2010-08-23 Palace Theater, Albany, NY
Posted: Sun Sep 20, 2015 8:34 pm
joooory' date='Aug 24th 2010, 4:27 PM
TALC tuke18
Fever
[bbvideo=560,315]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64HcNcUuLPg[/bbvideo]
IIHY
[bbvideo=560,315]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anYkApT43Lc[/bbvideo]
MA
[bbvideo=560,315]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=codJ8_-nqf0[/bbvideo]
SFW
[bbvideo=560,315]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P0QrooCOiYg[/bbvideo]
fangurl1964' date='Aug 24th 2010, 5:37 PM
INTERLUDE
I will begin with an anecdote from the ending: on my way home, driving in my car, tears threatening at the corners of my eyes.
I was thinking back to the whole night; the barricades before the show, the show itself, the barricades after the show finished. Everything was rolling through my mind like a movie reel; I was reliving the journey in bits and pieces - a little of this and a little of that. I relived the adam moment; the autograph; the sheer beauty of seeing him up close. But then, I thought about my encounter with Monte, and that is when my eyes started watering up. Had I not been driving, I might have broke down. Here is why:
When I saw Monte come over to us, I was beside myself, because I really LOVE his guitar skills, and I love watching him on stage. He came over and really started talking to people, and taking pics etc. Then when he got down to my section, I moved near the front, and said: Monte, can you sign this for me? He looked over at me and said 'sure!', and someone moved so I could go up to him. While he was signing my ticket page, I said: "You shred some serious guitar - I love hearing you play and you sounded awesome tonight." At this point he looked right at me - I mean really looked at me and said "Thank you! That's nice of you to say" and smiled. He looked almost suprised I said that to him, although he must hear this often from other people. Maybe I didn't look like the kind of person that would say this or use the term 'shred' (and seriously, that just popped out-LOL). I don't know, but I do know this: when Monte looked at me, I felt like he was really looking at me, and not through me or around me. I know it sounds crazy or stupid, but as a person who has spent most of her life being looked around or through, having someone like Monte actually look into my eyes and mean what he was saying was arresting. It didn't matter for once that I was older, overweight, not beautiful by definition, not the pretty young person most people are drawn to. In the briefest of moments, he seemed to genuinly care about what I said to him. People have said before that Monte is very personable like that, and now I understand why. He made a total stranger feel like someone who mattered, without knowing it, and without trying. He won't remember me, and it does not matter. But the takeaway for me is that this moment will be in my head forever. I sensed in a flash of time that he is someone who actually cares about those around him, although I have nothing to support that. He just emanated that vibe to me....
(The full review and commentary about Adam to follow)
fangurl1964' date='Aug 24th 2010, 6:32 PM
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PART TWO:
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DESTINATION: GLAMNATION ALBANY
My journey started out with me driving to my sister's on Sunday, and spending the night before we departed for Albany on Monday. We got to Albany arount 2pm, in cloudy weather with light rain. We got checked in, then decided to walk around the town to find the venue. At the moment the rain had stopped, and we got a few cool pictures of the area while walking to the Palace. We were walking up the street and saw the palace ahead of us, and started taking pictures. As we got closer, I looked over and said: woah, those are the busses! We walked over there to find only a few people standing around; someone had said most of the people had come out already and gone inside. We didn't realle expect to see anyone at that point, and we didn't, but all of a sudden, we could hear faint music and Adam singing (OMG it was Adam!) We were listening for a bit, and I turned around and a woman waved me over to where she was standing (bless you nice person). I walked over there and OMG, guys, I could hear Adam singing Voodoo as clear as day. That stage must have been on the other side of the door I was now standing at! I told my sister to come over, and we stood there listening for quite a while. I heard him sing Voodoo, DTR and Ring of Fire, then Fever. During Fever, he sang low where he often hits a high note, and the woman who waved me over there and I looked at each other and said in convo: "He sang that note low. He's saving himself for tonight!" By then it was starting to really rain, so my sister and I decided to go back to the hotel to change and get food before the concert. We were like drowned rats at that point, and very glad to get out of wet clothes. But let me tell you, that voice was unbelievable, even hearing it through a thick wooden door. I KNEW I was in for a treat that night.
THE CONCERT
We left for the concert around 7 pm, and arrived to people waiting outside the venue. There was a good mix of men, women, young and not so young, but I would say an older crowd at this one overall. I was surprised at the number of men there - there were plenty, and the same thing in the section we sat in. I was in the balcony. The view of the stage was awesome, but it was still just far enough away to not really get that OMG feeling people must get up front. Adam's energy was palpable, his voice was spectacular, his looks on stage drop-dead gorgeous. His choreography was something to watch from where I sat he truly owned that stage and everyone in that venue. I was not close enough to se we the kind of details the up-close people would (like the 'glambounce' or any thrusting/gyrating action). We could see it, but the impact is not as pronounced from that far away. I got some vids, which are good enough for me, and my pics were grainy, but the best I could manage, so I am happy with what I got.
