Over the first 10 days of September I saw 10 bands live in concert. I didn’t plan on seeing so many bands, especially in such a short time, but it’s what ended up happening.
Last winter I saw that a band that my wife and I both like, as well as another band I’ve liked for the past 30 years, were touring together this summer. We looked at the tour dates and saw that they were playing a weekend show around our anniversary, but the show was in Pennsylvania—more than 6 hours from our home. They also were scheduled to play in Ohio, a few days later, but the show was on a weeknight. When the tickets went on sale, I was planning on looking for a new job but had not started to apply for jobs yet. Since most jobs hold to the traditional Monday-to-Friday schedule, we decided to “get away” for our 17th anniversary and go to a concert.
Around the same time, I saw another band I’ve liked for 30 years was going to be playing an hour from our home about a month after the other concert. While neither of us had seen any of the bands we hoped to see for our anniversary getaway, I had seen the headline act of the second concert once—a little over a year ago. We decided to go for it and attempt to see both concerts, four weeks apart.
Our plans were set, and tickets purchased.
Fast forward to our anniversary getaway and concert. For that weekend one of my sisters had agreed to watch our boys while we snuck away for our first “for fun” getaway since before our oldest was born. We booked a hotel, had tickets to the concert, and we were ready. The day before the concert, we drove from Ohio to New York, and spent the night at my sisters. The following morning, we headed towards the concert venue in Pennsylvania, bidding farewell for the next 30 hours or so. About half way into our 5 hour drive we stopped for lunch. While at lunch I checked my email to see the concert for that evening, a mere 4 hours from then, had been postponed to an “unknown” date. I tried to cancel the hotel room, but was told it was past the cancelation deadline. We were both disappointed.
After spending a couple days with family in New York, we headed back to Ohio. On the way back I noticed the concert had been rescheduled for a weeknight, which meant we wouldn’t be able to make it. But, another concert was scheduled for the weekend of Labor Day that was about 3 hours from our home. So, after securing a refund from the postponed show, we went ahead and got tickets to the new location. This meant that the two concerts we planned to bookend one week. Busy, especially that week was one of my travel weeks for work, but doable.
The first concert took place during a 4 day weekend. Four bands entertained us over the 5-and-a-half-hour show. Our second attempt at concert #1 was a success.
Less than 30 hours after the show finished, I left home for a week of travel for work. Due to the holiday, it was supposed to be a short work week for me. However, after multiple truck breakdowns, and extended stays in hotels, I wound up leaving my truck at a repair shop in New England, renting a car and driving home. I arrived home just hours before concert #2.
Our second concert was different, cringe-worthy at moments, but overall enjoyable. After the concert, which featured 3 bands, my wife gave an interesting analysis of how the two concerts seemed to be similar. Opening acts seem to have inferior production (sound and lighting), making it difficult to clearly hear/enjoy their portion of the concert. On the flip side, headline acts have amazing production, resulting in a more enjoyable experience. Acts in-between seem to work on a scale that moves from bad towards great. And, even if some of the bands between the opening act and the headliner are also well-known bands, their production quality usually suffers based on their order of appearance at the concert. At the end of the day, concert #2 was another success.
This leads me to concert #3. Going back a little, on my first day of work between concerts #1 and #2 I saw an advertisement for another concert of bands I’ve enjoyed since my teenage years. This show was taking place 3 days after concert #2, and a little over an hour from home. After talking to my wife I decided to get a ticket for myself. At that time, I didn't know my truck would break down resulting in a stressful week.
The week of concert #3 was a week I work close to home. My employer is located about half way between my home and the concert venue. The day of the show I headed straight to the show from work. A few hours, and 3 bands later, I matched the number of concerts I had been to over the last 5 years in just over a week.
When I was in college I went to a fair number of concerts. But since becoming a father I’ve only been to a handful of shows. I have no desire to maintain the pace at which I started this month, but it was a fun way to enjoy some of the music I’ve liked since I was a teen. And, since 9 of the 10 bands have been around for 30 or more years, there are no guarentees if I had waited I ever would have been able to catch them live and in concert.
