Me Up (Tulsa)
These Walls (Tulsa)
Musical Ride (Tulsa)

Part of me thinks the release was a little less exciting knowing that I was only truly getting two new songs. But in a way, it was almost more exciting after building up anticipation for songs I already knew I would love. After spending a good portion of my day blasting Shout it Out, here’s what I have concluded:

1) Taylor wasn’t lying when he admitted to being a fan of vague. The guys always seem to leave room for interpretation for most of their songs. It’s one of the qualities that makes them good songwriters, but the English major in me is always analyzing and looking for deeper meanings. Waiting for This has me clapping and singing while wondering exactly what it is that we’re supposedly waiting for. Thinkin’ ‘Bout Somethin’ begs to be danced to, but I couldn’t stop myself from submitting a question asking about what that “something” might be during one of the live streams (Thinking back, hopefully I worded it better than “Hey Zac! What is it that you’re thinking about?”—vague questions aren’t nearly as useful or appreciated as vague lyrics). During the same chat, we all explored a more perverted side as the guys joked about the vague nature of “Give a Little” and what exactly is being gifted, and what that catchy little “oh oh oh” is referring to.

2) I can dance. True, the album hasn’t given me any sudden skill in dancing, but it’s definitely given me some dance-worthy songs to help me come out of my shell. The Thinkin’ ‘Bout Somethin’ video shoot really helped me gain confidence in just letting loose, and now that I’ve got that, I think I’ll use it to jam out to Give a Little as often as possible. It’s really impossible to listen to either of these songs and not bust a move—or at least a body part while trying.

3) Isaac is 1/3 of Hanson. Maybe that’s why it felt like 1/3 of the songs were missing. The album is a little shorter than their usual, and the obvious lack of Isaac leads is a little disappointing. I love the songs that are on the album, but after picking out 5 at random to share with my mom, then realizing they were ALL Taylor leads, I started to miss Isaac even more.

4) Taylor and his piano were meant to be together. I’m a sucker for lots of piano, and this album definitely has it. The piano solo in Kiss Me When You Come Home keeps leaving me ready to clap in my car, forgetting where I am. Give a Little has a great hint of piano playing in the background, but I wish it was louder. Hopefully it will really stand out live. Me Myself and I is also a beautiful piano—driven song, and I can’t wait to learn it. And on that note, I also love the simple piano in Use Me Up. Zac’s more in my league as far as piano playing goes.

5) They need to hire me as a copy editor. ASAP. Someone went rampant with the commas. Most of the lyrics in the booklet read as though someone inserted a comma every time they heard a pause in the song. I know that's how it generally works in spoken English, but songs are a little different. For example, no comma is necessary in the line "You don't need, a Cadillac, 'cause I'll be waiting..." even though there's an audible pause at that point in the song. The formatting of the 2nd track is also a point of interest for a grammar nazi like me. In all of its publicity for the single and video release, it was written as "Thinking 'Bout Somethin'." Now, it's written as "Thinkin' 'Bout Somethin'" on the tracklisting on the back. And while the "G" is magically present inside the booklet, "somethin'" suddenly grows its "G" back every time it's used within the lyrics.

6.There are some notable similarities to past Hanson songs. I don't mean this as a bad thing, just simply something I couldn't help noticing. "And I Waited" immediately brought "Leave the Light On" to mind. They have very similar intros and guitar parts. The piano progression in "Kiss Me When You Come Home" is very reminiscent of "Been There Before." I thought this immediately even the first time I heard it at the SUSU recording in Tulsa. It's a little more subtle, but I also hear a guitar riff in "Musical Ride" that sounds VERY similar to a more obvious in "Thinkin(g/') 'Bout Something." Lastly, the beginning of "Me Myself and I" sounds very much like a Billy Joel song to me for some reason. I wouldn't say the whole song does, but something about the beginning definitely sounds similar.

Charlotte Bamboozle 5/22/10

2010-05-23T22:45:00.006-04:00

*Edit- Just realized this was my 20th show! I guess this is some kind of milestone?

This was the most last-minute decision I've ever made in going to see Hanson. I ironically posted a facebook status along the lines of "Hanson is going to be a 3 hr drive away, and for the first time, I'm staying home." Really, I didn't want to shell out close to $50 for a 30 min. set, so I decided to sit it out. The day before the show, I saw on twitter that LiveNation was going to give away a pair of tickets to Bamboozle to one person who retweeted a message. On a whim, I RTed it once, and won! I made the drive and met up with two friends before the show.

The tickets I won were lawn seats, but the seating was all way below the lawn, so we had a perfect view. We arrived around 5 pm and decided to sit in the grass near the Hanson merch tent. My friend noticed that Zac was sitting on the bricks in front of us, but we decided to leave him alone. We saw several groups of girls recognize him and ask for pictures, and he was very polite and took pictures with every person that asked. We also saw security tell him to get off of the bricks; it's good to know that the Zac Hanson card doesn't work for everything, or at the very least he didn't pull it in this situation. He looked like he was trying to go somewhere, but every few feet, more people would stop him. It probably took him about 30 min. to make his way to where he was going, but he was so polite taking pictures with everyone that stopped him.

We arrived in time to see Cartel, and I enjoyed their set. I also really enjoyed Good Charlotte, who played a surprising number of songs that I recognized. They played a song from their new album that hasn't been released yet, something about a drunk girl; I don't remember the title, but I liked it. They also made an obvious point to leave out Hanson when they were getting all the fans to shout it out for the other bands. They mentioned every other band, and we could tell that some girl up front was definitely letting them know. Several songs later, Benji said "Hey Joel, we forgot Hanson!" It was obvious it was intentional, and it was kind of cute the way they did it.

Hanson played after Good Charlotte, and I think they chose a great setlist for their limited time. It was only about 30 min. and 7 songs (Waiting for This, And I Waited, A Minute Without You, Give a Little, Penny and Me, Thinkging 'Bout Somethin', and Lost Without Each Other are the ones I can remember). I have pretty much vowed not to let myself listen to the new music until the release date, so it was kind of neat getting to hear And I Waited and Give a Little in a live setting for the first time I heard them. I REALLY liked Give a Little, but I don't feel like I could hear And I Waited well enough to judge it yet. All in all it was good, and we stayed seated in the grass. I'd be willing to bet this will be the only time I ever sit down for an entire Hanson show, but it was a nice change from the usual chaos. My only complaint is I think they should make more of an attempt to connect with the audience. All of the other bands made more of an effort to talk to the audience and make little jokes. I guess Hanson chose to let the music speak for itself, but I feel like they would gain more fans if they would talk a little more.

After the set, a huge line formed and Hanson consented to sign autographs for their merchandise only, and no posed pictures were allowed. While the rules were strict, I've got to give them props for staying to sign for every last person in that long line. All Time Low came onstage as the autographs started, and they drew attention to us asking "WHO is back there signing autographs while we're up here!" and mentioned how long the line was. It seemed pretty lighthearted, though. They even said "I haven't met Hanson yet, but I love them already."

I didn't buy anything or get an autograph, but I waited in line with my friends and was going to take a picture for one that got an autograph. I did get the picture, but I also walked straight into a block of concrete and scraped my foot, just as my friend was walking away from Zac, giving him an unobstructed view of my clumsiness. Oh well, I was bound to make a fool out of myself in front of one of them sooner or later. My record of three years was just too long.

All Time Low was so-so. They talked a lot and did a pretty good job of pumping up the crowd, but they had a little too much cussing in their songs for my taste. Boys Like Girls was last, and by that time I had a bad headache, so I was kind of over it. They also got fans to cheer for each band, but they completely left Hanson out on purpose and didn't mention them again. It seemed like an intentional snub, not something playful. We left early so we didn't have to fight the crowd to get out though, so I don't know how the second half of their set was.

My trip home was horrible. My headache only got worse, and about 30 min. into the 3.5 hr drive, I started feeling really sick. I decided I must have gotten food poisoning from the McDonalds I ate earlier in the day. Ironically, some guy at the entrance to the show had us sign a petition against the chicken McDonalds uses and gave us some anti-McDonalds info, so it was a pretty good combination to make me want to quit McDonalds for a while.

Thinking 'Bout Somethin' video shoot 3/6/10

2010-03-08T13:07:00.007-05:00

When Hanson announced that we were invited to watch them shoot the video for their first single from their upcoming album, I was excited. When I found out that first single is going to be "Thinking 'Bout Somethin," I got a little irrational and decided that maybe I could make the trip. So with about 2 weeks' notice, I made the best irresponsible decision I've ever made and bought a plane ticket to Tulsa (p.s. priceline name your own prices is my new hero).

The experience was unforgettable and probably ranks as one of the most exciting things I've ever taken part in. I tried not to get my hopes up too much in case there wasn't enough time to get a shot with the fans in it as extras. I thought that maybe they would throw us in the back and tell us to move around like we were having fun, but we wouldn't really be a big part of the video. I couldn't have been more wrong.

We arrived around 7:30 AM, and at that point there might have been about 20 fans there. We watched as the hired dancers practiced a few runs through their dance.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIwBjX3wjjk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qemC5qT07dg

Shortly after, they had those of us that were present (maybe 30ish?) get in a shot behind the hired dancers. They instructed those of us in the front to do the twist, and those in the back to have their hands up. We just did that while the other dancers did their choreographed moves. We did a couple of takes, but no more than maybe 30 minutes and that part was done. I was SO glad we got there early; for all we knew at that point, that could have been the only fan shot and we managed to be in it.

But things got better. After more people arrived...and arrived...and arrived (a news article estimated around 500 fans), they asked EVERYONE to go out into the street and spread out. At first we just did our own thing behind the official dancers (I stuck to the twist--seemed safe enough). Then they told us we were going to learn the "Hanson slide." It was SO fast and we were all so confused in the beginning. I was worried that I was never going to learn it, but we did it so many times that we all ended up feeling like pros. At some point early on, Zac ran into the crowd and blended in somewhere in the middle/back and did the dance with us--while eating an apple. I never know what's going on in that guy's head.

I have no idea how many times we must have done it, but it had to have been like 30 at least. We worked for 3-4 hours just doing the same dance sequence over and over and over. I'm sad to admit that I didn't even realize Hanson was dancing with us until it was all over. I was probably 1/3 of the way back in the crowd, but I'm so short and generally unobservant that I just didn't know. I assumed they were off to the side watching somewhere, but honestly we were all working so hard that there wasn't time to think about where Hanson was.

Around 1:30 we finished shooting the big crowd scene, and the guys thanked us for coming out and sang us the chorus acapella.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81cpqgA1UNk

We were a little confused as to whether they were dismissing us or sending us off on some kind of lunch break. My friends and I were unsure and didn't want to be in the way, so we took part in some general awesomeness with ourselves instead.

We did come back at the very end when we got word that fans were watching, but we walked up RIGHT as they finished. Fortunately, we did get to take a few pictures of the second shooting location where there was a big mural and a few props set up.

"In it for the music"?

