Ok, so anyone who has lurked on my bebo site knows that yesterday Rob and I travelled to Manchester to see the most amazing band in existence....Less Than Jake. But what you don't know (although you will after this) is that it was the most amazing fucking night of my life. Let me begin to tell you (in intricate detail) how the events unfolded........
So we got to Manchester and met up with Mick at around 1 ish. We walked down to the Academy to scope the place out and see how to get there, etc. The we walked back up towards Picadilly and browsed around some of the shops in the Arndale centre. It was pretty good, but I didn't buy anything.
At around half 4, Mick wanted to get back to the house so Rob and I got a taxi up to the venue to wait. It was around 4.45 at that stage and there were already about 6 or 7 people there. It was pretty cool because we made friends with these 4 people who were like absolute hardcore fans and one of them kind of knew Chris (the lead singer/guitarist) a bit. We got chatting and had the buzz with them. A short while later, I saw a few people walk down the side entrance to the venue, one of them distinctly being Vinnie. (drummer) I was like "Oh my god, that was totally Vinnie just there" and Rob and I ran around the back. Sure enough, he walked by again, carrying the band equipment but for some annoying reason, my feet were frozen to the ground and I couldn't go over and even say hi! I really thought I blew my only chance.
So we queued until 7 ish and then they opened the doors. We ran in and got right up to the very front at the barriers. The others were able to hold my place while I went off and bought the sickest Less Than Jake t-shirt from the merch stand. I was very happy.
The place was mad empty at the beginning and it wasn't until the third support band came on, when there was a decent crowd around. The first two bands were grand, but the last band (Pepper) were fucking awesome. They were from Hawaii and all they sang about was sex and being horny. But it was amazing, they had a great ska sound. And the guitarist was totally hot. during one of their songs, they got JR (sax player for LTJ) to come out and play with them.
So after Pepper played, we waited impatiently for Less Than Jake to come on. It was gas, because as all the roadies were setting up the gear, Chris just randomly came out with a brush and started sweeping the stage. Eventually they came on, and as soon as they set foot on stage, everyone in the crowd lunged forward and I was literally crushed against the barrier. They opened with "All My Best Friends Are Metalheads" which got everyone totally pumped up and excited.
During the week I had a t-shirt made especially for the gig saying "MARK CRUCE WOAH!" on it. (lyrics about a friend of theirs from one of their songs) and I was secretly hoping that they'd see it during the gig. And at one point in between a song, Roger (bassist) just randomly pointed to me in the crowd and said "What does your shirt say? I can't read it." And I pulled it down so he could read the words. He smiled and goes "Mark Cruce, woah!" Then Chris said "Wow, do you know how weird it is for us to see a childhood friend's name on a t-shirt in the audience in a foreign country?? Thank you though, that's cool!" I couldn't believe it! I wanted them to see it so bad, but I really didn't think they would! I didn't stop smiling from then on.
A while later, they announced that they wanted 3 guys up on stage for a competition to do the voice impression from a particular song by Disturbed. (They do it every show, it's sort of like this screech sound) But like, weeks before the show I told Rob that there was a chance they would get people to do it and I knew he could do it really well. He said he'd definitely get up and do it if they asked him....well they fucking did! and the crazy part? He didn't even volunteer to, Chris just pointed to him and said "You, four eyes! Up here now!" He was trying to raise his hand to be picked, but everyone around him was just all over the place and he was too squashed into the barrier to move his arms up...it's just so ironic that Chris picked him anyway. So he got up on the stage and he beat the other 2 guys, doing a far superior impression. Chris gave him a plec (which was graciously passed on to me) and Buddy handed him a beer too.
They even dedicated "Conviction Notice" to Rob because he did the voice so well...how cool is that??! Rob went up on stage and they saw my t-shirt...it couldn't be better.....but the thing is, it was! After the show, we legged it around the back to the tour bus, in hope of meeting the band. I had my Borders & Boundaries album with me and I was hoping that one of them would sign it for me. There was only a handful of people there, which was really cool. A few minutes later, Chris walked outside and came straight over to us all. He signed my album and signed a few other things for people and then said he had to get changed, but he'd be back out in a minute.
