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B-B-B Benny hits his head
As promised, here's the full update of our Dallas/Ben Folds experience.
So, as always, the drive was uneventful until getting into greater Dallas. Dallas has probably the worst drivers I have EVER seen. They stressed me out and I wasn't even the one driving! Beyond that, it was great. We got into the city at like... 4 or so, and planning on getting lost at night, we found the concert venue before we had to be there. It was easy enough, but the traffic was hell and the interstates are just... gah. Getting back was really the issue, because there are NO signs for the interstate anywhere ever. It was stressful.
We finally found our way and got back to the hotel row to find a Comfort Inn I saw. This was yet ANOTHER stress factor, because we could see the hotel from the interstate, but it was impossible to get to. I thought we could just go around the block and go in the back way. We found a parking lot, even, and thought it would be super easy to just drive through! Not so much. There was a fence (?!) blocking the one parking lot from the hotel parking lot. So we ended up going further around and back to the frontage road (which was the one and ONLY entrance to this hotel. wtf) and checked in.
Doors were at 7:30. We planned on getting there at like 6:30, but were a little late because of traffic. We actually ended up getting there at about 7, and the line was wrapped around the building. Mostly we just wanted to get there early so Liz could be in the front so she could actually see, because well... let's face it, if there's one artist she would've wanted to actually be able to see, this was it.
That ended up not being too big a deal. This concert venue was actually pretty cool, because it had an upper area where we could stand, but it also had TV screens! So we could've stood pretty much anywhere and Liz would actually be able to see things going on.
The actual concert. Holy crap. I just... cannot even put into words how amazing it was. He played almost every track off the new album, except "Errant Dog." Remember a few weeks back when I posted the link about Ben recording and "leaking" some fake tracks? He actually played all of them, as well, and explained "this is why this joke is so funny compared to the real song." He has such an AMAZING stage presence. He really got into the crowd and got everyone riled up and excited. For "You Don't Know Me," he had the opening act, Missy Higgins, doing Regina Spektor's part (as an aside, I wasn't a big fan of Missy Higgins, but she has an incredible voice. Mostly her songs were just too slow and melodramatic. I was there for the raucous piano rock! YEAH!). For "The Frown Song," he had a couple of guys come out playing keytar. And they were wearing trash can lids over their faces painted to look like frowny faces. It was hilarious. "Hiroshima" was also pretty sweet, because the keyboard guy explained the REAL story which the song is based on where Ben's fake explanation goes on the album track.
He also provided us some insight into his musicology every once in awhile. One highlight being for "Free Coffee" where he described how he got the tinking sound from the piano by putting two altoid tins under the hammers he wanted the desired effect out of, and applying a distortion pedal.
One of the best parts was when he said "I like to telegraph my music tricks, so I'm telling you right now I plan on doing an encore and acting totally shocked when you guys call me back out."
Other songs he played for the first set were "Annie Waits," "Still Fighting It," and "Zak and Sara," off of "Rockin' the Suburbs," "Jesusland" and "Landed" off of "Songs for Silverman..." and I think that's it. He played "You to Thank," but I can't remember if that was first set or encore.
The encore was totally sweet. He played "Rockin' the Suburbs" as well as a number of Ben Folds Five tracks ("Underground" "Uncle Walter" and "Where's Summer B.?"from the self-titled, as well as "Kate," "Fair," and "Smoke" from Whatever and Ever, Amen. I was insanely happy about ALL of these tracks being played, because they're pretty much all my favorites. All that was missing was "Steven's Last Night in Town" and I would've died right there). He also played "Not the Same" from Rockin' the Suburbs which... omg, that made me almost wet myself with joy, being that it's my favorite song from that album. For the chorus he has three part harmony, where he cues three audience groups to do a small scale. I had no idea a group of strangers could harmonize that well.
So after that we left, because he put "The End" on his projection screen, but he totally fooled EVERYONE by doing a brief second encore where he played "Army" off of Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Meissner. A few people charged back inside, but we decided to just go because we were super wrecked already and there were signs that said "No Re-entry."
To summarize: it was pants-wettingly awesome. If you ever get a chance to see Ben Folds live, I highly suggest you do it. It was totally my best concert experience ever, not only just because he's so dorky and hilarious, but also because there was no moshing, so there was no need for me to elbow people in the spleen when they started stepping on me.
We stayed another day in Dallas so we could do some shopping at the Grapevine Mall for Christmas presents. We planned on doing this in the morning, but we were both so wiped out from the concert we didn't end up getting to that until afternoon. Mostly just gifts for family, and I also got new shoes because I desperately needed them. I've had the same pair of Etnies for about 4 years, so... yeah. It was confusing and our directions sucked for getting there, but it ended up not being too big a deal.
That was until the evening. We made plans to hang out with my cousin and her hubby, because it's ALWAYS fun to hang out with them, even if it's only briefly. We had gotten directions from the mall, because we thought we would be leaving from there to meet them (they happen to live in the same area as the mall, so it would've been super easy), but we got done quicker than expected, so we went back to the hotel. I tried to just follow the directions from the mall but cutting out a few steps, but that ended up blowing up in our faces. It was a combination of google maps being sucky and the piss-poor highways/street labeling that Dallas seems to be so fond of. We ended up pulling over and using Liz's phone to get directions. So we did get to hang out with them, however brief, but it was still good times.
Now we're home. We missed the cats and dog. I'm done, and I don't blame you if you didn't read one word of this entry.
