Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

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Merinda
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Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Merinda »

Hi everyone!

I've been meaning to do this for ages but since I am going to London for the Royal Albert Hall gig, I've been working my backside off and on top of going to the gym, working extra days and having to commute up to an hour each way to work I've found myself lacking the motivation to do anything besides sleep, eat, repeat! I won't get it all typed up today (because I'm being defiant and doing it at work and to be honest I like to write so this will probably be a novel) but I'll start and you'll just have to pop into the thread and check it for updates. :P

March 31, AB at the Powerstation in Auckland
My other half (OH) and I flew to Auckland from Queenstown at 6am that morning. It's a 3 hour-ish flight, so we were in Auckland by about 9am. I was pretty much jumping out my skin with anticipation because I hadn't seen the fellas in the flesh since 2012. Five bloody long years! We spent the earlier part of the day in jail. Yes, seriously. One of our good friends, unfortunately, had the idea to do something very stupid and is now paying for it so we visited them before heading back to the hotel to get ready. Obviously I had to look fly as phuck since I would be seeing Myles Kennedy in person so I dolled myself up and looked as feminine as much as I could while wearing a Tremonti shirt and Vans and once I was satisfied that this train wreck looked as pretty as possible the OH and I hopped on a bus and headed for the venue. Rocked up at about 12:30 as we had VIP tickets and the email stated "DO NOT BE LATE" in big scary letters so we made sure we got there before the 1pm start. There were a lot of people already there lining up. Which didn't calm my nerves because I didn't know anyone there, eventually bumped into a fellow fan I know online only, Adam. Top bloke! Waited for a while until a white van pulled up, didn't pay much attention until someone yelled 'Myles!!' and a chorus of female gasps went up in the air. There he was! Stopped for a few photos, I didn't stop him because, frankly, he looked shy as hell and clearly wanted inside the venue quickly but that little glimpse kicked the nerves and anticipation up a few notches! Then we waited. Did some more waiting. The VIP start time came and went. Kent and Zach from Like A Storm walked by us and another fan (Glen) we had started chatting to, and they asked us where they could get beer. LOL. OH and I obviously aren't local so we didn't have a clue, but Glen was and pointed them in the right direction. Which was cool but at the time I was kind of like 'meh'. Now I regret that because after seeing LAS four times I am a fan!

About an hour after the time we were told that the VIP experience would happen things started moving. We were given a pass and had our tickets and stuff checked by Tim Tournier. I started to squirm and freak out a little bit as one does when they're about to see their heroes.. we got inside for soundcheck and I bolted up to the front and managed to get on the left of the rail but at the very end of it. I was pretty much resting on an amp the whole time. OH and Glen went to get themselves a beer but I waited somewhat patiently for my favourite four to grace me with their presence. Which they did shortly after Glen and OH joined me with their beer. Seeing them all in person is such a surreal feeling. I'm sure you know what I mean. I was completely captivated by them even though they weren't performing songs in full or with vocals for the majority of it. Myles was obviously jet lagged but in good spirits nonetheless. They played a few tunes. I can't remember what exactly but we got some Blackbird, Writing On The Wall and some Eye Of The Tiger by Survivor which was hilarious. Myles then told us that he'll see us shortly to say 'hi'. We were then ushered to the side into a line and a table was set up at one end of the line. The line moved pretty quickly and the closer we got to the guys the more nervous I got. My stomach was doing back flips off of a 10 story building. Glen and I were talking about asking MK for a selfie and I said if you do it, I'll do it. First was Flip and he was super nice, just like 'Hey, how's it going? Nice to meet you', he signed my poster. Mark next, saw my shirt and said 'Hey, nice shirt!' and all I could say was 'thank you' while he signed my little poster. :facepalm As I was sort of halfway through saying that to him, Brian and I made eye contact, and he kind of squinted at me like he knew me. So inside I was like "omgomgomgomgomg" He knows me from Facebook, as I've moaned and sulked about missing gigs on there are few times which he's commented on and we've interacted on FB a reasonable amount. Anyway, I said "I finally made it!" and he said "Aw that's awesome, c'mere" and stood up and gave me a freakin' hug!!! It was so, so good. LOL. Getting recognised and acknowledged by BMarsh was a wonderful feeling. He even said my name properly! The look of shock on Glen's face was hilarious. I missed out on Brian signing my poster but got a hug instead which was a good trade! Got to Myles and Glen had daringly asked for a selfie so I just went for it. Myles is so quiet and obviously an introvert so I didn't take much of his time. Just thanked him for the photo and moved on. Glen, OH and I decided to get some food and drink since it was only about 3:30pm then and there was still a few hours until gig time. We got some pizza and beer/cider with another fan, Mary, that we'd started talking to. Time flew and it was gig time before I knew it. I was already buzzing from the BMarsh recognition and now I'd had a couple of ciders so I was ready to rock my little heart out.

The VIP folk didn't really seem to get let in any earlier than anyone else to be honest. We all kind of just merged and it was first in first served. I bolted to the stage again, OH and Glen decided they needed more beer, and I ended up pretty much exactly where I was during the soundcheck which was pretty comfortable because I could rest on the amp rather than the rail. Like A Storm opened. They were fantastic. They're so full of energy and smiles and just a fun band to jump around to. I'd listened to them a little in the past but it wasn't until this tour they really captured me. After finishing with ACDC's TNT, LAS left the stage for us to wait for AB to come on stage and when they did I went nuts. Each song was performed beautifully. I'm not going to review each song, but I'm going to mention some stand out moments for me during this particular concert.

