Jason (Dark One) and I hit this fest last night. Jason got us hooked up with the premium package. Our tickets were front row, first two seats. Literally, the best seats in house.
We tailgated for about 2.5 hours before heading in. We had just enough time to throw down a dog and buy a couple 7$ MGDs and get to our seats before
Nevermore came on. The seated section of the venue was practically deserted when Nevermore began (though it filled up nicely before they wrapped up). Mine and Jason's ugly mugs were right in Nevermore's collective face for the entire show. I think they actually got a kick out of us, given how empty the venue was when they started and how into their set we were. They played:
Narcosynthesis
Born
Never Purify
The River Dragon Has Come
Final Product
Enemies of Reality
They fucking slayed! Loomis and Smyth were completely locked in. Warrell sounded great. Van and Jim were awesome as always. When Warrell began to introduce their last song of the evening, I screamed, "Ten more songs!" This got a smile out of some of the guys and a laugh out of Warrell, and he replied, "Dude, you can't do ten more songs in a 30 minute set."
Yeah, I'm a total fanboy.... what of it?
After this, we headed for the 2nd Stage to catch Symphony X. Given that the first few bands on the 2nd Stage were of the NuMetal variety, I was curious to see how the younger crowd would react. Surprisingly, they ate it up. Hell, a pit even broke out. The band sounded absolutely fantastic. At the end of their set, the crowd started a chant of "One more song". The band seemed genuinely taken back by this, and then caught a bit off guard when the 2nd Stage Manager told them it was cool if they wanted to do one more song. After a few seconds of consultation, they busted out with "King of Terrors".
We headed for our back stage tour (which wasn't much of a tour at all). We got our picture taken with Megadeth. I'm not a huge fan, but it was a cool perk, and the guys were all very gracious.
We headed out in time to catch Dream Theater. I hung for a song or two, and then retreated. DT just doesn't do it for me in a live setting. Though, I have to admit, I thoroughly enjoyed "In the Name of God".
Next was Megadeth, with full pyro and explosions. Given our seat location, my ears are still ringing and I think my eyebrows are gone. The set was solid. The band was tight. Strangely, they played 6 songs before Dave said a single word to the crowd. It was excellent finally getting to hear some of 'Deth classics live:
Wake up Dead
Peace Sells
Symphony of Destruction
Hangar 18
In My Darkest Hour
A Tout Le Monde
Not sure what the official numbers will reveal, but the crowd looked pretty strong. All in all, an excellent night.
Zod
We tailgated for about 2.5 hours before heading in. We had just enough time to throw down a dog and buy a couple 7$ MGDs and get to our seats before
Nevermore came on. The seated section of the venue was practically deserted when Nevermore began (though it filled up nicely before they wrapped up). Mine and Jason's ugly mugs were right in Nevermore's collective face for the entire show. I think they actually got a kick out of us, given how empty the venue was when they started and how into their set we were. They played:Narcosynthesis
Born
Never Purify
The River Dragon Has Come
Final Product
Enemies of Reality
They fucking slayed! Loomis and Smyth were completely locked in. Warrell sounded great. Van and Jim were awesome as always. When Warrell began to introduce their last song of the evening, I screamed, "Ten more songs!" This got a smile out of some of the guys and a laugh out of Warrell, and he replied, "Dude, you can't do ten more songs in a 30 minute set."
Yeah, I'm a total fanboy.... what of it?
After this, we headed for the 2nd Stage to catch Symphony X. Given that the first few bands on the 2nd Stage were of the NuMetal variety, I was curious to see how the younger crowd would react. Surprisingly, they ate it up. Hell, a pit even broke out. The band sounded absolutely fantastic. At the end of their set, the crowd started a chant of "One more song". The band seemed genuinely taken back by this, and then caught a bit off guard when the 2nd Stage Manager told them it was cool if they wanted to do one more song. After a few seconds of consultation, they busted out with "King of Terrors".
We headed for our back stage tour (which wasn't much of a tour at all). We got our picture taken with Megadeth. I'm not a huge fan, but it was a cool perk, and the guys were all very gracious.
We headed out in time to catch Dream Theater. I hung for a song or two, and then retreated. DT just doesn't do it for me in a live setting. Though, I have to admit, I thoroughly enjoyed "In the Name of God".
Next was Megadeth, with full pyro and explosions. Given our seat location, my ears are still ringing and I think my eyebrows are gone. The set was solid. The band was tight. Strangely, they played 6 songs before Dave said a single word to the crowd. It was excellent finally getting to hear some of 'Deth classics live:
Wake up Dead
Peace Sells
Symphony of Destruction
Hangar 18
In My Darkest Hour
A Tout Le Monde
Not sure what the official numbers will reveal, but the crowd looked pretty strong. All in all, an excellent night.
Zod