2009-12-14T15:19:00.000-05:00

I’ve realized that every time we say we’re “only in it for the music,” we’re lying to ourselves. Ultimately, music brought me to where I am now; I travel hours upon hours not to see their pretty faces, but to hear the music; I purchase albums for the music; I’m inspired to play the piano by their music, but if we’re honest with ourselves (or maybe I shouldn’t lump us all together--if I’m honest with myself), meeting the guys multiple times, watching all of their entertaining videos, walking barefoot in countless cities—it’s more than music. When I was nine, there was only music. Hanson was at superstar status, I was at an age where they all seemed relatively old to me, and even the idea of seeing them in concert was beyond my wildest dreams. I had no access to the internet, no posters, no t-shirts, no embarrassing fan letters—just a walkman and a Middle of Nowhere cassette. I didn’t know a fan club existed, and I don’t recall ever gushing about Hanson to other fans. It’s an equation that led to me losing touch with Hanson’s music for almost ten years, but I was truly only in it for the music.

Today, I regularly see Hanson in concert, routinely log on to their website, and in general spend more time (and money) than I care to admit doing Hanson-related, but not specifically music-related things. People don’t look at pictures for the music. As entertaining as the FUTYs are, they don’t have anything to do with music. Tulsa is beautiful, but it’s related to Hanson as a family, not the music itself. I love this lifestyle, I really do, and I’m not suggesting that any of these things are bad or wrong. But I can’t help but wonder if there was something different, something that is now missing, in that original, simplistic feeling of just loving your favorite music and being satisfied in just that. Hanson is the only band I feel this strongly about, but Hanson is also the only band whose full names and birthdays I know, whose hometown I’ve visited (I couldn’t even tell you the hometown of ANY of my other favorite bands). I wouldn’t trade my experiences for anything, but sometimes I just wonder how it would be if nothing mattered but the music.

Quote of the day--the rationale of being a Hanson fan

2009-11-14T21:13:00.003-05:00

Someone on hanson.net posted a thread saying how she is getting fed up with family and friends being condescending and critical about her being a Hanson fan, and she asked how we explain it to people. Here was my response, and I feel like it's worth saving for later. Surely I'll need to drag it back out for some poor soul who just doesn't get it :)

I'm beyond the point of trying to explain and rationalize how I feel about Hanson to anyone who doesn't already understand. The best I can do is try to illustrate how I'm sane in most respects, so I'm allowed a little crazy once in a while. When my parents complain, I bring up the fact that I'm a successful student who is about to graduate college with great grades and few absences, and being an avid Hanson fan might seem a little out of the ordinary and make some people uncomfortable, but as a whole, it isn't taking away from my responsibilities and isn't hurting anyone. I'm not ditching family or friends to see Hanson; I'm not going in to debt; my grades are not suffering, and everything has worked out fine; so no one has any right to be upset about it just because they don't have the ability to comprehend it.

Birmingham 10/26/09

2009-11-11T21:11:00.008-05:00

This got long...so I'm making headings. You're welcome.

The Line
This was my last show of the tour, so it was bittersweet. Since there was a day between the Orlando and Birmingham shows and we had to be out of our hotel by 11 AM Sunday morning anyway, we decided to camp out for Birmingham. We arrived the night before the show, maybe around 9 PM? I honestly don't remember. There were only 3 girls there already, so we were numbers 4-7. Only two more people showed up to camp shortly after us, and no one else arrived until the morning. It was definitely the calmest line I've ever seen at a Hanson show. By around 5-6 PM, there were still only around 60 people in line, and no one was trying to skip. Someone who arrived around #60 asked for a number, and we hadn't number anyone past the 30s or 40s, so I had to go through and number everyone in between. I expected some people to decline, but everyone was really carefree, and even those who didn't actively WANT a number had a pretty "whatever" attitude and let me number them just to make the others happy. The line worked really well, and I can't speak for what happened beyond where I was in line after doors opened, but we had no trouble at all.

The Walk

The walk was at a really nice campus and the weather was great. I'm pretty laid back about the walks; I almost always end up in the very back, and it's not a goal of mine to initiate random conversations with the guys. So when everyone was gathering at an entrance they thought Hanson would come out of at the beginning of the walk, my friend and I chose go to sit on the fountain a good 30 ft. away. It seemed like a good idea because A) I could sit while waiting and B) I could stand on the fountain ledge to get good pictures of the crowd. What happened instead was the guys came out where the crowd had gathered and walked straight on past to the fountain and gave the speech about 2 feet away from us. Totally didn't see that coming! As the walk started, apparently Taylor found a professor and a class that was meeting outside, and proceeded to take the professor's shoes off for him. I'm not at all sure how this was initiated, all I know is I saw Taylor bending down in front of the man, then saw that his shoes were off once Taylor got up. Others around me confirmed that he had in fact removed the guy's shoes. The teacher and class then proceeded to get up and walk with us. Best class ever! Unfortunately, my friend started feeling bad partway through the walk, so we headed back to the starting point to wait rather than finishing what turned into an uphill walk. After the walk they came inside and performed Great Divide and Where's the Love acoustic. Some guys in the back yelled out "Play MMMBop!" and Hanson looked pretty annoyed. Taylor shot back with something like "Did you guys even take the walk? Walk a mile barefoot and THEN we'll do it," but then the guys responded yes, they had taken the walk, which I think threw Hanson a little bit and elicited a much less sure "Well, you'll have to come to the show tonight to see it."

The Crowd
The show had a pretty laid back crowd, too. We were front row in front of Isaac, and we knew the girls behind us so they left some space between the two rows so there was actually room to sit between sets and dance and just breathe in general. I even left my spot to use the bathroom one, something I've never tried before and may never get the luxury to try again. Unfortunately, there was a little drama when a guy tried to bring himself and a handful of girls with him up front. As soon as he made it to where I was, that weird part that Hanson seems to bring out in me came out and I stepped in front of him so he couldn't get through. Everyone around us ended up telling them to leave and yelling at them to the point that security got involved and finally supported us and made them leave, which was pretty awesome. I don't think security cared much but I honestly think they were a little afraid of the way we were reacting and what might happen if they were allowed to stay.

The Show
The show was really fun because our part of the crowd had great energy, and I was probably wilder than usual just because it was my last show. There was a girl with a professional camera in front of the barricade (NOT the hnet reporter, she was front and center behind the barricade), and I noticed her taking a few pictures of the crowd, so I'd love to see them if they ever surface. After Steel Train's set, I asked one of the guys for a setlist, but apparently they don't use them (which makes sense since they play the same set every night). Oh well. Though my part of the crowd was pretty into it, I don't think the crowd as a whole was very energetic and Hanson seemed a little less into crowd participation as well, but maybe that's me misinterpreting things. I should mention that the stage was the highest stage I have ever seen in my life, so that kind of limited the Hanson/crowd interaction, at least physically. It literally came above my head; I remember joking about how horrible it would be if there was crazy pushing because I would end up underneath the stage. Though I really didn't foresee any hand grabbing or coming down off stage because of its height, Taylor proved me wrong when he started leaning over the edge to grab hands. There was a slight step down onto some other big platform between the stage and the barricade that wasn't as long as the stage. I have no idea what it was, but it came up to about my chin and stopped maybe 6 inches to my right. When Taylor came to the end, he took my hand in what I thought was just a brief hand grab, but then he proceeded to use me as leverage to jump off of the big platform and onto the floor, where he ran back around to the side of the stage to get back in his place. It caught me completely off-guard and I let go of his hand sort of mid-jump because I didn't realize what he was doing (once again, trying not to be that weird fan that Taylor has to pry from his hand), so I'm glad he's capable of jumping a good five feet without falling on his own. The finale was awesome and so sad. They covered "Sweet Home Alabama," and Steel Train and Sherwood came out--I think this was the first all bands on stage moment of the tour (of course minus HGB, and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong), so that made it even more exciting. Though I've definitely heard the song multiple times and am familiar with it, I really don't know any of the lyrics besides the title. I overheard some girls saying Isaac had messed up the lyrics, but I really couldn't tell you. It sounded fine to me :) I think the camera guy came out to film it, and Taylor definitely had a camera phone out near the end, so I'm hoping they'll eventually post some footage--maybe a FUTY--but at this point, I don't see it happening.

It was a good show, and it took all of my responsibility and willpower to drive myself the 8 hrs back to school rather than the 2.5 hrs to Nashville where I knew Living on a Prayer was going to be played, but I sucked it up and headed back home. And so ends another epic tour. But in the words of Levar Burton--I'll see you next time! :)

Orlando 10/24/09

2009-11-11T13:55:00.007-05:00

The drive to this show was a bit crazy not only because it was our 3rd show in 3 days, but we had to do an 8 hr drive on no sleep. I'm completely aware of how crazy this sounds, but I won't deny that it happened. Fortunately it helps to have 4 people who can switch off. We left Myrtle Beach around 1 AM, drove the 2 hrs to Charleston, showered at my dorm (and I packed), and hit the road again around 5 AM. We made it to Orlando with only minutes to spare, but we managed to make it to the walk. It was in the upper 80s and everyone was ridiculously hot and sweaty. The walk was on a college campus, so afterwards the guys did a TTW book signing and sang Great Divide and (I think?)Been there Before acoustically.

We were tired and not interested in wasting more money on PTL, so we went back to the hotel to relax for a while. We freshened up and lazed around, and I personally passed out for a good 20 min. nap unintentionally. We finally left to get in line about an hour before doors, and I stopped and got a peperoni pizza pretzel in downtown disney beforehand. Let me just say--YUCK! The HOB ended up letting people with walk stamps get in the PTL line, just like what happened in Chicago. I think it's a really nice way of rewarding the people who took the effort to go out of the way to get to the walk, and to discourage those who choose to stay behind at the venue out of fear of losing their spots.

We opted to stand on some stairs rather than go for 4th-5th row so we could see over heads (I'm 5'2"--it's either the front or the back for me). I kept migrating within our little 5 ft radius trying to find the best view, and I ended up losing it to a really tall girl, but that was my own fault for being so decisive, and my view was good for the most part. It was a little annoying having so many people wanting in and out of the crowd constantly, so I had to keep moving and pressing myself up against the people around me to let them out. Some drunk guy came back at one point and started to fall next to me, so I had to grab his arm and yank him back up so he wouldn't just camp out on my feet, and in his condition, I think that would have been his final destination if we hadn't intervened.

The show was good; Hellogoodbye got more energy out of the crowd than at any other show I saw. Once again the only song I had never heard live was the Isaac solo. He played Everyday and dedicated it to Nikki, who was apparently watching from the window upstairs. He said something along the lines of "this one is for a very special lady; she knows who she is" and then pointed at his wedding band and looked up at the window with this huge grin. So cute! Like I said, Isaac is holding strong this tour. I had actually never heard this song period, and I thought it was really beautiful. You could tell he really had his heart in it since Nikki was there.

We really wanted to get a good spot by the bus, so we decided to see what the encore was and then leave if it was something we had already heard. It turned out to be If Only, so we stayed long enough to get one good set of jumps in, and then ran back to the car to get cameras and stuff to get autographed (If You Give a Mouse a Cookie for me). NEVER again will I do this. I wouldn't say we missed something completely epic, but apparently during the break in the middle of If Only, they threw in the entire song Something Going Round! I would have loved to have witnessed that, and it kills me that I was sitting outside doing nothing while this happened like 10 feet away. Oh well, this is how you learn lessons I guess. They ended up not coming out at all, which is what further teaches me not to skip out early--it might not be worth it. We did end up meeting a really nice girl who had just rediscovered Hanson and was really excited about the show, so I had fun talking to her and remembering all those same feelings just two years ago.

