Of course I was too tired to finish this post all in one day, but at least I finished it... eventually.
Before I get into the concert itself, there's always seems to be a story with me just getting there. So since this was in San Jose, I was going to meet up with my friend so that he could drive the two of us down there. I had to meet him after his Muay Thai (or was it Jujitsu that day?) lesson at El Niño Training Center, Strikeforce Lightweight Champion Gilbert Melendez's gym, in a part of the City I was unfamiliar with -- Third Street. And being a native San Franciscan, I've always heard stories about Third Street being pretty dangerous... granted that was from my father who thinks EVERY neighborhood can be dangerous and one step away from a traffic accident or a mugging... but I digress. My co-worker confided in me that it wasn't going to be bad since the eastern part of the City has gotten better since they put in the T line, which I had to ride to get there. And to be fair, it was actually safer than I thought. The area felt deserted so there was no one on the street except for me and another person...
Speaking of which, I have to backtrack just a bit to explain this "other person." So on the way there, a young Latino-looking guy in his twenties got on with this huge bag. My Batman Detective Skills kicked in and I began to subtly observe this guy. I noticed there were several bruises on him, including one below his eye. Possibly from a misplaced elbow that slipped his guard? The bag also looked like it had big equipment inside. Pads, possibly? This guy also looked very athletic... and possibly Brazilian. And just like all Chinese people know Kung Fu, all Brazilians (especially if they live in the States) know Brazilian Jujitsu. Sure enough, when we all got off the train, we were walking in the same direction and sure enough, he was going to the Training Center.
Am I a deductive genius, or was it just a "well, duh!" moment? Yeah, okay, fine... it could have been a coincidence or just the basic of common sense... but fucking A, man, on some days I think I could have been a decent detective... up there with Adrian Monk or those dudes from Psych. Or Jessica Fletcher... but then I'd be a mystery novelist and living in Maine and a walking form of death. Seriously, everywhere she went, someone died. For TWELVE SEASONS! But I digress.
So after meeting up with my friend, testing out my new phone's mapping and GPS abilities, and discussions about music and concerts and the usual shit we talk about, we were in San Jose. Now my friend has been to the Civic Auditorium on several occasions, mainly for conventions. This had been my first time there, but I had always seen it whenever I was in the area. The first thing I noticed upon entering is THIS sign:
So since specific seating was downgraded to everything being general admission, even though our regular seats were downstairs, we decided to go up just to get away from the inevitable crowd surfing, moshing, and the mixed scent of cheap weed, cheap beer, and bad body odor.
Unfortunately because of timing, we missed out on the opening bands: Dead Sara and Neon Trees. We heard the last song from Neon Trees from the lobby, which was "Everybody Talks." It's okay... I can see why it's on the radio. And I didn't even know who Dead Sara was until Tuesday. After checking up on their work yesterday, "Weatherman" was their big song. Personally, I like "Whispers and Ashes" a bit more, but "Weatherman" is all right. They have this Pearl Jam/Soundgarden/Foo Fighters/Flyleaf thing going on for them and I can dig that.
Now, I dig Offspring a lot. It reminds me a lot of my college days because I got into them during Americana which I'm sure a lot of hardcore Offspring fans wouldn't appreciate because that's when they "sold out" and got too "mainstream" or whatever.
That was a long sentence.
Anyways, believe it or not, I really got into them through my obsession with video games. Most Offspring fans would know what I'm talking about when I mention Crazy Taxi. I think that's why every time I see a cab, "All I Want" pops in my head.
And if it weren't for a fan video that compiled a whole bunch of Final Fantasy video clips, "Staring At the Sun" probably wouldn't be one of my favorite songs.
So I got to hear all the songs I wanted to hear, for the most part. They played all their hits, they played stuff off their new album, and they played my favorite song: "Gone Away." Now, I'm use to the album version...
I listen to this version on the computer and I sing this version in Rock Band... but the live version is slower, stripped down to a keyboard and on this leg of the tour, is turned into a duet with Dead Sara's lead singer Emily Armstrong. I know the first time I heard it this way years ago at the BFD show, I was a little sad not getting to hear it the original way, but the way it is now... I think it has more of an impact.
I think the funniest and most distracting thing for me at the concert was the mosh pit that, though not advisable, was still formed. I liked to call it "The Whirlpool of Despair and White Trash" since the mosh pit just formed and turned into a big circle. Stupid white kids, a white giant with the ugliest beard imagineable, and a dwarf Reggie Watts lookalike began running around in circles like a fucking Nascar event, running into each other and pushing each other, repressing whatever the fuck suburban white boys repress about.
I do find it funny how three things can defuse and tame the mosh pit: the acoustic guitar... slow music... and girls. To be honest, I thought I was gonna see a bunch of dumb white boys hitting the girls... and when I mean girls, I mean high school teenage girls skipping around, lightly pushing people out of the way... and one badass chick running into the circle, getting some pot shots on the bigger guys, and running out.
To give the little moshers credit, there IS a form of controlled chaos that goes on in that thing. I think one guy was filming the mosh pit from the inside, as if he was in the eye of the hurricane, filming what was going on. I think one big white boy, probably in high school, took offense to this... as if he was peeping on him in the shower or something... and the guy filming it, someone I will call the Anthropologist, since he was filming them as if it was a part of a nature show or a documentary or something -- defused the situation by trying to bro handshake with him. The big kid gave him the Robert DeNiro-in-Meet the Parents "I'm Watching You" hand gesture with two fingers.
So since crowd surfing wasn't advised, there was definitely some crowd surfing. At first, it looked like people were trying to start it but it would end right away. And then at around the second half, it picked up again. I don't know... if I was in the crowd, I wouldn't even try to support the person... unless it was a woman... and then maybe... just maybe.
One person actually managed to get on stage and he got all excited about beating the system. Security came in and grabbed him. The same guy made it on stage AGAIN and this time, security wasn't fooling around and put him in a rear naked choke. I was cheering on the guy, hoping he put him to sleep... but I'm sure he put it on lightly just to control him and finally take him away. If I saw the security guard put that guy to sleep, I would have lost my shit.
"Self Esteem" was their last song, and that's when we decided to head on out and beat the crowd. I love that song, but even I realized the sooner we're in the garage, the sooner we can get out of San Jose and back home. On the way, we were talking more about music and the subject of best selling rock albums came up... and I was surprised to find out that Meat Loaf's "Bat Out Of Hell" is like in the top 10... I honestly didn't know.
So, even though I was still a little burnt out from the Garbage show, and had a better time there, I still had fun. I still love Offspring, even though I'm not familiar with their new album. The Offspring DID have a better light show than Garbage, who had a very minimalistic approach... though they DID have their background act as a projector that once in a while, aired some type of old stock footage from the past that would relate to the song they were singing. Ever since seeing them at the BFD show one or two years ago... I can't remember... my friend who I went with and I really wanted to see them at their own show, going longer in a venue that WASN'T the Shoreline... and I'm happy I got my wish.
Four down, two more to go. One small show that's probably going to require a lot of energy but a lot of fun in the process... and to top it all off... one of my favorite bands of all time, sans their most popular member. Hopefully I can add some more in between now and November 11th... and if I do, you KNOW I'll have something to say about it.
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