On Tuesday, Stacie, Nick, his girlfriend Megan (remember them, from The Great Iowa Beer Fest) and I drove across the state of Iowa to see Frontier Ruckus in Omaha.
I first told you about Frontier Ruckus a few years ago in a "READ/LISTEN/WATCH/RENT", and we saw them in concert in October of 2009 in Ames. At that show they signed an album for us congratulating Stacie and I on our engagement. Well, married for some months now, it was great to get the chance to see them again.
Now, "Deadmalls and Nightfalls" was my favorite album of 2010, so I was excited to hear the newer songs off of it live. And, since we asked Dave (banjo) before they went up, they played "Mona and Emmy" for us too. So that was great. And then, for the last 2 songs, they stood on the floor and played close to the crowd, which was very cool to see. Concert couldn't get much better right?
Well, it did.
After the set was over, we asked Matt (guitar/singer) if they were planning an encore. (Nick wanted really wanted to hear "The Upper Room" and I was hoping to get "I Do Need Saving" out of them.
Instead of a standard encore, the four of us followed Matt upstairs, and in a small room we drank and talked and Matt played songs for us. It was amazing. It was surreal.
We talked about 90's rock (Matt would go in and out on covers of Gin Blossoms and Lisa Loeb), Walt Whitman, and just life in general.
We were up there for about an hour, and we got to hear "The Upper Room", "I Do Need Saving", a new song titled "Blackhole" which was of course great and after the rest of the band joined us, he finished with "The Tower".
It was the best concert experience I have ever had. It was one of those things that it would have been great to have on film, or a recording of it, but, since there wasn't a tape player or camcorder it made it so much more intimate. A moment Nick, Stacie, Megan and I shared with this great band that we'll always have.
I really liked talking with Matt and hearing him talk about what he loved. Nick and I would comment about something, and his eyes would light up. It was like, giving him that validation that yes, we're hearing you and not just that, were really listening. As a fan it's one thing to root for the band, but after meeting them, and getting to know him (even just a little bit) it makes it so much more real.
Before we left, Matt signed a guitar pick for me, on which he wrote "Patrick is my friend". And the best thing about that friendship is I know that every year or so, this band will put out another great record that continues these stories. These trials and tribulations of this Orion town, a land I've never been but doesn't seem much different from a place called Glenwood. And with these records, I, as well as my friends, will have an on going soundtrack to our lives. And I can handle that.
"I hope everyone else made a funny face." - Ryan "Smalls" Etzcorn
(L/R: Zach, Matt, Nick, Dave, Me, (Ryan, kneeling), Stacie, and Megan)
Go to www.frontierruckus.com to find music, and tour dates. If they come near you, see 'em.
Below is a video the band shot earlier in the day on Tuesday in the old market (the same alleys Stacie and I shot our engagement photos.) The video is for one of my personal favorite songs, "Mona and Emmy".
I first told you about Frontier Ruckus a few years ago in a "READ/LISTEN/WATCH/RENT", and we saw them in concert in October of 2009 in Ames. At that show they signed an album for us congratulating Stacie and I on our engagement. Well, married for some months now, it was great to get the chance to see them again.
Now, "Deadmalls and Nightfalls" was my favorite album of 2010, so I was excited to hear the newer songs off of it live. And, since we asked Dave (banjo) before they went up, they played "Mona and Emmy" for us too. So that was great. And then, for the last 2 songs, they stood on the floor and played close to the crowd, which was very cool to see. Concert couldn't get much better right?
Well, it did.
After the set was over, we asked Matt (guitar/singer) if they were planning an encore. (Nick wanted really wanted to hear "The Upper Room" and I was hoping to get "I Do Need Saving" out of them.
Instead of a standard encore, the four of us followed Matt upstairs, and in a small room we drank and talked and Matt played songs for us. It was amazing. It was surreal.
We talked about 90's rock (Matt would go in and out on covers of Gin Blossoms and Lisa Loeb), Walt Whitman, and just life in general.
We were up there for about an hour, and we got to hear "The Upper Room", "I Do Need Saving", a new song titled "Blackhole" which was of course great and after the rest of the band joined us, he finished with "The Tower".
It was the best concert experience I have ever had. It was one of those things that it would have been great to have on film, or a recording of it, but, since there wasn't a tape player or camcorder it made it so much more intimate. A moment Nick, Stacie, Megan and I shared with this great band that we'll always have.
I really liked talking with Matt and hearing him talk about what he loved. Nick and I would comment about something, and his eyes would light up. It was like, giving him that validation that yes, we're hearing you and not just that, were really listening. As a fan it's one thing to root for the band, but after meeting them, and getting to know him (even just a little bit) it makes it so much more real.
Before we left, Matt signed a guitar pick for me, on which he wrote "Patrick is my friend". And the best thing about that friendship is I know that every year or so, this band will put out another great record that continues these stories. These trials and tribulations of this Orion town, a land I've never been but doesn't seem much different from a place called Glenwood. And with these records, I, as well as my friends, will have an on going soundtrack to our lives. And I can handle that.
"I hope everyone else made a funny face." - Ryan "Smalls" Etzcorn
(L/R: Zach, Matt, Nick, Dave, Me, (Ryan, kneeling), Stacie, and Megan)
Go to www.frontierruckus.com to find music, and tour dates. If they come near you, see 'em.
Below is a video the band shot earlier in the day on Tuesday in the old market (the same alleys Stacie and I shot our engagement photos.) The video is for one of my personal favorite songs, "Mona and Emmy".
Frontier Ruckus: Mona and Emmy from Love Drunk on Vimeo.
No comments:
Post a Comment