The day ended with us falling into bed, which was an AWESOME feeling after the lack of sleep from the last few days. Just to put things into perspective...After Charlotte, I drove back to school and slept for about 5 hrs, and after Myrtle Beach, we had no sleep at all, so this was my first significant amount of sleep in about 3 days, and it was glorious.

Myrtle Beach 10/23/09

2009-11-10T20:07:00.007-05:00

I was really excited for this show because it was in my hometown and two of my less crazy friends came (one who is a mild Hanson fan, and one who I think was there purely out of interest of watching me to see how I act at a Hanson show). Since I already missed 2 M/W/F days of school for Hanson, I decided to do the responsible thing and go to my classes in Charleston that day before the show. I got out of class at 1, so there was no way I could have made the walk. I'm really disappointed, though, because the walk ended up being at Coastal Carolina University; a TON of my friends from high school go there, and it's located in Conway, which is REALLY my hometown. And how many times will Hanson be in Conway in the future? Probably zero. I was also the only person to receive flyers for the MB show, and I put a TON of them up at CCU, so at least I helped promote even though I wasn't there.

Since I went to school and we didn't want to shell out money for PTL or CTB, Rachel and I arrived around time for doors and ate in the HOB restaurant to wait for the line to go in. I'm not used to intentionally planning to be in the back at a show, but it was pretty fun and much less stressful (though nothing beats front row). My friends and I ended up in the very back bar, but the view was still pretty good, and HGB, Steel Train, and Sherwood all ended up coming out and having a massive dance party back there as soon as Hanson started playing Oh Darling, and it lasted for the rest of the show. I even joined in during Lost Without Each Other, at which point I don't know what my lesser eccentric friends were thinking, but I probably don't want to know and honestly don't really care. They already knew I was crazy; they just hadn't properly witnessed the side effects.

The show was great; I had a lot of fun dancing in the back with my friends. I also got to hear Isaac sing Being Me, a song that I had only heard 2 or 3 times period, and never live. I really enjoyed it, and if I haven't already said it, Isaac was just ON this tour. He was always grinning and really into whatever he was doing at every show I was at. The guy's obviously got something good going on in his life, and it shows.

After the show, we went out by the buses and my friend Holly and I attempted to get "Holly sandwich" pictures with the guys. We managed to get one with Zac and one with Taylor, but we never saw Isaac (though I hear he came out at the last minute while we were off throwing cupcakes--but that's a story for later).

Me: You're in a Holly sandwich
Holly #2: Actually, a Zac sandwich with Holly bread
Zac: I don't think that would taste very good...at least not the Zac part.

Me: You're in a Holly sandwich right now
Taylor:......
Taylor:......
Taylor: (~1 min. later) A Holly sandwich?

Aside from the awkward sandwich banter, Zac was really talkative that night. He stuck around and talked to my friends for a couple of minutes. He talked to us about what shows we were going to and seemed specifically interested in how many more Rachel was doing. He asked where I was from, which was kind of ironic since we happened to be in my hometown at the time. Rachel also asked him about when the Cali members event would be, and he told us that it would be on Nov. 6th and that more info was going to be posted the next day. My friend Laura also called him "sir" and he shot back with something about how he can't be referred to as "sir" until he has a half-grown child lol.

After we got our pictures, we went back to my car to dive into some chocolate cupcakes I had made for Laura's birthday. We took some really awesome pictures (okay, LAURA took some really awesome pictures), and we "caked" her with a cupcake in honor of all of the caking we had seen over the past two days (I forgot to mention that the show ended with Will caking himself). It was a great show, but it was one of those that I'll probably remember more for my friends than for Hanson themselves, which is one of the reasons I love this band so much--they've inadvertently introduced me to some awesome people.

Charlotte 10/22/09

2009-10-29T21:46:00.008-04:00

I was really excited for this show because I had never seen a birthday show before and most of my friends were traveling to see the show as well. My 3 friends that I traveled with to the event in DC camped out starting Monday morning, and I joined them Tuesday afternoon around 6. Oddly enough, I still managed to be #4 because no one arrived in between us, which was nice. I know it's completely crazy and I have never camped out for that long before (2 days, the show was Thursday), but it was fun and well worth it for front row on Zac's birthday. It was definitely interesting to say the least. Let's just say there was a schizophrenic guy who gave us God's phone number and kept proposing to my friend, in addition to an anonymous perv in a car who tried to put on a little show for us, which ended in us calling the cops and giving them the car and license plate info.

The cheap hotel I booked for showering purposes also proved to be an interesting experience. Around 8 of us split it and went in shifts to shower, but none of us actually slept there or used anything other than the bathroom. I hit a traffic snag on the way to check out, and was afraid I was going to miss the 11 AM deadline, so I called the hotel while I waited to let them know I was on the way and did not want to be charged for an extra day. We ended up getting there with a few minutes to spare, but when we got there our room door was open and all of my stuff was gone. A very tense argument with some workers who weren't 100% fluent in English ensued since our room had been cleaned BEFORE checkout time and I was being yelled out for returning to my own room that was in MY name. We finally worked out the misunderstanding; my friends were allowed to use the bathroom, and I was given my things back. Fail, Days Inn, fail!

I was a little surprised in the lack of early campers, but it worked out because all of my friends who couldn't come until late the night before still got second row right behind me. The night before the show, there were still only around 20 people in line. The walk was probably my favorite that I've been on. The weather was great, the campus at UNCC was beautiful (and not too painful), there was a really good turnout, and everyone was in a great mood. I ended up getting some really good pictures with my new camera, too (which I also found out on the walk is the same camera Zac got for his birthday).

The line got a little dramatic towards the end with a group of girls lingering next to the line about 40 people back, refusing to get back in their spots further back in the line. There was also a couple who said they had won a pass to see the soundcheck but had missed it (which I totally believe), but they then decided to just hang around the front of the line to compensate their loss. They finally left after being yelled at by everyone in line and being spoken to privately by a bouncer.

The show was great, though admittedly not as wonderful as I thought a birthday show would be. The lighting was really crappy, and the sound was off enough that if I hadn't known all the words to the songs, I wouldn't have known what was going on. I ended up front row directly in front of Isaac, though, which made for a great view. At the end of the acoustic set, I noticed a toy truck zooming around on stage, and I'm pretty sure most people couldn't see it, but it didn't last long.

Don't Stop Believing was pretty epic, as always, and moreso from front row on Zac's birthday. He ended it with a lengthier, awkward crotch grab, which I'm sure someone caught on video since there were cameras everywhere. The caking was a little less exciting because only one measly bit was thrown towards the crowd, but a small piece did manage to hit my friend who was standing next to me in the eye, and there was a good chunk next to me on the floor when we left. Overall it was good, but I think the crappiness of the venue killed it a little bit for me.

*More pictures can be found in my photobucket, linked on the right-hand side of my blog.

DC Event (edit-picture added at end)

2009-10-27T23:18:00.008-04:00

I don't have a whole lot to say for this one since it was a short show and nobody really waited in line for an extended period of time. It was a good time, but I would be tempted to say it wasn't really worth the drive if they hadn't pulled out Devil's Nachos for the first time. I drove to Charlotte to meet up with 3 friends and we all rode together from there. We drove there and back in the same day, which was really intense and left me sprinting back to class on no sleep with no shower just like Chicago. It's becoming a bad habit, really. I was a little terrified to drive in DC, but it really wasn't that bad, thankfully. And we found valet parking for $5 attached to the hotel, so that was pretty perfect.

The show itself was good, but the setup was horrible. There were lots of rows of chairs, but not nearly enough for everyone. I totally called that the people who arrived last would get to sit on the floor up front, and I was right. I'm not at all angry with those people--they got pretty lucky! And I had some friends up there. However, it caused some definite tension in the crowd and people were getting kind of riled up over having waited in line for a while only to have people who didn't wait at all get to sit a foot in front of Hanson. Some people got out of their seats and sat on the floor, but I didn't see any point in adding to the tension. It wouldn't have been such a big deal if the chairs weren't arranged in a way so that NO ONE but the people in the front or on the very end of an aisle could see. I had to just trust that Isaac was there because I didn't see him at all until the group photos.

The performance was great, though I feel like Taylor was still battling the tail end of the flu. He sounded fine to me but he looked a bit strained to hit higher notes at one point. I was a little disappointed in the setlist because I expected them to pull out some rarer things, but the only song I hadn't heard was Devil's Nachos. As a HUGE fan of that song, though, I was completely ecstatic not only to be hearing it live, but to be hearing it as it was played live for the first time ever. Zac introduced it by saying we were welcome to sing along as we were now officially allowed to know that it existed. It was definitely the highlight of the night. I'm not going to lie, though, I feel like Follow Your Lead could have stayed home. Another highlight was Kiss Me When You Come Home. I heard it back in may, but it was neat to hear it again having heard it only that one time. There's something different about hearing new music live that you don't know the words to, and it's not a feeling you get to experience often.

I was a little disappointed in the Q&A session as well;I don't remember what all was asked, but several questions were variations of things that have definitely been asked and answered before. One girl asked if Been there Before had an Otis Redding and Johnny Cash reference. Beyond the fact that I feel like this is common knowledge and not worth using up one of the few questions we were allowed, the girl framed the question by pretty much saying "I already asked this on a walk and I think you said yes, but I wanted to make sure...." Fail. I'm hesitant to call out this person on the grounds that I should feel bad, but no, I think it was selfish to use up a question that you already asked just to draw attention to yourself for a second time. Someone asked what they were dressing as for Halloween, but they said they hadn't really thought about it. They ended up saying they were going to dress as Hellogoodbye, but I don't know how serious they were about that. Someone else asked where they were during Sept. 11th (appropriate since we were in DC near the pentagon), and they said they were in LA working on Underneath. Isaac gave a pretty eloquent answer off the top of his head; I was impressed.

Another girl prefaced a question by saying she had done research on it, but then proceeded to fail by stating that she thought they lived in New York. She basically asked why Hanson didn't step it up and work with governors (or senators? sorry, don't even remember--some type of representative) more in taking action. It received a few boos, but I feel like the guys did a great job answering and explaining that more can be done by appealing to the masses, and that they have in fact spoken with the people she suggested. I'm hardcore failing to explain their answer, but they did a fantastic job defending themselves and supporting their position.

The group pictures were pretty large, probably 15-20 people in each as usual. My friends and I were in one of the later ones, which is something I haven't experienced in the past being in the first and second group photos at the other two events I've been to. I'm not sure why, but I walked up to Taylor and told him I was short so I needed to be down front, so he moved me to the center of the bottom row next to Isaac. I don't really recall him moving other people around, so I don't know why it seemed reasonable at the time to tell him where I needed to go in the picture. Afterwards, I went to shake his hand but someone else started talking to him at the same time, so he got really distracted and more or less ended up awkwardly holding my hand for a few seconds without shaking it. Two of my friends went up to Zac and hugged him and said "See you in Charlotte!" so I decided to jump on that bandwagon, but for some reason I half apologized while doing it. I'm pretty sure I said "Sorry, I'm going to do it too," (really? Is it ever appropriate to say that when you hug someone?) then hugged him and said "See you in Charlotte!" He said I was succumbing to peer pressure and he understood. I had never hugged any of them and felt pretty awkward about it; I don't think I'll be asking for a hug from one of them again; in the future I'll just let it just happen if such a situation ever comes up, and if not, no more hugs. But Taylor did jokingly say Zac was going to hug every person at the event, and I did see him giving a LOT of hugs, so I'll just assume it was okay. I tried to get back to Isaac to shake his hand and tell him I enjoyed the show, but got herded out on the way and didn't get to greet him.