So, as always, the drive was uneventful until getting into greater Dallas. Dallas has probably the worst drivers I have EVER seen. They stressed me out and I wasn't even the one driving! Beyond that, it was great. We got into the city at like... 4 or so, and planning on getting lost at night, we found the concert venue before we had to be there. It was easy enough, but the traffic was hell and the interstates are just... gah. Getting back was really the issue, because there are NO signs for the interstate anywhere ever. It was stressful.
We finally found our way and got back to the hotel row to find a Comfort Inn I saw. This was yet ANOTHER stress factor, because we could see the hotel from the interstate, but it was impossible to get to. I thought we could just go around the block and go in the back way. We found a parking lot, even, and thought it would be super easy to just drive through! Not so much. There was a fence (?!) blocking the one parking lot from the hotel parking lot. So we ended up going further around and back to the frontage road (which was the one and ONLY entrance to this hotel. wtf) and checked in.
Doors were at 7:30. We planned on getting there at like 6:30, but were a little late because of traffic. We actually ended up getting there at about 7, and the line was wrapped around the building. Mostly we just wanted to get there early so Liz could be in the front so she could actually see, because well... let's face it, if there's one artist she would've wanted to actually be able to see, this was it.
That ended up not being too big a deal. This concert venue was actually pretty cool, because it had an upper area where we could stand, but it also had TV screens! So we could've stood pretty much anywhere and Liz would actually be able to see things going on.
The actual concert. Holy crap. I just... cannot even put into words how amazing it was. He played almost every track off the new album, except "Errant Dog." Remember a few weeks back when I posted the link about Ben recording and "leaking" some fake tracks? He actually played all of them, as well, and explained "this is why this joke is so funny compared to the real song." He has such an AMAZING stage presence. He really got into the crowd and got everyone riled up and excited. For "You Don't Know Me," he had the opening act, Missy Higgins, doing Regina Spektor's part (as an aside, I wasn't a big fan of Missy Higgins, but she has an incredible voice. Mostly her songs were just too slow and melodramatic. I was there for the raucous piano rock! YEAH!). For "The Frown Song," he had a couple of guys come out playing keytar. And they were wearing trash can lids over their faces painted to look like frowny faces. It was hilarious. "Hiroshima" was also pretty sweet, because the keyboard guy explained the REAL story which the song is based on where Ben's fake explanation goes on the album track.
He also provided us some insight into his musicology every once in awhile. One highlight being for "Free Coffee" where he described how he got the tinking sound from the piano by putting two altoid tins under the hammers he wanted the desired effect out of, and applying a distortion pedal.
One of the best parts was when he said "I like to telegraph my music tricks, so I'm telling you right now I plan on doing an encore and acting totally shocked when you guys call me back out."
Other songs he played for the first set were "Annie Waits," "Still Fighting It," and "Zak and Sara," off of "Rockin' the Suburbs," "Jesusland" and "Landed" off of "Songs for Silverman..." and I think that's it. He played "You to Thank," but I can't remember if that was first set or encore.
The encore was totally sweet. He played "Rockin' the Suburbs" as well as a number of Ben Folds Five tracks ("Underground" "Uncle Walter" and "Where's Summer B.?"from the self-titled, as well as "Kate," "Fair," and "Smoke" from Whatever and Ever, Amen. I was insanely happy about ALL of these tracks being played, because they're pretty much all my favorites. All that was missing was "Steven's Last Night in Town" and I would've died right there). He also played "Not the Same" from Rockin' the Suburbs which... omg, that made me almost wet myself with joy, being that it's my favorite song from that album. For the chorus he has three part harmony, where he cues three audience groups to do a small scale. I had no idea a group of strangers could harmonize that well.
So after that we left, because he put "The End" on his projection screen, but he totally fooled EVERYONE by doing a brief second encore where he played "Army" off of Unauthorized Biography of Reinhold Meissner. A few people charged back inside, but we decided to just go because we were super wrecked already and there were signs that said "No Re-entry."
To summarize: it was pants-wettingly awesome. If you ever get a chance to see Ben Folds live, I highly suggest you do it. It was totally my best concert experience ever, not only just because he's so dorky and hilarious, but also because there was no moshing, so there was no need for me to elbow people in the spleen when they started stepping on me.
We stayed another day in Dallas so we could do some shopping at the Grapevine Mall for Christmas presents. We planned on doing this in the morning, but we were both so wiped out from the concert we didn't end up getting to that until afternoon. Mostly just gifts for family, and I also got new shoes because I desperately needed them. I've had the same pair of Etnies for about 4 years, so... yeah. It was confusing and our directions sucked for getting there, but it ended up not being too big a deal.
That was until the evening. We made plans to hang out with my cousin and her hubby, because it's ALWAYS fun to hang out with them, even if it's only briefly. We had gotten directions from the mall, because we thought we would be leaving from there to meet them (they happen to live in the same area as the mall, so it would've been super easy), but we got done quicker than expected, so we went back to the hotel. I tried to just follow the directions from the mall but cutting out a few steps, but that ended up blowing up in our faces. It was a combination of google maps being sucky and the piss-poor highways/street labeling that Dallas seems to be so fond of. We ended up pulling over and using Liz's phone to get directions. So we did get to hang out with them, however brief, but it was still good times.
Now we're home. We missed the cats and dog. I'm done, and I don't blame you if you didn't read one word of this entry.