At 7:00 tonight, I was flying down the freeway in the Jacobmobile towards downtown Cleveland. Directly ahead, ominously dark clouds filled the sky. Every few seconds, brilliant lightning bolts cracked down from the heavens like I've never seen before. It must've been an offshoot storm from the remnants of Hurricane Dennis.
"I'm heading into this?" I thought to myself as the rain obscured my view through the windshield.
What could possibly make me keep going in the direction of such an intimidating sight? Concert tickets, of course. Tickets to see Pete Yorn.
After a minor parking incident, we arrived at the House of Blues. An incredibly helpful lady from the giftshop led us through the building to where we needed to be, as it was our first time there. From there, an equally helpful guy led us upstairs to the disabled seating.
I won't go off on a rant here, but I'd just like to take a moment to state that in my twenty two years, I've yet to see handicap seating that shows any kind of actual thought behind it. As I pulled into the spot tonight, I found that the bar from the railing in front of me, directly in my line of sight between the stage and me. I said flat out that this wasn't going to work and the guy offered to take us downstairs to the pit.
We got down there and I got myself comfy right up front on the left side of the stage. A little while later, around 8:00, the curtains parted and the opening act, Minibar, took the stage. A group of guys from London, they had a great sound and kept my attention throughout their whole set. Their sound compliments Pete Yorn's strikingly well. I'll have to go grab one of their CDs soon.
Around 9:15, the curtains opened again and there stood Pete Yorn, strumming the opening to "Feel Good Again". Halfway through the song, it dawned on me that the band backing him up was actually Minibar, a perfect fit. Pete sounded great and everyone, both on stage and in the audience, appeared to be thoroughly enjoying themselves.
Pete kept everyone dancing with his retro-ish rock style upbeat songs, and even his slower songs, such as "All At Once" and "Strange Condition", were performed with enough power to keep everybody moving. He also gave fans a taste of what's to come when he played a few songs from his upcoming album, due out later this year.
It was a great show, though it seemed to end earlier than I'd expect, long before 11:00. I had a blast and hope Pete'll make his way back to Cleveland soon.
Other amusement came from a girl who had clearly been enjoying her drinks throughout the evening. During Pete's set, she came out of nowhere, bent down next to me, and said "You lucky bastard." Unsure where this was leading, I listened as she continued "My Dad told me I should get a wheelchair and I could get right up front. He was right, huh?" Not knowing what to say, I just laughed. She then began dancing like a madwoman.
My final note from the night comes from my realization that I'm ridiculously un-smooth. After the show, I found myself just hanging around in front of the stage. I looked to my left and saw a beautiful woman walking directly towards me. She leaned in, her long, dark hair hanging down, and asked me how I liked the show. We talked for a bit about the concert and Pete Yorn. She asked my name and told me she was Kelly. A few minutes later, our little conversation ended and she walked away.
Then it hit me. This gorgeous lady made the effort to come over and strike up a conversation with me...and I made no attempt to ask for her number or anything. What the hell is my problem? I swear, my brain just freezes up at the sight of a pretty lady, doubly so if they're nice. I'm kicking myself (so to speak) now.
Anyway, it was a great night and a great show. Stay tuned for my further misadventures, won't you?
-Jacob
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