Month: October 2010

Updated Top Concert Listing: 10-6

Jeromey Balderrama

After going to the Muse concert last weekend, it occurred to me that it has been over 5 years since I’ve posted a "Top Concert" listing.  Since 2005 I’ve been to 22 concerts, bringing the count above 40.  I’ve mapped out the dates and locations, went through pictures, listened to the music and invoked the memories to try to put together my list of top 10.

Honorable Mentions:

  • Dave Matthews Band, Folsem Field, Boulder, CO [2001] – Any concert that makes it’s way to a featured double CD is a good one.  I remember driving down to this concert, experiencing rain the whole time.  Wyclef Jean opened, and it rained pretty much throughout his show. Then he started playing “Perfect Gentleman” and the rain stopped. That was the first time I heard that song, but now whenever I hear that synth-string intro all I can think about is the sun breaking through over the Boulder mountains.
  • Queens of the Stone Age [2005] – This was a fun concert, but it was especially memorable for only one reason – it was the first date with my wife.
  • Five For Fighting Acoustic [2009] – Bethany and I experienced Fogo de Chao before the show – which is always a memorable experience.  The show was intimate, and a really memorable experience, but because this wasn’t my first acoustic Five For Fighting show, I can’t put it on this list.

    • And now, onto 10-6:

    #10: Spearhead & John Butler Trio, Red Rocks, CO [2007]

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    You’ll notice that a lot of these shows on this list are at Red Rocks, arguably the best concert venue in the US.  Bethany and I took my mom and uncle, so that my uncle could experience Red Rocks for the first time.  Seeing two of my most favorite bands pair up for an amazing show at an awesome venue will always crack the top 10 list.

    #9: Muse, Pepsi Center, Denver, CO [2010]

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    The “live” introduction of a band that has quietly become my #2 favorite bands warrants a place on this list.  If you want to see why it ranks, check out my post.

    #8: The Police, Pepsi Center, Denver, CO [2008]

    I fell in love with the Police after high school and throughout the early 2000’s if I was asked “If you could go see any band, regardless of time period, who would it be?”, my answer would be the Police.  In 2008 Sting, Andy Summers and Stewart Copeland made me put my money where my mouth is. The raw energy these guys portrayed, over 25 years after they were touring, was unreal. I also was introduced to Sting’s son’s band, Fiction Plane.

    #7: Dave Matthews Band, Home Depot Center (LA), [2004]

    This was originally #5 of my 2005 list, but still relatively holds up over the years.  This was the first time I traveled to see a band, to the beautiful beaches – no less.  I’ve seen DMB 15 times, and this was probably one of the best set lists I’ve ever heard.

    #6: Michael Franti & Spearhead, Fillmore Auditorium (Denver), [2003]

    Originally #4 of my list, this still remains one of my favorite shows.  A big group of my friends went down to this show, many hearing their music for the first time.  This was my first time seeing them live, but left me hungry for more. I also fell in love with the Fillmore, making this my favorite indoor place to see live music in Denver.

    That does it for #’s 10-6.  Stop back tomorrow for #’s 5-1!  I’d also love to hear which shows are on your top 10 list, or even top 5?

    Apparently Germany hates our cat

    Jeromey Balderrama

    Our kitten Logan provides hours of entertainment at our house, and when we’re lucky we’re able to capture it on video: Kitteh going after balloon

    Entertaining? Yes, but apparently Germany doesn’t like the video and has banned YouTube from showing it in that country.

    I’m joking about the Germans not liking Logan, but the reality of it is that apparently this video is in violation of German copyright law, because our video has music “licensed and owned by Sony Music Entertainment.”

    This just goes to show how asinine copyright law can be in some countries.  We didn’t intend to have this music playing as a soundtrack to Logan’s balloon hunting, it just happened to be on.  If I were to edit the audio out, I pretty much would be forced to eliminate Logan’s talking (or at least need to spend more time than anyone should editing a cat video). 

    Last month I submitted a dispute with YouTube, albeit citing US law (which probably won’t be effective for a German takedown), but it has yet to be reviewed.

    Monday’s to come Tuesday

    Jeromey Balderrama

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    Ok, so I am technically making a post for Monday, but I am promising better content for Tuesday in the form of two posts. Mondays are hard for me as I follow my day at work with band rehearsal with Ken Stevens. Tonight was actually the first night of practice, and I left with a book full of drumming notes and a sore left wrist – I guess it has been a while since I’ve rehearsed a full evening.  Definitely a good time though. It feels nice to be back in the Saddle.

    See you Tuesday!

    Seeing Muse

    Jeromey Balderrama

    Last night I went to the concert that we’ve been waiting 10 months to see – Muse at the Pepsi Center.  We originally bought tickets last December for a show that was supposed to happen in April, but a day-of-concert snowstorm postponed the show until October.  I’ll have to admit, with as much time that passed between buying the tickets and going to the show, I had a hard time getting excited about going – especially considering that Muse is #2 on my Last.fm list.

    Once we got there, all that changed.  Muse definitely made it worth the 10 month wait, putting together a set-list that was top-tier.  With the exception of New Born, Assassin and Hyper Music, they played every song I wanted to hear. 

    The stage was something else. Passion Pit opened for them playing in front of these three pillars, then when they finished the area in front of the pillars remained empty while the bands seemingly switched.  When the concert started, the covers came off the pillars, revealing the three band members in each one of them.

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    The pillars moved up and down throughout the concert, eventually lowering the members down to the ground. At one point, they moved a baby grand piano onto Matt Bellamy’s pillar, moved it back up and once it came back down they replaced it with standing drums between songs. It was a total treat.

    The visual experience was complimented with the pillars being video walls, in addition to lasers and lights flashing across the arena.  At one point, giant eyeball balloons floated down and surfed along the crowd.

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    Lastly, no concert experience would be complete without the attendees providing the entertainment.  In this case it was by a middle-aged woman who spent the whole concert passionately/interpretive dancing.  Not to be ageist, but if this lady was a 15-year-old girl, I probably wouldn’t have given it a 2nd though – but the fact that she was pushing 40 made it all the more awesome. My favorite part is when she actually started doing jumping jacks.

    This amazing concert gave me cause to revisit my list of top concerts and see where Muse fits amongst them.  I’ve compiled a list of over 40 shows that I’ve seen over 10 years, and am in the process of ranking them. I should hopefully that that post coming later this week.

    In the meantime, what are some of your top concerts you’ve been to?  What aspects make it a great concert?

    New Musical Frontiers [Announcements]

    Jeromey Balderrama

    As I mentioned last month, we have closed the door on Greenfoot, which has freed up my time to look for another project.  After spending a few weeks searching, auditioning and considering, I’m happy to announce that I have joined a new project, partnering with Ken Stevens to take his acoustic music into a full band setting.

    Ken and I share a lot of the same influences, and I’m really looking forward to the challenge of enhancing his music with my drumming, and putting together something that will be a lot of fun to see and hear.   We’re in the process of working through his acoustic originals, adding some covers and then playing out.

    In the meantime, check Ken out on his web site, as well as his Facebook page and MySpace.  This should be exciting! Thank you for your support!