True to his word, he hopped out of the bus moments later, fresh as a daisy! Somehow I got talking to him and he was like "Didn't you message us on MySpace?" I couldn't believe it when he said that, he remembered me! They must get like hundreds of messages everyday! I was like "Eh, yeah. Sorry I sent you all those messages!" And he was like "It's graaaaand! I did message you back right? I actually forwarded your profile to Mark Cruce, but I don't think he saw it yet." I was like "WHAT?!" (My user name is "Mark Cruce, Woah!") he fucking sent my profile to the one and only Mark Cruce! I couldn't believe it. He signed my t-shirt and then Rob took a picture of us together, which was deadly. I also told him that Mr. Chevy Celebrity was the most amazing song ever, and he was like "Well thank you very much!"
Then we all walked down to the pub! I'd say there were about six or seven of us and then Chris. The rest of the band didn't come down though. It was great, because I got to talk to him along the way. I asked him why they didn't play in Ireland on this tour and he was like "God, I don't even know. We always have such good gigs there, but I think there were too many on at once and it just didn't happen."
The support bands were all in the pub too, so we didn't really get to talk to Chris that much because naturally he was chatting to them and just mingling in general. But at one point, one of the guys we met in the queue who knows Chris pretty well from being at shows, said "She came all the way from Ireland just to see you guys." And he was like "I know it's crazy! I just feel so bad that you guys came all the way from Ireland just to see us." I was like "Eh, what?! It's fine, totally worth it!" Again, we got talking about Mark Cruce somehow and all of a sudden he said "I'll ring him for you!" He got Rob's phone and actually tried to ring the chap, just so I could say hi to him! It didn't work unfortunately, but I was so chuffed that he even said it! We now have Mark Cruce's number =P
I told Chris that I'd love to meet the guy from Frenzal Rhomb, who's featured in their song "Jay Frenzal" and then he started explaining all the lyrics in the song to me and it was just amazing in general. A few mins later he saw someone he knew and started talking to them. We had to go a few minutes later for the taxi so I went over to say goodbye to him. He shook my hand and then just hugged me and gave me a kiss on the cheek (swooon!) And I just kept saying "Thank you so much, this was absolutely amazing" and he was like "Thank you for coming out hon, have a good night!" SCORE! I'm totally in there with Chris =D It was around that stage also, when we got talking to the guitarist from Pepper (yes, the hot one) and I told him how amazing I thought they were. He snuck me a peck on the cheek =)
I wanted to see if anyone else was around near the tour bus and as we walked around, we saw Vinnie talking to about 4 people. We joined in and he signed my CD as well. I didn't really get a chance to say anything else to him, because some girl was all over him. Fair enough, like. Although he did ask me whether or not I liked their support band "Beat Union." Then Buddy suddenly came out of nowhere. I was like "Buddy!" and he imitated the way I said it in this weird, crazy voice. I got him to sign my CD and t-shirt and we spoke to him briefly. I was like "Awh this was such an amazing gig, so worth coming over for!" And he was like "Coming over? Where did you come from?" I told him we came over from Ireland and he thought that was really cool. Then a little while later, he said "Ah, now I recognise your irish brogue!" We had to leave soon after to get a taxi and said goodbye to everyone at the bus. It was a shame I didn't get to meet JR, he was the one I wanted to meet the most. Roger walked by us before getting into the bus, but I've heard that he's not really into hanging out with fans after the show, so we didn't bother him.
It was actually the best night of my life last night, although I'm in absolute bits now. I strained the muscles in my throat and now it's fucking killing me. My ribs are also in pieces from being crushed against the barrier...but it was all more than worth it for Less Than Jake.
I can't remember fully what they played, but the set list was something like this:
All My Best Friends Are Metalheads
Does The Lion City Still Roar?
Johnny Quest Thinks We're Sellouts
Look What Happened
Summon Monsters
The Ghosts Of Me And You
Conviction Notice
Motto
The Science Of Selling Yourself Short
Nervous In The Alley
History Of A Boring Town
Never Going Back To New Jersey
She's Gonna Break Soon
Plastic Cup Politics
Dopeman
Gainesville Rock City
So we got to Manchester and met up with Mick at around 1 ish. We walked down to the Academy to scope the place out and see how to get there, etc. The we walked back up towards Picadilly and browsed around some of the shops in the Arndale centre. It was pretty good, but I didn't buy anything.