All in all it was a good show that could have been a little better, but I'm glad I went and I can't wait to see the group picture.

*This is proof as to why I should never begin a post with "I don't have much to say..." I will ultimately prove myself wrong.
I love this picture simply because I was completely oblivious to the fact that I was being an Isaac twin at the time.

Chicago 10/11-10/12/09

2009-10-27T22:32:00.008-04:00

This trip is probably the craziest thing I've ever attempted. These shows fell on my fall break and I had a lot of friends going, so it only seemed right to tag along. It gets complicated, though, because I'm from South Carolina and it's a LONG drive to Chicago. I drove 6 hrs to Knoxville to meet up with some friends to carpool. We left Sat. night to pick up another friend in the St. Louis area, which was about 7 hrs from Knoxville. From St. Louis, it was another 5 hrs to Chicago. After driving through the night and taking a bit longer than anticipated, we decided we desperately needed a shower but were not going to make it to Chicago in time to do it at our hotel. Instead, we experienced our first truck stop showers at a Love's on the way. It was $9 and they provided towels. All in all, it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. I always pictured a sort of high school gym shower setup for truckstops, but no, there are individual shower rooms with showers, toilets, mirrors, and sinks inside--very private. I can't say the idea of drying off with a towel that has been used by truckers was exactly appealing, but hey, you do what you have to do.
(<--- me, clean again!) We somehow managed to arrive in Chicago right at 10 min. before the walk, which was pretty much a miracle. I stuck around the back of the walk because that's just what I do, and though I rarely see a Hanson on the walks, for some reason Taylor was overly watchful this time. We kept catching all the red lights at the back, so Taylor kept running back to stop traffic with his megaphone, then sprinting back up closer to the front. No lie, he did it like 6 times. I felt like I had a personal trainer egging me on! It was nice in theory, but he kept standing in the way of oncoming traffic to "help" us cross the road in situations where we were really fine. I don't really know how to describe exactly what he was doing without a picture, so maybe this will help. Just notice us all safely herded in the crosswalk while Taylor haphazardly stands with his back to oncoming traffic. At this point when I passed him, I called out "You know you're in more danger than we are right now, don't you?" And he responded through the megaphone "Yeah, I am....but I'm the loudest." Thankfully no traffic decided to challenge his lame claim to safety due to a measly megaphone.

My friends and I didn't really bother to get a good spot in line and just headed over a little before doors. We ended up with a pretty good spot where we could all stand together and see. I've got to say, writing this in retrospect after having seen 7 shows on this tour, I think the first Chicago show was the best. Maybe it was just being with a lot of high energy friends, but it was amazing. I heard A Song to Sing for the first time which was really exciting, and I don't even know how to describe how I felt when the guys from Cheap Trick came out and Hanson covered I Want You to Want me. Hands down best concert surprise ever! I think that's the only time I have ever let out an involuntary scream.

The next day most of my friends and I walked to the walk, which was 2 miles away at a college campus. It was actually pretty fun with about 8 of us walking around seeing the city, and it really wasn't as cold as I expected. The walk was good, though it didn't seem like a lot of the students on campus were interested. I did get to explain what we were doing to 2 or 3 people though, so it was good that people were voicing their curiosity at least. As we left the walk we took the best jumping picture ever; I'm still pretty excited about it (I'm in the pink).We decided to get in line immediately when we got back (after a group trip to a 7-11 for some Chicago style hotdogs), and though the walk stamps didn't seem to mean anything the day before, they actually let people with walk stamps into the pass the line line. They seem to really appreciate the effort people put into going to walks that aren't at the venue rather than sitting at the venue to save a spot in line, and we were rewarded for it. Most of us ended up with the same spot we were in the night before, which was exactly what we wanted, though a couple decided to brave 2ndish row. It was a lot of fun, and though it was probably my 14th time or so hearing MMMBop, it was the best time because we all danced and had a blast, and we made a five person "too much rock for one hand" symbol at the end. I don't think Hanson saw it, but it was a great idea nonetheless. I was a little surprised that the setlist was a little less amazing than the night before, but I had an awesome time anyway. There's something really special about seeing a show with good friends who enjoy the music in the same way you do.

The drive home was absolutely insane. We left around 5-6 AM, but we dawdled a lot. One of the things that slowed us down was a trip into Metropolis, IL. As a HUGE Smallville fan, I felt like an idiot to discover that Metropolis is, in fact, a REAL city. I had no idea. Of course we stopped to take pictures with the huge superman, and had a little Hanson nerdery (think "that's supa!") while we were there too.

Somehow we didn't end up in Knoxville until 2 AM the next morning, where I crashed and slept until 4 AM at a friend's house (thank you, friend! Seriously, I think you saved my life), then dragged myself back to my car for the 6 more hrs back to school. I parked my car at 10:45, which was lovely since I had a class at 11. I literally ran from my parking garage to my room to grab my books and then ran to class just in time. I hadn't slept or showered in over a day, but I made it. Sometimes you just need a little crazy in your life, and I definitely got my fair share this fall break.

SETB

2009-09-28T01:08:00.002-04:00

It seems like Hanson fans are always talking about how Hanson can make a horrible day better in some capacity, whether it be listening to a song, watching a video, or finding out something new about tour plans. I can't say I ever agree. I enjoy a new FUTY as much as the next person, but when I'm down, something so simple as listening to a song does nothing for my overall mood. It might be a high point of my day, but it's not going to magically make me feel better.

I've been really stressed the past few days. My classes are starting to overlap with big assignments, and I've been writing papers and reading mass amounts constantly with little time left over for myself. I finally made a little time for myself tonight and took the time to watch Strong Enough to Break with the commentary. I've had it for over a week now and never had time until now (honestly I don't have time now either--I should be sleeping).

I'm surprised to say that it legitimately made me feel better. Maybe it was just a welcomed break from all of the work I've been doing, but somehow I feel like watching any old movie wouldn't have done the same. I think it really got me pumped for tour, knowing that I'll see these amazing guys and their music in two weeks. But beyond that, it made me realize that there are bigger problems in the world. I can mope over my homework all I want, but I'll still be very low down on the proverbial totem pole of problems. There's no real point to this post, but this is the first time I've ever felt any real relief from the simple action of watching a video, and I think it's worth noticing.

D.C. RSVP & Tour Plans

2009-09-01T20:28:00.002-04:00

I RSVPed to the members' event in D.C., bringing my show count to 7 this tour (IF I made it onto the list), and bringing my mileage to a frightening 5,077, all in a car, and mostly all in MY car. And did I mention I'm finishing my last semester of college with a full course load of 6 classes, 2 of which require 50 hours of observation in a high school, and 4 of which are 300-level English courses?This will be interesting. This is by far the craziest thing I have EVER done. Here's to coming out alive and topping it one day. :)

Random Ramblings (how Hanson has affected my attitude)

2009-07-28T19:17:00.005-04:00

Tour fever has hit again, and I've got it bad. So far, I'm planning on hitting up 2 Chicago shows, Charlotte, Myrtle Beach, Birmingham, and possibly Orlando. The most shows I've done on one leg before has been 4, so here's to two-upping myself.

A thread on hanson.net about the effectiveness of the number systems at shows has got me thinking, and I've come to the conclusion that Hanson is to blame for my recently developed outspoken behavior in light of all things unfair. In the past, I've been a person who regularly recognizes inequalities, yet really does nothing to stop them; I see someone get ahead of me in line, I whisper angrily to a friend, and I let it go. Since becoming a Hanson fan (again) around 2 years ago, this has drastically changed. I find myself politely informing random people that someone else was there first, and not-so-politely informing people who try to shove ahead of me at concerts that it's not going to happen.

I realized this change more fully at a Jack's Mannequin concert back in May in Myrtle Beach (on Hanson day, to be exact and a bit predictable). I was standing on some stairs behind a restricted section, but the rightful inhabitants never showed. I knew it would be unfair to take the section for myself, so I found myself hoping that no one else would enter and my view would go unobstructed. My temper rose a bit when a few younger teenagers snuck into the area, completely blocking my perfect view. I tapped one on the shoulder and asked her if she had a ticket to be in that area. She said no, so I told her that, in that case, it wasn't okay to stand in front of me and block my view when I was there first. She stayed in the box, but moved so that she was no longer in front of me. Whatever. Later, another girl stood right in front of me, then proceeded to text and pay no attention whatsoever to the show. I told her the same thing, and she went to more or less cower behind a post a few feet away for the rest of the show. I thought this was a bit extreme; had I really been that harsh?

So now I have to ask myself: am I rightfully claiming what's mine? Am I a borderline bully? I can't decide if this change is for better or for worse. Sure, I'll be able to see now, but I think I'm losing that "nice girl" aura I've always carried with me. Again, I'm not sure if this is good or bad. I really feel no remorse for keeping crazies at Hanson concerts from shoving in front of me; that I'll gladly keep up. But part of me wonders if the rest of the world operates on that scale, or if I've taken a useful skill out of context into a place where it doesn't belong.

Tulsa 2009 Members Event blog

2009-05-21T22:42:00.013-04:00

For the second time in my life, I trekked from South Carolina to Oklahoma to see Hanson. It was a nice walk down memory lane as I returned to the place I first saw Hanson perform live just a little over two years ago.

(na na na na na na, been there before!)

Since my first trip was a last minute decision and I was only there for two days, I got to experience and enjoy a lot more of the things Tulsa has to offer this time around (hehe). I left from my house in SC and drove 7 hrs to my friend Whitney's house in Knoxville on Wednesday the 13th. We left around 6:30 AM Thursday morning and headed off to pick up Laura near Nashville, and then we were off. Thirteenish hours later, we ended up in Tulsa. We occuppied ourselves with lots of sightseeing and money spending as we waited for our session of the members event to come at 7 PM on May 16th. Here is a list of places we ate/shopped at and did some sightseeing:

Joe Momma's
Sonic
Ida Red
Taco Bueno (x2)

Tally's

Cracker Barrell

The Laughing Wench

Dwelling Spaces

The MOE House

3CG

The Center of the Universe

The Oil Driller

Mayfest

The Oklahoma Welcome Center

And an honorable mention for our attempt to find Utica Square.

I spent entirely too much money, but it was all worth it. Props to Beth for making a wrong turn, ending up at the welcome center, and discovering Tulsa snowglobes!

The show was great despite minor line drama and Whitney's fear that the staff was out to get her (we're still not sure what that was about).

The setlist was good, and I was glad to be in the 3rd and final session. After going to the first session of MONA two years ago and being rushed and missing out on several songs (including Man from Milwaukee...still bitter about that!), I knew I wanted to shoot for the last show. Here's the setlist:

Carry you There
These Walls
Kiss Me When You Come Home
Make It Through The Day
Use Me Up
Musical Ride
Make It Out Alive
Waiting For This
Never Let Go
Letters In The Mailbox
I Am
Down
Take Our Chances

I had already heard Take Our Chances and Never Let Go, but everything else was new to me, and most of it was new to everyone. I can't wait to get the EP and the final album. Use Me Up has the potential to be my new favorite song. It has Zac singing lead and playing the piano, and I'd probably describe it as one of the most passionate songs I've ever heard. Waiting for This was another good one that involved audience participation as we echoed Taylor by shouting "Shout it out" snd "You can't deny it." I can see it being a great song to experience in concert. I was also very excited to hear Letters in the Mailbox, as this was the first and only time it has ever been performed live. Now I've heard all of the songs on the 2008 membership kit performed live.

