Rock this bitch

04/02/08 – Springfield, MO (MSU)

We hadn’t been to a Ben Folds concert before so we didn’t know what to expect. Our seats were 30-40 rows back just a bit stage left. This was the absolute loudest sound I’ve ever experienced. I closed my eyes and it literally felt as if I was swimming in sound during Narcolepsy. Ben’s studio stuff is fantastic, but his live performance is unbelievable. Oh, I shouldn’t forget to mention Eef Barzelay either. It was just him and his electric guitar on stage, and he tore the place up…I’ve bought two of his albums and 4 Clem Snide ones since.

04/05/08 – Kansas City, MO (UMKC)

There were less than 1000 people at this concert, and the energy was pretty low. We volunteered to help out just so we could get in, and we were assigned “security”. Ya, you read that right security. What this really meant was we got free t-shirts, a close-up view stage left, and the authority to glare at the irritating little shits that wouldn’t shutup. The show was great, of course, but the best part was getting to meet the band afterwards and getting a picture of us with Ben. Eef cut his act off short unfortunately, since the crowd was sooooo dead. Black Violin also performed. It wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t piano rock either.

04/19/08 – St. Peter, MN (Gustavus Adolphus College)

This was part one of our Ben Folds Minnesota Road Trip 2008. We stood out in the cold a couple hours before the show, but we were rewarded with getting to see the show from dead center about 3 rows back. The sound system was crazy loud and the crowd was great.

04/20/08 – Duluth, MN (UMD)

By far the best show I’ve ever seen. We watched from the front row stage right so you could see every facial expression, and I didn’t miss seeing a single note being pounded out on that abused piano. 29 songs and we got another picture with Ben afterwards. My only complaint and I can barely even categorize it as a complaint is that it wasn’t loud enough. It was loud, but it wasn’t make your ears bleed loud like I like it.

05/28/08 – Vienna, VA (Wolf Trap)

Ben Folds East Coast Road Trip – Another great concert of course. We even got Effington t-shirts from our Benfriends L met on The Suburbs message board. We were stage left in the fourth row, but unfortunately I had a big fat head bobbing back and forth blocking my view of Ben half the time. Again, it wasn’t nearly loud enough…I guess it would have been difficult to get an open air show as loud as a school gymnasium. The Wolf Trap venue was absolutely georgeous. We were under this giant wooden canopy that covered all the reserved seating in front of the lawn seats.

05/30/08 – Cary, NC (Koka Booth Amphitheatre)

Ben Folds East Coast Road Trip – Great show, great venue. We were center stage second row. The crowd was pretty dead throughout the show, but Ben’s family was there and he did a lot of messing around between songs. No autograph or picture though.

09/07/08 – Nashville, TN (Schermerhorn Symphony Center)

10/03/08 – Fort Wayne, IN (Embassy Theatre)

10/04/08 – Louisville, KY (Kentucky Center)

Frankapalooza