At around half 4, Mick wanted to get back to the house so Rob and I got a taxi up to the venue to wait. It was around 4.45 at that stage and there were already about 6 or 7 people there. It was pretty cool because we made friends with these 4 people who were like absolute hardcore fans and one of them kind of knew Chris (the lead singer/guitarist) a bit. We got chatting and had the buzz with them. A short while later, I saw a few people walk down the side entrance to the venue, one of them distinctly being Vinnie. (drummer) I was like "Oh my god, that was totally Vinnie just there" and Rob and I ran around the back. Sure enough, he walked by again, carrying the band equipment but for some annoying reason, my feet were frozen to the ground and I couldn't go over and even say hi! I really thought I blew my only chance.
So we queued until 7 ish and then they opened the doors. We ran in and got right up to the very front at the barriers. The others were able to hold my place while I went off and bought the sickest Less Than Jake t-shirt from the merch stand. I was very happy.
The place was mad empty at the beginning and it wasn't until the third support band came on, when there was a decent crowd around. The first two bands were grand, but the last band (Pepper) were fucking awesome. They were from Hawaii and all they sang about was sex and being horny. But it was amazing, they had a great ska sound. And the guitarist was totally hot. during one of their songs, they got JR (sax player for LTJ) to come out and play with them.
So after Pepper played, we waited impatiently for Less Than Jake to come on. It was gas, because as all the roadies were setting up the gear, Chris just randomly came out with a brush and started sweeping the stage. Eventually they came on, and as soon as they set foot on stage, everyone in the crowd lunged forward and I was literally crushed against the barrier. They opened with "All My Best Friends Are Metalheads" which got everyone totally pumped up and excited.
During the week I had a t-shirt made especially for the gig saying "MARK CRUCE WOAH!" on it. (lyrics about a friend of theirs from one of their songs) and I was secretly hoping that they'd see it during the gig. And at one point in between a song, Roger (bassist) just randomly pointed to me in the crowd and said "What does your shirt say? I can't read it." And I pulled it down so he could read the words. He smiled and goes "Mark Cruce, woah!" Then Chris said "Wow, do you know how weird it is for us to see a childhood friend's name on a t-shirt in the audience in a foreign country?? Thank you though, that's cool!" I couldn't believe it! I wanted them to see it so bad, but I really didn't think they would! I didn't stop smiling from then on.
A while later, they announced that they wanted 3 guys up on stage for a competition to do the voice impression from a particular song by Disturbed. (They do it every show, it's sort of like this screech sound) But like, weeks before the show I told Rob that there was a chance they would get people to do it and I knew he could do it really well. He said he'd definitely get up and do it if they asked him....well they fucking did! and the crazy part? He didn't even volunteer to, Chris just pointed to him and said "You, four eyes! Up here now!" He was trying to raise his hand to be picked, but everyone around him was just all over the place and he was too squashed into the barrier to move his arms up...it's just so ironic that Chris picked him anyway. So he got up on the stage and he beat the other 2 guys, doing a far superior impression. Chris gave him a plec (which was graciously passed on to me) and Buddy handed him a beer too.
They even dedicated "Conviction Notice" to Rob because he did the voice so well...how cool is that??! Rob went up on stage and they saw my t-shirt...it couldn't be better.....but the thing is, it was! After the show, we legged it around the back to the tour bus, in hope of meeting the band. I had my Borders & Boundaries album with me and I was hoping that one of them would sign it for me. There was only a handful of people there, which was really cool. A few minutes later, Chris walked outside and came straight over to us all. He signed my album and signed a few other things for people and then said he had to get changed, but he'd be back out in a minute.
True to his word, he hopped out of the bus moments later, fresh as a daisy! Somehow I got talking to him and he was like "Didn't you message us on MySpace?" I couldn't believe it when he said that, he remembered me! They must get like hundreds of messages everyday! I was like "Eh, yeah. Sorry I sent you all those messages!" And he was like "It's graaaaand! I did message you back right? I actually forwarded your profile to Mark Cruce, but I don't think he saw it yet." I was like "WHAT?!" (My user name is "Mark Cruce, Woah!") he fucking sent my profile to the one and only Mark Cruce! I couldn't believe it. He signed my t-shirt and then Rob took a picture of us together, which was deadly. I also told him that Mr. Chevy Celebrity was the most amazing song ever, and he was like "Well thank you very much!"