The guys were really entertaining and talkative between songs, which was another plus. They made more jokes than I can recall, and most of them were genuinely funny. The best moment of the night went something like this, after a brief discussion about how the event was like reality TV, only real:

Isaac: Live, on reality TV! Zac, I hate your guts!
Zac: Ike! I slept with your dog!
Isaac: I'm not sure if I should be angry or throw up. Probably both.
Taylor: Let's ask the dog.

I think this was followed by some ridiculous song Zac made up on the spot called "Teaparty with Frogman," which told a story of how he had wanted some Earl Grey (which is apparently tea; I'd never heard of it) but they were out, so he ordered rootbeer instead, which was good because it's full of "ANTIOXIDANTS" (as he belted out in a climactic high note). I really hope there is footage of this and that it will be shared at some point.

In other news...At the walk, Taylor had some funky hair going on. See exhibit A, B, and C:

My first thought was that Taylor is actually Edward Cullen. (See exhibit D)

My second thought was that, no, he can't be Edward Cullen because that is a clear case of bed head, and Edward Cullen doesn't sleep.

I think I'm going to end my review here for now, but there's more I can add later.

Member Event sneak preview blog

2009-05-20T00:10:00.005-04:00

Because I'm too tired to write a full review, but don't want to forget some priceless quotes, here are some quotations worth elaborating on later and pondering about until then:

"What, is this a surprise party or something?" Holly S.

Why yes, yes it was. Further proof of me being a fool and not caring.

"She can see us; she'll know we're here." Holly S.
"Yes, but she doesn't know I have a gun." Holly F.

"I slept with your dog." Zac
"I don't know whether to be angry or throw up. Probably both." Isaac
"Let's ask the dog." Taylor

"ANTIOXIDANTS!" Zac

"Youtuber!" Melissa
"Don't call me a potato." Beth

Edit, because Laura reminded me of something else:

"Turn on Maybelline road" Holly S
"Maybe it's Maybelline." Laura
"...Maybe it's not" Holly
(in response to misreading a sign that said "Maybell," or something to that effect that was not quite "Maybelline")

Ahh, Tulsa.

Hanson Day/Turning 21

2009-05-07T13:53:00.002-04:00

May 5th, 6th, and 7th will always be special to me. I saw Hanson live for the first time on May 5th, 2007 (MONA recording), so it's officially been two years. May 5, 2008 was also the day I met all of my awesome friends that went to the Asheville show--happy 1st anniversary to us! Of course May 6th is Hanson day. I was lucky enough to see Hanson on Hanson Day in my hometown last year, and this year one of my favorite bands (Jack's Mannequin) ended up playing here on May 6th also, so I celebrated by wearing a dorky Hanson tee to a great concert in the same venue I spent the last Hanson Day at. May 7th is lovely because it's my birthday, and this one is even more lovely (and Hanson-y) because it's my 21st. I've got to admit, I listened to Turning 21 on repeat in my car on the way home from the concert, and I ceremonially removed my underage wristband for the last time (yay for no more cover charges!).

And to top all of this awesomeness, this time next week I'll be in Tulsa. Can't wait!

Spring Break/Awakening/Forward: A Digression.

2009-03-08T23:57:00.011-04:00

I wrote a review, decided it was way too long and boring, so here is the result of attempt #2. It's still a bit of a novel, but think of it as one that has been revised and edited :-)

Brace yourself, it's probably going to be long, but it's more for my own memory than to wow anyone with my wonderful way with words (nice alliteration, huh?). If you have ADD, you should probably turn back now.

Who/What/When/Where/Why:

I saw Spring Awakening in Cleveland at the Playhouse Square Palace Theatre at 7:30 pm on March 6^th, 1:30 pm on March 7^th, and 7:30 pm on March 7^th. I’ve been reading a lot about Spring Awakening since late 2008 and interested in seeing it, but unfortunately since it’s not touring anywhere near South Carolina, I chose to fly to wherever it would be during my spring break.

Some background info on stage seating:

Part of the uniqueness that is Spring Awakening can be attributed to the presence of on stage seating. Basically, there are 41 chairs directly on the stage closely situated with 2 rows on stage left, and 3 on stage right. 26 of these seats belong to audience members, and the rest are filled in with the cast (click for a detailed seating chart if you actually care). Instead of leaving the stage during inactive parts (which there are few of to begin with), cast members sit amongst the audience on stage, often providing backup vocals, stomps, and dance moves right from their seats. There are even four ensemble members camouflaged in the seats who appear to be regular audience members, a phenomenon which I’m sure is terrifying to the occasional unsuspecting person seated next to them.

The two times I sat on stage, I sat in AA4 and AA13--downstage left and upstage right--which made for a good mix of perspectives. AA4 is the closest audience seat to the front of the stage, right next to Melchior, the lead, and AA13 is near the back of the stage right next to the piano and right between 2 cast seats..

March 6^th, 7:30 pm, onstage seat AA4:

I was incredibly excited to finally be in my seat next to Melchior—a feat that only cost me flight and hotel expenses as well as the whole mistaken NYC ticket fiasco. I originally became interested in SA because Kyle Riabko plays the lead role of Melchior, and I’m a fan of his music. Contrary to what half of my friends and family believe, though, I did not go all the way to Cleveland just to see him—he just sparked my original interest in the play. This particular night, Kyle was absent and his understudy, Matt Shingledecker, went on as Melchior instead. Knowing that I would be seeing Kyle the next day, I was really excited to get to see two different interpretations of the same role (plus as it turns out, Matt’s rear is much cuter than Kyle’s ;-)

After seeing both Melchiors, I can now say that both brought something different to the character, and I feel like some of Matt’s acting choices were stronger than Kyle’s, but Kyle wins for vocal performance.

Being so close to the action was a bit overwhelming because it was hard to focus on anything other than what was directly in front of me. So in a scene where 12 people are jumping around crazily, it was hard to watch anything other than the one person jumping closest to me, for instance. This would be a downside had I only seen the show once, but it made my 3 visits all the more exciting.

March 7^th, 1:30 pm, onstage seat AA13

Though I originally thought AA4 to be the best seat on stage, I’ve definitely changed my mind. I absolutely LOVED sitting in AA13. It was near the back, but was surrounded by characters the whole time. There were only 3 seats together in the group of seats I was in, consisting of me between 2 cast members and directly beside the piano which is a focal point a few times in the show. Because the cast members constantly move around and change positions, I had the pleasure of sitting directly next to about 4 different cast members in addition to at least 2 others who sit at the piano in different scenes, and let’s not forget the occasional jumping and even crawling right at my feet. During the end of one song, someone jumped so close to me that my hair blew straight back as if blown by a fan (and if you know me, you know I have a mass of hair that would take a lot to move).

Also, just as a side note, there's a Latin class scene where six guys are sitting in desks, supposedly copying Latin words on slates. I always assumed they just scribbled nonsense, but from my perspective I could see 5 out of the 6 slates clearly. 4 of the 5 I could see were actually writing in Latin! Of course good old Kyle was just scribbling, but he was also speaking while no one else was, so that may be why.

My favorite scene

This has to be my favorite experience from the whole trip. During a song called “My Junk,” there is a scene where the teenage boy, Georg, (apparently pronounced “Gay-org” rather than “George” as my non-German mind had been reading it) more or less lives out his fantasy with his female piano teacher. The song begins with his conservatively dressed teacher ripping open her dress to reveal a corset as he turns his chair around, throws her into his lap, and blissfully buries his face in her breasts (again with the nice alliteration). For the rest of the song, another character is the main focus, yet Georg and his piano teacher are still going at it the entire time in the background though they don’t claim the spotlight. Because of where I had been sitting the night before, I had paid little attention to this part. This night, though, I was quite literally inches from the action. As the teacher threw her head back in delight and heels in the air, I cautiously watched my knees for fear of being kicked. I was quite surprised to realize that innocent little Georg was doing more than putting his face in her cleavage—he was biting, licking, and spanking her in rhythm to the drums (I was especially surprised that he was really biting and licking her since I doubt the audience off of the stage could even tell). I had to fight to control my laughter long after the scene was over. And on a sidenote, Georg is played by Matt Shingledecker, the actor who played Melchior the night before. Poor guy probably thought I was stalking him.

The slight awkwardness of AA13

The only awkward part of being in that particular seat was its proximity to the backstage door, so just about every character had to go between me and the piano any time they headed backstage (of course this was a definite plus, too). Due to the combination of the backstage door and actress seated to my left who jumped up quite frequently, I couldn't cross my legs for fear of tripping someone. This awkwardness was heightened at the end when the characters all run backstage quickly, then run back out, then a few go backstage and a few more come back out...I forget the exact sequence, but there's a lot of running in and out of the backstage area for applause. What makes this worse at the end is the standing ovation. With everyone around me standing and clapping, it would look as though I didn’t enjoy the show if I remained seated to stay out of the way, yet standing and clapping would put me even more in the way than I already felt. In the end I stood and clapped but pressed as close to the chair as I could and had to clap with my hands as close to my body as possible. I probably looked ridiculous, but I didn't trip anyone, so mission complete.

A few mischievous things I witnessed (both shows)

One of the cool parts of being on stage was being able to witness a few instances where the actors broke character and did some entertaining things undetected by most people. The first thing I witnessed was during the first show when I was in AA4. I was opposite one of the stage doors, and could see inside a bit. At one point I looked over and noticed none other than the missing Mr. Riabko who I was not sitting beside. A little later, I looked back again to see if he was still there, and caught a glimpse of his girlfriend (who is also in the play) running up to him with a hug and a kiss. I know he hadn't been on as Melchior for the past few days, so I think maybe he had been away and I witnessed a tiny reunion. That same show, I noticed Ben Moss, one of the actors (and quite possibly one of the most adorable people on the planet), grinning wildly as his spotlight went out, then quickly switching to a solemn look as it came back on a second later.

I'm not sure if I should blame Kyle's presence or where I was sitting, but I saw a lot more out of character actions the next day. At one point Kyle was walking directly towards me with his side profile facing the audience, and I watched as he slyly used the eye that was away from the audience to triple wink at someone behind me (probably Ben Moss, who was sitting behind me). Later there's a song where Kyle is in the center of the stage facing the audience, and everyone else is crouched down on stairs with their backs to the audience facing Kyle. I noticed his real-life girlfriend smirking at him, but thankfully he didn't visibly respond. I feel like there was another time when I noticed the two of them smiling at each other when they weren't in the spotlight as well. Another time, Kyle was near the back of the stage with his back turned on the audience, so I was probably one of maybe 3 people who could see his face at all, and I realized he was doing some kind of odd mouth exercise where he was opening and closing his jaw really wide. Also, right before my favorite scene that I already mentioned, Georg/Matt turned around to the piano teacher (who was sitting next to me) and winked at her as if to say “are you ready for this?”