-They played Crows On A Wire. One of my fave tunes from TLH. It was the only one of the four concerts I attended that they played that.
-I got a lot of smiles and looks from Brian which made my heart soar.
-When they began to play Waters Rising and Mark started singing the crowd started to scream with happiness and I looked at the crowd and smiled and when I looked back at the stage Myles and my eyes met, we grinned at each other and it was kind of a weird 'aw we're so proud' moment if that makes sense lol.
-I was like I said earlier, basically leaning on an amp, and Myles and Brian came over and stood on it quite a few times during the set and I was so close I literally could have licked their shoes. I wanted to touch them but trying to not be creepy I just leaned back so there was no risk of my face meeting their shoes.
-There were a couple of twits who were going nuts the entire time AB played. Like hard out headbanging when Myles was singing the first verse of Blackbird kind of twits. All over the place, horns up, even while he sang Watch Over You. ANYWAY Brian threw me a pick at the end of the concert but one of those guys reached out in front of me and took it. So I looked at Brian and shrugged. After he'd joined the other 3 in their group hug/bow thing they do he walked over to me, threw me another pick and watched to make sure I got it. Then he pulled the set list off of the ground and handed it to me. Meanwhile one of those twits tried to snatch this from me also but Brian snatched it back (hehehehe) and put it right in my hand. I felt so special! :D

Afterward, buzzing with excitement and happiness, my OH and I went back to our hotel and crashed. We had a flight to Brisbane to catch the next day! Some photos from Auckland below. Also if you managed to read this far, well done you. :peace

Glen, myself, Mary, OH.
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I look like a shiny foot but oh well.
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The poster that didn't get signed coz Brian hugged me.
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Set list.
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Myles and I.
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Sound check.
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King.
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Tigra
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Tigra »

I read the entire thing! It's so well-written, I could almost feel the emotions and hype! I envy you soooo much! I wish I could be there one day :)

And you see, such draught, four years without seeing the guys and this year the concert in March and super VIP plus Gold & Silver package at RAH. Life seems to be fair after all ;)

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Merinda
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Merinda »

Tigra wrote:I read the entire thing! It's so well-written, I could almost feel the emotions and hype! I envy you soooo much! I wish I could be there one day :)

And you see, such draught, four years without seeing the guys and this year the concert in March and super VIP plus Gold & Silver package at RAH. Life seems to be fair after all ;)
Thank you :) I still have to write down the other 3 shows! :lol

And yes you're right. It was all worth the wait! :D
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Tigra »

Merinda wrote:I still have to write down the other 3 shows! :lol
You remember all the minute details of all the shows??? Wow :bow
I was so excited that I barely remember anything :lol

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Merinda
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Merinda »

I remember a lot of it haha. I'm sure there's some details I've forgotten, stage moments more so, but the direct contact with the band has firmly planted itself in my brain! :D
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Tigra
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Tigra »

I’ve just re-read your post:
Merinda wrote:I didn't stop him because, frankly, he looked shy as hell and clearly wanted inside the venue quickly
Merinda wrote:Myles is so quiet and obviously an introvert so I didn't take much of his time.
and it seems something must have gone terribly wrong when he was deciding on this path of career. I mean, some of its parts must be a nightmare to him :facepalm
Can you imagine? A shy and introvert rockstar. That's an oxymoron.

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anguyen92
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by anguyen92 »

I think he's just a naturally gifted guy at what he does (write and sing and play guitar on compelling rock songs) and that the other stuff of being a rock musician, like being a larger-than-life showman, didn't really mean much to him when deciding to be a rock musician. Also, especially in the 90s, the rock music industry was shifting away from the larger-than-life charismatic showman (like Freddy Mercury and Axl Rose and David Lee Roth, etc.) and leaning more towards guys like the main acts of grunge (Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, AIC, and Nirvana) where they had their own aura that probably does not like look charismatic, but still looks compelling.

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Tigra
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Tigra »

Sure, that is all true but you must admit that his life would be easier if he was easy-going / open / extrovert / showman-type of person, wouldn’t it? And so, given his nature, I’d suppose that it must be so hard for him to do all that rockstar stuff.

On the other hand, how come he didn’t get used to it after all that time?

(if he realized how people see him, he would think he was a god... Is it possible that he can't see it? If you sing in front of a crowd who knows each word and each note the songs you've written... That would make me feel sooo powerful ;) Maybe that's why God didn't give me any musical talent :lol)

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Merinda
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by Merinda »

On stage, Myles is a completely different person. Myself and another fan, Jodi, were discussing it after the Brisbane show.

Off stage he is quiet, meek, very kind and I think unaware of how magnetic he is.

On stage he sticks his tongue out, dances around on stage, makes jokes and this not so much rock star comes out, but more he relaxes and allows this whole other side of himself to emerge.

He seems more comfortable on stage with hundreds if not thousands of people focusing on him, than he does one on one.
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Re: Aus/NZ tour. My experience.

Post by cheesedip1 »

Tigra wrote:If you sing in front of a crowd who knows each word and each note the songs you've written... That would make me feel sooo powerful ;)
He probably just got used to the attention after awhile and it got to be old hat/stale for him. It would probably be fun at first, tho.

Like, the big attention from fans and people wanting to talk to u alot and stuff.

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