Then we all walked down to the pub! I'd say there were about six or seven of us and then Chris. The rest of the band didn't come down though. It was great, because I got to talk to him along the way. I asked him why they didn't play in Ireland on this tour and he was like "God, I don't even know. We always have such good gigs there, but I think there were too many on at once and it just didn't happen."
The support bands were all in the pub too, so we didn't really get to talk to Chris that much because naturally he was chatting to them and just mingling in general. But at one point, one of the guys we met in the queue who knows Chris pretty well from being at shows, said "She came all the way from Ireland just to see you guys." And he was like "I know it's crazy! I just feel so bad that you guys came all the way from Ireland just to see us." I was like "Eh, what?! It's fine, totally worth it!" Again, we got talking about Mark Cruce somehow and all of a sudden he said "I'll ring him for you!" He got Rob's phone and actually tried to ring the chap, just so I could say hi to him! It didn't work unfortunately, but I was so chuffed that he even said it! We now have Mark Cruce's number =P
I told Chris that I'd love to meet the guy from Frenzal Rhomb, who's featured in their song "Jay Frenzal" and then he started explaining all the lyrics in the song to me and it was just amazing in general. A few mins later he saw someone he knew and started talking to them. We had to go a few minutes later for the taxi so I went over to say goodbye to him. He shook my hand and then just hugged me and gave me a kiss on the cheek (swooon!) And I just kept saying "Thank you so much, this was absolutely amazing" and he was like "Thank you for coming out hon, have a good night!" SCORE! I'm totally in there with Chris =D It was around that stage also, when we got talking to the guitarist from Pepper (yes, the hot one) and I told him how amazing I thought they were. He snuck me a peck on the cheek =)
I wanted to see if anyone else was around near the tour bus and as we walked around, we saw Vinnie talking to about 4 people. We joined in and he signed my CD as well. I didn't really get a chance to say anything else to him, because some girl was all over him. Fair enough, like. Although he did ask me whether or not I liked their support band "Beat Union." Then Buddy suddenly came out of nowhere. I was like "Buddy!" and he imitated the way I said it in this weird, crazy voice. I got him to sign my CD and t-shirt and we spoke to him briefly. I was like "Awh this was such an amazing gig, so worth coming over for!" And he was like "Coming over? Where did you come from?" I told him we came over from Ireland and he thought that was really cool. Then a little while later, he said "Ah, now I recognise your irish brogue!" We had to leave soon after to get a taxi and said goodbye to everyone at the bus. It was a shame I didn't get to meet JR, he was the one I wanted to meet the most. Roger walked by us before getting into the bus, but I've heard that he's not really into hanging out with fans after the show, so we didn't bother him.
It was actually the best night of my life last night, although I'm in absolute bits now. I strained the muscles in my throat and now it's fucking killing me. My ribs are also in pieces from being crushed against the barrier...but it was all more than worth it for Less Than Jake.
I can't remember fully what they played, but the set list was something like this:
All My Best Friends Are Metalheads
Does The Lion City Still Roar?
Johnny Quest Thinks We're Sellouts
Look What Happened
Summon Monsters
The Ghosts Of Me And You
Conviction Notice
Motto
The Science Of Selling Yourself Short
Nervous In The Alley
History Of A Boring Town
Never Going Back To New Jersey
She's Gonna Break Soon
Plastic Cup Politics
Dopeman
Gainesville Rock City
BEST NIGHT EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
For more foties, have a look at my bebo or myspace!
![=]](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjsoOb3oPIoBKPPcREy21ylwZNk7C_GExTqSNoJZ2E4jJBfZHQjTxJBOh3jL3y7tJZWcqQI2RO5CIFBjKlfOZayfeB6jhl22Nxo5JkIJhGMVbllVUustdos7oBVdr9bakt4w6lqst7Ck7L8/s1600-r/mewith-chris-1.jpg)
1 comment:
That is so good. Nice one!
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