Random and unrelated, yet still entertaining

After leaving the stage door and getting autographs on my first night, I started to walk back to my hotel and had to pass by the main entrance of the theatre again. As I passed by, Ben Moss (no idea why I keep using his last name but not Kyle’s or Matt’s…but we’ll go with it) came out of the door with a huge suitcase. The entertaining part is that it was one of those wheeled suitcases, yet he was carrying it by hand instead of rolling it on the sidewalk. I walked behind him for a bit (not stalking, just apparently going the same direction), and he probably walked a good half of a block before finally putting the thing down and rolling it. I was tempted to say something sarcastic to him, but didn't want to be the creepy girl who strikes up a conversation by teasing him about his suitcase. The verdict is still out on whether he’s really strong or just dumb.

March 7^th, 7:30 pm, row Y seat 301 in balcony

Not much to say here. I requested one of the few $10 cheap seats in the back of the balcony and bought the ticket right before the 1:30 show on the same day, so I really expected to be shoved away in a corner somewhere. Seat 301 in Row Y turned out to be dead center in the last row of the balcony. The central location was nice, but honestly I couldn’t see any facial expressions at all, and had I seen the show for the first time from this location, I would have been terribly lost. Still, I’m glad I saw it from this seat because there were a lot of amazing lighting effects I had completely missed from sitting on stage. Plus I kept hearing people whispering about “what all of those people are doing sitting on stage” and got to set them straight.

My view from the balcony. I've got to admit, it was pretty neat having like 75 stairs framing the way to the center of the stage in front of me.

Hanson Day '09 RSVP=Chaos

2009-02-17T16:56:00.003-05:00

Official details were announced, and the initial plan was to have two sessions on Sat. May 16th, at 3 and 7 pm, with the possibility of a 3rd session if necessary. This works out perfectly because I'm out of school by this time, and it's still only about a week after my 21st, so I can still pass it off as a celebration. (It's also oddly creepy because I had a dream the event would be held on the 15th). With about 250 spots per session, I really didn't see a 3rd session being necessary, though it did begin to look like the 7 pm slot would fill up first. From what I remember, I don't think MONA or the Orlando event had to turn anyone down. Plus with MONA being an official recording, I just assumed it was more important and more people would be willing to travel for it. So I just assumed people would fight over the 7 pm session, it would fill up, and they'd be left with a smaller 3 pm crowd. I don't normally like being wrong, but this one I'll accept.

Here's the part where I plan to rub things in your face if you're of the opinion that Hanson fans are few and far between. RSVPs started being taken at 5 PM. Since I would be out of my room until at least 7, I had a friend RSVP for me on the off chance that the 7 pm session filled up quickly and I got separated from my friends. When I got back and checked hanson.net around 7:30, I was completely shocked to see that BOTH sessions were already maxed out (and as of today word is there are only about 120 spots left in the 3rd session, which is being held at 8 pm on May 15th). This means that 500+ people RSVPed in under 3 hours, and another number of people were placed on a waiting list. Not only that, but it's not like these 500+ people are all native Tulsans (is that a word?). No, they're from all over the country--heck, all over the world! And it's limited to fanclub members, so it's not even representative of all Hanson fans, just the pushovers that fork over $40 a year (no hard feelings, now, I'm one of them!). Just think, if this many people would jump on the opportunity to trek all the way to Tulsa from various places, how many more are out there, right now, thinking "I love these guys, but I'm not going to Tulsa!" Lots, that's how many.

I think the song "Coming Back for More" is wildly appropriate at the moment, and not even just because my friends and I jokingly said we're "Coming back for Moe!" (MOE-->Members Only Event).

Edit/Update: Aaaand, as of today (2/18/09), the 3rd session is full and there are no plans for a 4th. That's 750 RSVPs in less than 72 hours, plus the amount of people stuck on a waiting list that didn't do it in time. Take that, someone else!

Hanson Day 2009

2009-01-15T16:33:00.002-05:00

So we just got word that there will be a members event in Tulsa on an "early weekend in May." In my head, this means either the first or second weekend. This can either be an epic win or an epic fail for me. The epic win would be the second weekend, which is right after my 21st birthday (May 7th), and would make this the 3rd year in a row I've gotten to celebrate my birthday at a Hanson event. The epic fail would be the first weekend, which for some ungodly reason I've been granted a theatre exam on that Saturday (it's a performance, I might add--not something I can easily ask to take sooner). The horrible irony of this is that as soon as Zac hinted at a May 6th event, I dropped a philosophy class that had an exam on the 6th in order to take this theatre class because the exam was earlier. So for now I'm just waiting for the official date so I know whether I can relax and rejoice, or if I'll need to beg, grovel, and save money for a flight.

In other news, I somehow found a flight for my trip to Cleveland that made it cheaper for me to stay for two nights than it would be to stay for one. So now I'm seeing the matinee of Spring Awakening on March 7th as well, and am sitting in AA13, which is the seat I had originally accidentally bought for NYC. Things do work out :-)

Going once, going twice, going three times, going four times...SOLD!

2008-12-14T23:24:00.003-05:00

I was losing faith that my Spring Awakening ticket for NYC would sell since we're down to about 2 weeks before the show, and no one seemed set on buying it. Over the past 2 weeks, I've had 2 people contact me and say they were interested, but both were sparse in communication and ended up backing out. Then today, a third person contacted me, but backed out when I told him the price ($50--exactly what I paid). Around the same time I had been communicating with person #3, person #4 messaged me and seemed to be interested as well. I've talked to so many people I don't even remember that person's reason for backing out. Then person # 5 responded, within the same hour as persons 3 and 4, stating she wanted the ticket. As I'm finally working out the paypal details to sell to person #5, person #6 sends me an email with a phone number saying he's definitely interested as well. So the moral of this story is when it rains, it pours, though honestly I'd have totally deserved losing the $50 after I was stupid enough to accidentally buy a ticket to NY!

Spring Awakening--A Little Less Hanson, A Little More Crazy

2008-12-05T00:28:00.007-05:00

Ok, so this is a little detour from Hanson. BUT, it still deals with me being a fool and not caring, specifically with traveling absurd amounts of miles to see a show. So, with that connection made, meet my newest obsession:

If you know nothing about it and care to educate yourself, wikipedia has a pretty good description.

Apparently I've been living under a rock for the past year or two because it's been around for a while and seems to have been wildly popular and won lots of awards, yet I never heard about it. I recently discovered it because I also recently discovered the awesomeness that is Kyle Riabko(who plays the lead, Melchior, in the play)--but that's another story.

At this point, it's pretty clear Hanson has successfully desensitized my traveling judgment. "Close" has more or less become an entirely relative term, only functioning in relation of the closest a given act (namely Hanson) comes to me. So while researching Spring Awakening, I decided I was interested in going to see it on tour, at it's "closest" stop to me, which turned out to be Tampa, FL, and really not that close at all as it is about a 9 hour drive from me. Aside from Hanson, I blame it on my dad, who never leaves his chair in our living room. Mom always complains that we never travel, but never really does anything about it. Well, I'm doing something about it. Who wants to sit around and read about something neat when you could be experiencing it for yourself? That's my rationalizing, anyway.

So I did what I've done before with seated Hanson concerts: I reasoned in my head that if I could get a good enough seat, it would be worth the trip. And when I got up early for school one morning and found the last on-stage seat available up for grabs, I jumped on it without too much thought, just so ecstatic at the thought of not only experiencing this play I've been obsessing over, but experiencing it from the side of the stage! Apparently, for this particular play, there are 26 on-stage seats (3 rows on the left, 2 on the right--if you're looking at the stage), literally just feet away from the action (think having a chair 8 feet off to the side of Isaac, or just behind Taylor's piano). And even cooler than that, the cast is mixed in with you; any time a cast member is not in a specific scene, instead of heading backstage, they head to a designated seat mixed in with the other audience seats on stage. So not only are you experiencing the play from the stage, you're sitting mixed in with the actors/actresses. Pretty cool!

Here's where things take a turn. I returned from school that day, still on a high over getting the last stage seat, with the intention of further researching stage seats and their awesomeness. I went back to my confirmation email to go to the theatre website and check out some shots of the stage when I saw it--in my crazy, sleep deprived excitement, I've somehow managed to purchase a ticket to the BROADWAY version rather than the TOUR version, quite possibly the biggest OOPS I've ever singlehandedly been responsible for. I kid you not, folks, I managed to accidentally spend $50 on a ticket to NY instead of FL, the complete opposite pole of the country!

After a day of freaking out, re-reading things over and over trying to make it somehow have been an error in reading rather than an error in judjment, it's clear the mistake is mine. This day is followed by another crazy day where I immediately post the ticket for sale, drive home for Thanksgiving break, and somehow decide in that 2 hour drive that it is reasonable for me to just fly to NY instead. Ha. So I went back, threw out an apology, and stated that I was going to try to go to the show. Two days and two angry parents later, I decided that really, going to NYC alone in December is probably not the best plan for me. I legitimately gave up on going to NYC and set out to sell the ticket (which, btw, hasn't gotten me very far--any takers??)

At this point I've wasted $50, proved to my parents that I am more crazy than they already knew, and had within my grasp and lost a pretty amazing seat. I don't give up so easily. I decided the simple solution was to sell the NYC ticket and purchase a ticket to Tampa for real this time. Slight problem--all of the good seats in Tampa are gone, and having had a stage seat in my hand, as well as my original rationalizing being that I could go if I had a great seat, it hardly seems worth it. So I dive into backup mode: I started thinking about futher off shows that have good seats left or have yet to go on sale, and what times of the year I have time off where I would be able to travel to see this show (And here I recognize another way Hanson has spoiled me--I now have a craving to constantly be up close and personal at shows). Spring break seems the most reasonable, and I find that the show will be in Cleveland, OH over my spring break.

Again, I decided if I could get an amazing seat, the trip would be worth it. After doing lots of research into the whole on-stage seating setup, I think I've got a good idea of what the best seats are. So lo and behold, I pull up on-stage tickets for Cleveland, and I somehow managed to pull up the exact ticket I had more or less idolizing in my head and seeing as unattainable, the one that in my opinion (speculation, of course, since I haven't experienced it) is the best seat on stage and elsewhere, for that matter. This seat is front row and the absolute closest to the front of the stage. After a little more cautious investigation this time, I finally do have a truly amazing seat and a more reasonable plan (though I do still have a NYC ticket I need to get rid of!!). Cleveland, here I come!

Here is a seating chart:

The seat I have now is AA4. And for swooning purposes, I just have to add that AA2 is where the lovely Kyle Riabko will be sitting (that is, when he's not wowing the audience on the actual stage, which is most of the time I'm sure). The seat I originally had for NYC was AA13. Translation--significant upgrade, and all is well again.

End Note: No worries, this is still a Hanson blog; don't expect this to be a regular occurrence. In March, though...expect some swoonage. Also, anyone wanna roadtrip, Hmm? March 6th?

Catch-up, part III (Charlotte & Falls Church)

2008-11-09T19:53:00.008-05:00

Charlotte was originally supposed to be my last show of the tour, but you know how things go. Someone calls you less than a week away from a show, presents these really rational sounding reasons to go (but let's be honest; you could tell me Falls Church is having a great sale on bananas and I'd probably be like "really? Let's go!"), and BAM! You're accidentally driving 10 hours to see Hanson again. Oops.

Charlotte 10/10/08

I was really excited for this show because like I said, it was supposed to be my last of the tour. But it was also the official meeting show for a big group of my hanson.net friends, and I was really excited to see all of them. Unfortunately, I had a Shakespeare midterm at 1:00 PM in Charleston the day of the show, and there was no way I could get out of that, so I had to miss the walk and be in line pretty late (same exact thing happened last year; that's what happens when they play the same place almost exactly a year apart).

