Big update: Now that the concert has been over for about a day, I should give my thoughts.
The worst part was waiting in line for almost 2 hours in the cold. We were told that doors would open at 6, so we left Richmond at a little after 3, made great time and got to Springfield at about quarter to 5. Then we waited till nearly 7 to go inside. The club was great from the audience's point of view. We managed to get great viewing positions about 5 feet from the stage on the right side, about two feet from the loudspeaker (hence my 24 hour hearing loss in my right ear). My friend was able to sneak his way up to the railing by the time Opeth came on, being that he is like 5'6" and could just slide on into an open spot with no trouble. I stayed back a few feet because I have always felt bad about blocking other people's views. I took pictures for some people though because they wanted clear shots over the crowd's heads.
Openers Brave were great. I will have to purchase a CD someday. Tapping the Vein were ok, but the audience wasn't into them much. Too much electro-rock for most people's tastes. Paradise Lost did well, but I found myself getting a bit bored about midway through their set as every song seemed to sound the same. On a side note, I believe I was standing next to guitarist Aaron Aedy's mom, as she seemed to be the right age and was taking multiple pictures of him and waving. She was rocking out through both PL and Opeth's set and having a great time. Opeth were, as expected, amazing. Mikael poured his water bottle on us midway through. The whole show was incredible, and the pain in my legs, lower back, and ears was definitely worth it. Azal, I'd be interested in hearing more about the New York show for comparison.