There are many kinds of concerts in the world; each of which is a vastly different experience than the others. Granted they're all musical showcases, but that's like saying I should go worship the Giant Spaghetti Monster because its all just religion. Before last night, I had been to a couple different kinds of concerts.
- The concert hall concert: This is the most common kind of concert for the music I like. That's where you're going to see your Jimmy Buffett's and Steely Dan's. Its a concert in a venue made specifically for musical performance and the purpose of the show is to display the musical stylings of the artist on the stage. I started in on these kinds of concerts early. Steely Dan was my first, followed by Jimmy Buffett with the fam. I slept through most of it, but managed to wake up in time for the dirtiest song in his line-up. That's because my timing is impeccable. I think it goes without saying that if concerts were religion, I'd be a concert hall follower.
- The hippie-coffee-house-mediocre concert: I was thankfully unacquainted with this form of concert until midway through high school. Then, I discovered that diamond in Saratoga, California's vast vast rough known as Blue Rock Shoot. I tease now, but there are a couple of performers there who weren't bad. That seems to be the most common positive coffee house review you can get: "I was surprised, he wasn't bad".
- The open-air-no-shoes-bring-a-cooler concert: I love these. For anyone that hasn't gone before, I would highly recommend them. They are very laid back, generally with a lot of vendors and activities nearby. It turns a concert into a festival and that's always cool.
Until last night though, I had never been to an arena concert.
As a Christmas present for my friend Alex, I got him a pair of tickets to the insanity that is a Lady Gaga concert. I know we're not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but I'm gonna go out on a limb here and take a guess or two.
Steely Dan: In it for the music
Lady Gaga: In it for the fame
There is some serious benefit to going to a concert put on by someone who's in it for the fame. For one, the show itself was incredible. A Lady Gaga concert is the kind of show you go to for the spectacle more than the music. Don't get me wrong, I'm into some craziness so... I actually do like her music. But I like Kevin Rudolph too - you don't see me running to his concerts.
When we got there, the opening act was still performing. They were called the Semi-Precious Weapons. I do not recommend them. To anyone. Ever. The next opening act, however, was fantastic. His name is Jason Derulo and he gives new meaning to "lead me not into temptation".
Seriously.
But I digress. I have considered myself a Lady Gaga fan for some time, but I didn't realize that she has a cause she vocally supports at the start of each show. She is very aware of who made her famous, who will keep her famous and what their needs are. She famously accepted an award this past year by thanking "God and the gays" for her success. I have found, prior to her concert, that I have a deep-seated respect for her willingness to lose some fans to prejudice in order to maintain her beliefs. Whether or not you agree with the particular beliefs she espouses, her strength is a quality to be admired.
Her performance oozed confidence. There's no other way to describe it. She just did whatever the heck she wanted. She opened with a joke so dirty that I don't actually feel comfortable posting it here despite laughing heartily at it. (That's right, I just used the word "heartily" in a sentence. Deal with it.) Her transitions were, for lack of a better word, epic. She cultivated strange as a performance art and prided herself on creating a record of the lives of those who never fit in.
I think what was most amazing was how it felt to be part of a crowd that big and that in-sync. While I wouldn't recommend Lady Gaga specifically for someone with a tamer taste than me, I would still recommend the arena concert experience.
This.
Once the songs got going, this entire mass of people moved, at once, in harmony with the music. At random intervals she would yell at the audience to jump, which everyone did. It looked like an ocean of people. The whole thing was just awe-inspiring. Going to an arena concert explains what people mean when they say there is an electricity in a crowd of people.
And look how happy we are.
The lady behind us disagrees.
I have always been a concert hall kind of person. After last night... I may have to convert.
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