We all found each other and got in line a bit later, with the goal of heading to the balcony since we were so far back. I actually had a friend up at the front of the line who had camped out and had somehow managed to save #9 for me and have everyone around her ok with it, but I felt bad taking that spot so I didn't. We all ended up at the very front of the balcony, which had a pretty obstructed view because of the weird placement of the speakers. I couldn't see Isaac at all, but I thought it was a fair trade since even having been front row several times, I've never had such a clear view of Zac. I'm SO glad we were in the balcony instead of the crowd. I got really hot, I was feeling sick, and the guys didn't even hit the stage until around 11 PM, plus it was nice having room to dance. I actually left during Zac's solo "Where Did it Start?" and got something to drink; I felt that terrible. It was nice to be able to sit on the floor between acts.

The setlist and show were amazing (but sorry, still does't come close to Asheville! which, btw, is still the best concert I've been to so far). It's so weird, because I was listening to MON on the way to Charlotte, and I started thinking how cool it would be to get to hear Thinking of You live, but then sort of brushed it off thinking it would never happen. So when I heard those opening chords, I went a little crazy and forgot how sick I was feeling. I know they've played it a few times on this leg, but this was the first time, so I really had no clue it was coming. It was exciting hearing Lay Me Down and Use Me for the first time, too. They played Never Let Go, too, which sent most people over the top in excitement. I hate to poop the party, but I've never really understood the big deal about that song, other than the fact that hearing it live is fairly "rare." Isaac gave some longish introduction about a song about being on the road, and I don't think any of us knew what it was leading up to. It turned out to be Leave the Light On, which was kind of exciting, and it was just the 2nd time they've played it live (I was there for the first time back in ATL '07, too). It was a pretty good show/setlist, and I enjoyed being in the balcony way more than I expected.

Luckily, being in the balcony directly next to an exit had the slight benefit of getting a good spot by the bus after the show. I had absolutely nothing to get autographed, not even a ticket stub since these were e-tickets, so I decided to try for a picture. Zac was really awesome that night and from what I've heard, stayed out making sure he signed things and took pictures with just about everyone who was interested. So I got a picture with Zac, which is the only picture I've ever had with just me and a single Hanson, so I was pretty satisfied. After seeing the picture, I decided that I look like a 12 year old and that I've sworn off headbands because of it, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't wearing one right now.

I also got a picture with Austin, who was the only person from EBE I didn't snag a picture with in Louisville. When I took that picture he put his arm around me in that polite, I'm posing for a picture sort of way, but right before the picture was taken, he wrapped both arms around me in this sort of bear hug, so being confused, I did it back lol. It resulted in a cute picture, but it would have been funnier if our arms had made it in.

We had fun hanging out back in our hotel room (well, those of us who stayed awake lol), knowing that it would be the last time we'd all be together for a while. Of coure, we're all crazy, and I think the majority of us who had Charlotte as our "last show" ended up going to ast least one more. ANd just for the sake of randomness at its best, on our way back from Charlotte driving through rural parts of NC, we encountered a random Hanson sign which we had to stop and take a picture of, as well as a random upside-down plastic cow with duct tape around its mouth. Proof:

Falls Church 10/28/08

So like I said, this was a spur of the moment trip. I always tell my parents everything, and really never have anything to hide from them, but part of me wanted to plot and try to go to either Chicago or the last few California shows, so I opted not to mention this random trip to Virginia because I knew it would hurt my chances to go anywhere else(side note--as it turned out, Chicago and Cali didn't work out). So I drove from Charleston to Myrtle Beach Monday afternoon, and we left for Falls Church as soon as I got there. We picked up someone else along the way, and ended up in FC around 1 AM and were #s 28-30. Unfortunately, the low was in the 30's, and it was raining. We decided to brave it, and we pitched the only tent while everyone else stayed in their cramped (but dry) cars. I forgot to take any pictures of the tent, so if anyone has a picture of the lone tent in FC, I'd love to have one. It wasn't too bad in the tent, no worse than a car I'd say, with the added plus of being able to lay down. Unfortunately, Whitney's side of the tent started leaking at some point, and she had to go get in the car.

It was pretty cold the next day, and REALLY windy. We left the tent to go to starbucks at one point, and when we came back, the tent had moved a good 6 feet from the wind. I wore leggings under my pants, a long sleeve thermal shirt, a fleece pullover, a peacoat, a scarf, a hat, and gloves, and I was still a bit chilly. There were others in just sweatshirts. I'm a wimp when it comes to cold weather, I know. Whitney even took the walk wrapped in a blanket. But the guys came out all bundled up for the walk, too, Isaac in a scarf and hat, so I didn't feel too wimpy.

The walk was interesting, and at the last second I decided to remove my shoes and socks, which is an odd feeling when you're wearing a scarf and gloves. It was like walking on ice, and was more painful than I expected. The halfway speech was held in some random little grassy area with trees--not at all what I was expecting. As I was making my way into this area, I heard a familiar voice yell "Don't step in the poop!" and realized Zac was two people down from me, and we were indeed all headed for some puppy poop. So thanks, Zac. No poop for these feet! The guys all stayed out, chatting with fans, taking pictures, and autographing things for a good bit after the walk, which is not something I've witnessed so far at any of my shows. I got really annoyed when I noticed Zac politely talking to one girl as she was completely ignoring what he was saying and posing next to him taking pictures while he was talking. Not cool, girl; not cool. We got through the walk registration line fairly fast, and moved on to clean our feet and find a bathroom. It felt weird leaving the crowd knowing the guys were still just wandering around, but I really didn't have anything to be signed or have anything specific to say (though I later kicked myself for not requesting Dancin in the Wind when I had the chance).

When we got inside, Whitney and I split up because she was set on being in the center (which meant 2nd row), and I was set on being in the front row, even if it meant being a bit blocked by the piano. I was extremely disappointed in the crowd around me during the opening acts, because no one around me seemed remotely intersted in them. One person near me even yelled "HANSON!" while Dave Barnes was talking, and I considered yelling "Dave Barnes!" back, just out of annoyance. I was happy to see the crowd liven up when Hanson came on stage, but I still feel like my part of the crowd was more dead than usual for being up front. I was really excited when they started playing "Take Our Chances," because I was behind Andi in line, and she told us she requested that song before we ever went inside. I knew wherever she was, she must be ecstatic! Fire on the Mountain electric was also really exciting for me, b/c it's probably my favorite Hanson song, and I've only ever heard it acoustic until this show.

After the show, we got in the car and took off because two of us had to be back in class the next day. So we drove all through the night, and I made it back to Charleston just in time to take a shower and a 30 min. nap in hopes of not passing out in class after having been awake for 2 days straight (if you think I can sleep in a tent, you're wrong). This was definitely one of the crazier things I've done for this band, but at the end of the day, I sleep way more often than I see Hanson, so I feel like it was worth the sacrifice.

Catch-up, part II (Nashville, Louisville)

2008-11-07T16:45:00.009-05:00

Since I'm out of old blogs to post, I'll have to write some new stuff about the shows I've been to recently. I did Nashville and Louisville back to back, and I roadtripped with some friends I made at the Asheville show back in May. I can see myself going on a lot of trips with these girls in the future, because they're awesome. So:

Nashville (10/3/08)

My friend Whitney met me in Charleston Thursday afternoon, and we headed for Knoxville, where several friends would be meeting us to make the rest of the trip. Six hours later, we arrived in Knoxville and made the spur-of-the-moment decision to camp out for Nashville. So 3ish hours after that, we laid down our sleeping bags in front of the Wildhorse Saloon in Nashville, and occupied #s 12-20 in line. I have a sleep disorder though, and really, I didn't sleep at all. There wasn't much line drama, accept for one couple who decided to just stand at the front of the line about 30 min. before doors, which is just entirely unacceptable when we've all slept outside (thankfully they were persuaded to leave by some angry fans). We all ended up occupying a good chunk of rows 1-3 right in front of the piano during the show. I was really excited to hear Get up and Go live for the first time, because it's been one of the songs at the top of my "must hear live" list. We all went crazy and did the Macarena during Can't Stop (don't ask, I don't know whose idea it was, but it was genius), and I can only imagine the look on Taylor's face if he happened to see. It was an awesome show, especially being up front right there with all of my friends.
Louisville (10/4/08)

We had originally planned on camping for Louisville, but in light of our spontaneous camping for Nashville, it was a bit stressful with no sleep. We all headed out of Nashville around 2 AM with the intention of driving until we couldn't drive any more. For 2 carloads of us, that meant stopping at a rest stop and sleeping. For me and my insomnia, it meant resting for 20 min. at a rest stop and then driving the rest of the way to Louisville. There was a point where I was getting exhausted and my eyes were shutting, and the two people in my car were pretty much passed out and not helping, so I prayed to God that I'd find a rest stop so I could get some rest and drive safely later. So God laughs by sending me a CLOSED rest stop about 2 seconds later. But then, all of a sudden I'm getting passed by Hanson's tour bus, which is for whatever reason driving with emergency flashers on. This woke me up a good bit, AND gave me a literal goal to follow (those flashers were darn helpful!) until I could find a rest stop. We made it into Louisville a little before 6 AM, and the city was dead. There was no one in line (this was where they had "Camp Hanson" set up inside), and we couldn't even find the front doors to the venue. We decided to rent a cheap hotel room and just sleep until the other girls in our group arrived, but alas, 2/3 of us in the car weren't 21, and the one 21 year old had left her ID in one of the other cars. We must have driven around for about an hour looking for a cheap hotel that might accept someone under 21, and then drove around in search of parking. We ended up finally seeing a girl outside of the venue, so we parked, waited in front of the doors with this girl, and were let into Camp Hanson a bit later. I passed out in a chair for a few minutes, but was rudely awakened when they ushered everyone outside around 9 AM.

Fast forwarding a bit, the show was the earliest I've ever seen. Doors were at 6, and just as we got into our spots in the venue, Everybody Else came on stage and started playing (which is absurd since I was #45 or something in line...most people were still outside). EBE actually got kicked off stage during their last song. They got a few chords in, then said "Just kidding! Apparently we're out of time." My friends and I were directly behind the handicap barricade (which was one of those pull-out elastic thingies--worst barricade ever!), which put us about 4-5 rows back in the crowd, but with no one in front of us. It got kind of crazy, though, being next to that flimsy elastic barricade, and we slowly ended up inching further into the handicap space because of the pushing of the crowd (FYI--the handicap area took up about 1/6 of the floor space, and there were only TWO people in it. I have no idea what the venue people were thinking). Some girl behind me was practically laying on me, so I looked around and noticed no one was really pushing her and she actually had a little space behind her. So I said, "Excuse me, is someone pushing you onto me?" She looked around, a bit puzzled, and answered "No?" So I responded with "Well then, can you get off of me? Thanks!" and she did. I hate that "I'm going to make you feel uncomfortable so you'll move" move. I spent the first few songs and most of the opening acts being really stressed out about the crowd and the barricade, but I finally got over it and enjoyed myself. I was excited to hear "Deeper" for the first time, and I somehow ended up with my first guitar pick when Isaac threw one out during "Great Divide." At one point, a girl I had met in line came past me, looking sick, and heading for the handicap section which would give her room to breathe. I gladly moved aside so she could get out, but unfortunately, she ended up staying there, putting a stool directly in front of me, and staying. I'm 5'2". Stools do not belong in front of me, especially when I was there first and you a have no business being where you are anyway. I felt kind of rude, especially since it was a nice girl I had met in line earlier, but I felt that it was very rude of her to take advantage of the handicap area and then block my view entirely. I did get her to inch over a bit, but it made me mad because I intentionally stood behind the barricade rather than in the center so I could actually see. Before they played Soulshine, Isaac mentined a girl they had met last year, and how she had been going through some rough times. It was one of the girls in the handicap section, and he ended up dedicating the song to her, and personally handing her a guitar pick. It was so sweet! I don't know the girl's story, but I felt so happy for her with what Isaac did. Overall, it was a good show (it always is with Hanson), but this one is probably lower down on the list. I guess the crowd killed it for me a bit. Also, I'd been wandering all day what the top of Taylor's hat said, and I finally snagged proof at the bus after the show:

Kudos to you if you know what "Ba La La" means.