I was BLOWN AWAY by his vocals in person. STUNNED. When he just talked, he sounded more feminine than on videos. I was thinking: how can this big, 6-ft tall, sex on legs of a man sound...soft like that? LOLOL..... Then, when he sang Soaked, I nearly died. His voice reached the very last corners of that venue when he belted out that song. I felt at moments like I was listening to a form of opera. He projected his voice SO well, all I could think was: how could this man NOT win idol?? SERIOUSLY?? That song was so beautiful in person, I was just speechless to its beauty. I sat there leaning forward the whole time because I could not take it all in. I loved watching him sing all of his songs. My personal favorites are Fever and Sleepwalker, and they were awesome. I could not possibly retain enough detail to analyze each song or make comparisons; I am a big picture kind of person. But Adam was so amazing to see live. I can't even begin to wrap my head around what I experienced in that venue. His talent is so immense, so intense, that I cannot understand why he isn't all over radio and and in the minds of everyone everywhere right this second. After watching that show, I am even more convinced than I ever was before that he is destined for great things. We will ALL be glad we got this small, personal type of concert in years to come, when he is no longer accessible to anyone, ever.
I loved listening to the crowds shouting and yelling; seeing the people really enjoying the show. There was a guy next to me - a regular joe, if you will (there with his GF/wife) - and at first, he yelled a teeny bit, tepidly, probably a little embarrassed. By the end of the show, he was on his feet, screaming like a banshee with everyone else. I think it is safe to say he enjoyed the show original.gif And on the other side of my sister, there was another man with his GF, and at one point he asked my sister if he could use her binoculars so he could have 'just one close up look at adam.' She was like sure, here, use them for awhile! So we shared with our neighbor so he could have some of the same goodness we were enjoying, LOL. Loved those moments. Also, the balcony largely sat, including us. From so far away, it is hard to totally connect to any artist, even Adam, so that feeling of wanting to be on your feet lessens, I think. Also, I think if people don't start a trend in standing, lots of others won't get up b/c it makes the person behind them not able to see. We are short, so honestly, I was glad to not have to fight around tall people for taping songs. But if I were down front, I would not have sat for one minute, guaranteed. The energy down there must have been amazing....
fangurl1964' date='Aug 24th 2010, 7:17 PM
My Final part
AFTER THE SHOW
After Adam finished his encore, my sister and I decided to walk outside and see what was happening. We saw a crowd of people and realized it was really deep, so we decided to go across the street where a small group of people were hanging out. When we got over there, we realized how LONG that other line was, and figured, well at least here, we might get a photo and a sighting at least. We stood around for awhile, shuffling our feet, waiting... and nothing happening. I decided to wander a bit and found that there was a very small group of people at another barricade at the end of the first bus. I motioned for my sister to come over, and it was the best decision I ever made. We stood around for awhile, still waiting, watching, talking to others. We hear a few yells every now and then; maybe false alarms. We don't really expect anyone to come over our way, but then Terrance comes over to talk to some of the fans off to the side. I didn't get an autograph or talk to him, just watched him interact with others. I have to say - he was so nice to watch and listen too. He left and a little while later Tommy came whizzing by. He did not stop - he smiled, said 'hi' and then as he was exiting the gated area, went up to some younger fan and planted a big ol' kiss on her! She was stoked, let me tell you. Some of us were lamenting that he didn't sign, but not in a bad way, we just wished he would have stopped for a bit, since there were so few of us standing there (maybe a dozen or so). No one was sounding entitled or whining, just truly wanting to say hi b/c he is so damn handsome and fun :) But he moved on... so we waited some more.
Then Monte came out. I started with that story, so I won't repeat it here. I will say though, that he is shorter in person than I expected, and he just seems so damn nice and friendly. He really seemed to enjoy talking to the fans - he was so comfortable and easygoing to everyone there. So we waited yet again. People were getting excited, hoping beyond hope that the man himself would show.
Then it happened.
Adam came out the door, and the place erupted. People were shouting 'Adam' 'Adam', and he looked at us, smiled and waved. Then he talked to someone, got a pen.....and headed over to the main barricade with hundreds of people. The dozen or two of us folks were just, omg, I hope he comes over here... to 'he might not come back here.' Then all of a sudden, the security guy tells us to step back behind the barricade, and we just knew he was coming over. He walked over to us to sign autographs, and he was so beautiful, I just couldn't contain a coherant thought. I started snapping pics - none of which took - and then as he came my way I said: Can you sign this? and he took my paper and signed it. I said really quick that I thought the show was awesome; he heard my voice and looked at me as he gave me my paper back, smiled a bit and said 'thanks.' It wasn't much of an encounter, but OMG I was flying so high after that, I thought I would never come back down. That man is beyond belief. So kind when he speaks - he said he wouldn't do individual pics b/c it wouldn't be fair to everyone (who wouldn't get pics), but he did let us snap pics of him while standing there. Or maybe the guard told us not to, and we just ignored it. That was what I thought at the time. But Adam surely did allow people to take pics of him. I feel this is such a rare thing, and that we will never see this again in the future, but who knows - adam likes to break boundaries, so maybe he will make more opportunities for fans to meet him in controlled situations in future tours. I can only hope so. I already plan to try to get VIP stuff if the do that in round 2. I just better keep it together next time, cuz I do not want to get caught up in the crazy again like I did this time :( Fangurl needs to remember her manners when in the company of AFL and enthusiastic crowds.
But after that, we went back to our hotel to try to come back down to reality. On the way back, my sister called her husband, and I called my friend in Cali. I have no idea what i said to her, but I know I sounded like a drunk fool and she did not get a word in edgewise!! I will never live that one down, I just know it. I am going to be hearing 'I told you so' for the rest of my life, b/c I swore I would not go all fancrazy in his presence. I was so wrong it pains me to admit it. But, OMG, I would do it again in a NY minute, which BTW, is said to be, what? about 30 seconds? LOLOL.