I'll update on Charlotte and Falls Church later when I'm not feeling quite so wordy. I've annoyed myself with the length of the Louisville description, and that's saying something. Maybe I'll cut it down later.

Playing Catch(up) (Charlotte, Atlanta, Savannah, Asheville, Myrtle Beach, Durham)

2008-11-07T16:10:00.014-05:00

It's Friday, I'm out of class, and I'm bored. So I decided to attempt to write a bit about the shows that I've been to before creating this blog. Actually, I posted a few myspace blogs about them in the past, so I'll copy and paste those. Here's one I posted on October 21, 2007, after going to my first 3 Hanson shows:

Clearly I had an awesome week because I saw Hanson in Charlotte, Atlanta, and Savannah. It's a good thing I can't afford to follow them more places because I'd totally do it.

Charlotte highlights: *My first official Hanson Concert *Getting to go with 3 friends * Showing up an hour before doors and still being in the center *The whole setlist- esp. Every Word I Say, On the Rocks, Rock 'n' Roll Razorblade, and Joy to the World (3 Dog Night cover)

Atlanta highlights: *Meeting some cool people in line * Doing my first barefoot mile * Being in 3rd row * Hearing Zac's "Oh Darling" Beatles cover * Hearing a never-before heard Isaac solo * Hearing Taylor cover Elvis's "Love Me" * Almost getting in a fight with some drunk girl...more of a lowlight I guess

Savannah Highlights: * Driving around downtown Savannah for 45 minutes before finding parking * Hanging out with some more great people * Blistering my heel from barefoot walk 2 on hot pavement * Having Zac jump out from beside me and try to scare me (he didn't). * (obviously) interviewing the guys 3-on-1 * Zac's random off-the-wall, made up on the spot poem * Getting front row and leaning on the stage about a foot in front of Isaac * Having the obnoxious drunk girl pried off of my back by security during MMMBop * Hanson & Locksley coming out to do the encore, "Long Way to the Top" by AC/DC * The awesome pictures I took * Leaving the parking garage after it closed and not having to pay * Getting a $180 speeding ticket on the way home...another lowlight. ...anyone care to join me for some similar awesomeness next time they come back?

Myspace Blog #2, posted on May 11, 2008 (I added the pictures and videos today):

Here's another installment. I just got back from seeing Hanson in 3 concerts in 3 days (Asheville, NC, Myrtle Beach, SC, and Durham, NC). It was all pretty special, because of course they're all within traveling distance, but the dates turned out perfect. Asheville was on May 5th, exactly 1 year since I saw them live for the first time. Myrtle Beach was on May 6th, which is of course a hometown show AND was on Hanson Day (I know you're all beyond laughing at this point, so just go with it). And Durham was the final show of the tour AND was on my 20th birthday. I couldn't have planned it any better myself.

Asheville

Asheville was probably the best concert I've ever been to. The whole experience was wonderful. I camped out for the first time (along with 50 other people as crazy as myself), which was an experience in itself. I got front row, and the setlist was KILLER (Magic Carpet Ride, Never Let Go, With You in Your Dreams, Coming Back for More, Let's Get it On... I could keep going!). But aside from that, I met some awesome people. I had been talking to several girls on hanson.net, and we had been plotting a pretty awesome plan to throw a pair of MASSIVE granny panties on stage (courtesy of Toshamaye--see my photo album for proof/details). *Note from today--the panties weren't just for fun; we got people to donate $1 for every person that signed, and along with a footprint banner we made in Myrtle Beach, we raised a good bit of money and donated it to HIVSA. Anyway, they were so sweet! I was absolutely shocked when they showed up with my favorite kind of cupcakes for my birthday! Thank you SO much ladies! It's hard to keep faith in the fan base with so many crazy obnoxious people around, but these girls just proved that there are still some awesome people worth knowing out there. I also got to talk to Zac on the walk and tell him about our fundraiser, which was pretty exciting. Katie told him he should donate a dollar to us, so he pulled out his wallet and donated $20! I love that guy.

Myrtle Beach

First of all the fundraiser went pretty well. Unfortunately the guys were running late and the walk had a HUGE crowd, so we weren't able to get their help again. But overall we still had lots of people donating and helping out, and it was a success.

There was a little more drama here about the line because the HOB has Pass the Line and Crash the Barricade that supposedly get you "priority entrance." It didn't help that we started the number system but not everyone got numbers, so it got kind of screwed up and the venue didn't honor it. I ended up being 3rd row on Isaac's side, and could still see pretty well. It was another awesome show. Once again the setlist was one of the better ones I've seen/heard, and I was shocked and delighted when they played "Money". The guys looked like they were having a blast, especially Isaac. He came out during one of the SK6ers songs (about "moonshine"), and served up shots of "moonshine" to all of the 6ers and himself. I was having so much fun that it completely slipped my mind that it was my birthday at midnight until I got a few text messages with birthday wishes. I wish I had paid attention so I could remember what song they played at midnight. After the show I went out by the buses and got Isaac to autograph my ticket stub.

Durham

It was yet another good show--with the added plus of being the final show of the tour as well as my birthday. It was a seated show and I had a front and center ticket (right behind 3 rows of pit seats, so I was row A but technically 4th row), so I had a perfect view. It was awesome. Zac played my favorite song from The Walk, called "Fire on the Mountain," that he pretty much never plays live. For the Sk6ers final song, they played "Time of My Life" from Dirty Dancing, and all of Hanson and their crew (techs, backup players, tour managers...EVERYONE) came out. It was probably my favorite performance of the night. Some of them set up a table and pretended to play poker, some came out drinking beer, and the rest came out with air soft guns shooting each other. They kept throwing out cards from the "poker game", and I got one! It was one from the Hanson caricature deck, a King of Taylors. I guess I can say that technically Hanson gave me a birthday card lol! Taylor was even running around the stage with either a phone or a camera, repeatedly taking myspace style pictures with everyone. Hanson's final encore was a cover of "Feelin' Alright", and they brought out the Sk6ers and Kate Voegele and her band. It's not my favorite song, but I can't say I paid too much attention to it when everyone except Hanson and Kate came out in their underwear. It was a pretty awesome way to end a birthday and a tour.

And on top of it all, they filmed all 3 walks and shows professionally, so I really hope it will surface soon and I'll get to relive such an awesome week!

First Post! I was feeling philosophical.

2008-11-07T01:19:00.005-05:00

Woo hoo for new blogs! Boo for it being 1:30 AM and after all of my recent Hanson shows. Maybe some time I'll make a sort of catch-up post for all of the stuff that's missing so far. Not today, my friends. Not today. Here's something I recently wrote after one of those generic you've-been-to-more-than-one-hanson-concert-therefore-you're-crazy comments. Kudos to you if you make it to the end without falling asleep.

Normal, over-achieving student + _____?_____ = Crazy, obsessed sidewalk sleeper.

I’m not sure exactly when or how it happened, but I’ve recently noticed that I’m a crazy Hanson fan. Maybe I redeem myself a bit by acknowledging this fact, but one can only hope. Ok, so it’s not like I woke up one morning in a panicked realization that I had been sleeping on sidewalks and ambling barefoot through cities completely unaware; it was more of a process over time. I’m curious, though, how one makes the transition from your average, overachieving teenager, churning out A+ papers like it’s a job, to your average, crazy Hanson fan, driving hours and hours on no sleep, forgetting to eat, walking barefoot in big cities, and churning out A+ papers inside a tent after sleeping on a sidewalk (I lie here. No matter how many times I drag Shakespeare along for the ride, I can’t make myself do homework in line). Clearly, something’s been going around, and I’ve caught it (see, it even weaves itself into my off-hand humor—and if you’re not a Hanson fan, you’ll have no clue where the joke lies in that statement). But seriously, what could possibly have the power to turn a seemingly normal, intelligent person into a mock-lunatic? My first thought is that “darn good music” should fill in the blank, but that simply isn’t a good enough answer. After all, if that were true, wouldn’t more people who have heard Hanson’s music be crazy just like me? What is it that turns some of us into diehards and leaves others unscathed? It’s almost drug-like in nature. It’s not the simple craving you get for cake-batter ice cream, that, if over-indulged, leaves you sick and praying to never as much as hear the phrase “cake-batter ice cream” again. It’s more like a drug addiction, like there’s something addictive in the sound waves, something at a pitch that only some of us can hear, but when heard, we’ve got to have more. I know I’m not helping the perception of my sanity with this analogy, but it’s close. Eleven concerts, seven states, and about a zillion hours of driving later, I’m still craving more. I swear someone should wise up and create a documentary about it all because it would be an interesting study. It’s not like I’m alone in this behavior. I’m not the one nut of the bunch that Hanson knows by name, like my non-fan friends tend to think. Oh no, far from it. I know people who have been to plenty more concerts than me. In fact, I’m fairly mild as a Hanson fan. There’s a core group of people that travel to just about every show, camping out on sidewalks regularly. Outside of that core group are hundreds and hundreds more who, like myself, camp out on occasion and go to all of the concerts near (ok, relatively near) them when they can. Case in point: the earliest I’ve ever arrived in line for a concert is right at 24 hours before doors. There were 42 people already in line when I arrived. I’m not trying to rationalize my behavior, but my point is that there’s an army of us; I’m not the lone lunatic in the bunch (though those do exist in more extreme forms—but that’s another discussion for another time, and I’d rather not overwhelm you when you’re just starting to realize the extent of my craziness). And most of the people I know who do these things are smart adults with college degrees, good jobs, and all-around common sense. Whatever it is, it’s an interesting phenomenon that takes all of us normal people and turns us crazy. I won’t complain, though. Honestly, I don’t care if I somehow stumbled onto some radioactive Hanson CD that made me crazy, because I like it this way. True, it’s a bit of a drag when I’m walking into class after 48 hours of being awake, 20 of which were spent driving. But believe it or not, it’s worth it in my mind. As long as I’m not reaping some type of physical or emotional detriments, and my grades are staying up, I’m not seeing a real problem. If I flunk out of school, lose my job, am unable to pay bills, or start sleeping on sidewalks for fun in my downtime, by all means, color me crazy! Get me some help! But if the only source of harm and negativity is coming from bashing from people who think I’m nuts, then I say bring it on. No offense, but I almost pity the people who think I’m nuts because it’s obvious they’ve never felt a passion that could match my passion for Hanson for anything, or else they’d understand.