RGB Tour: Nashville & Atlanta

RGB Setlist

Before I jump into city specifics, I think it makes the most sense to talk about the RGB tour in general (keep in mind I have a whole three shows’ expertise under my belt and that the tour isn’t even halfway done, so obviously this is super subjective). Despite avoiding setlist spoilers before attending these shows, I couldn’t escape comments here and there wishing that Hanson would play more new songs off of Red Green Blue and less singles. After experiencing a few shows for myself, I’m both inclined to agree but also thankful for what we got. The fangirl in me wants as many new songs as she can possibly get and also “Rambling Heart” every night for the rest of forever. The live music fan in me just wants the maximum number of upbeat songs that can be crammed into a single setlist and leave her begging for water and a nap. Somewhere in the middle of both of those things is the fact that if they actually played RGB all the way through, my hansonstage stats might benefit, but I’m pretty sure I’d be begging for “If Only” by mid-Green.

RGB is a lot more quiet and mellow than everything that came before it, and I feel like this might be one of those “be careful what you wish for” situations where we wouldn’t actually be any happier if we got what we think we wanted. In short: The RGB tour setlist might be a little Middle of Everywhere Tour 2.0, but at least the MOE tour understood the assignment to keep my adrenaline going. 

If they're only going to do a few new songs, though, "Cold as Ice" 1,000% belongs on this setlist. Forgive my previous album review where I couldn't commit to a favorite song from Green; I'd now like to go on the record to say that my favorite song from Green is "Cold As Ice" live. Isaac gets so into it and looks like there is nothing he'd rather be doing than singing that song, and honestly there's nothing I'd rather be doing in that moment than standing in the room to witness it. A+, please play it every night and pity anyone who misses it. 

I also have no idea who pitched the idea of playing [name redacted bc I'm not going to be the one spoiling it for you. If you know, you know] before "If Only", but it's the perfect mix of mainstream and obscure to play for a crowd full of people in my age range. Whether you've been to a hundred Hanson shows and think you know every upcoming note, or you've been dragged by a friend and never heard a Hanson song in your life, the first time you hear it is sure to make you go "Wait, is that...?" Yep. It is.

Nashville

The first time I saw Hanson perform at the Ryman Auditorium was at a Blood:Water event back in 2011. I had balcony seats and they only played four songs. Cell phone cameras were garbage and real cameras weren't allowed, so I don't have a single photo from that day. Coming back over ten years later to watch them play a full show to a sold out crowd from the front row was a totally different experience and a great way to watch my first show of the RGB tour. I don't have a Hanson bucket list and I never set out to mark off seeing Hanson from the front row at various iconic venues around the world, but after the second biggest presale fail I've ever witnessed, I wasn't mad when my friend pulled us tickets in row AA amidst the chaos. (If the Ryman presale stressed you out, let me tell you about the time a seated presale went so wrong that the one college class I planned to skip turned into TWO DAYS because the glitches went on for hours until it got rescheduled for the following day).

To be honest, I was a little worried that everyone panic-buying "bad" seats and then buying more when they found better would leave quite a few empties even though the event was officially sold out. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the crowd looked full and excited to be there in person, though, with the only noticeable gaps being in the extreme corners of the balcony.

I walked in a little late thanks to a horrendously long merch line and ended up missing the opener's first song. His name is John Calvin Abney, though give it a few months and he'll be relegated to either John Jacob Jingleheimer Schmidt or Paul Tovar in my mind due to lack of memory and reasons. In all seriousness though, this dude is talented with a harmonica and handled himself extremely well when his guitar suddenly went out in the middle of a song. He spent the whole rest of the song playing his guitar right up to the microphone next to his face while the crowd clapped (semi) rhythmically to help him out, and I'm sure the moment he was stuck singing with no guitar in the middle of the sold out Ryman isn't one he'll soon forget.

After hearing that the new songs were few and far between, I was happily surprised to hear Zac choose "Wake Up" as his solo. Paul McDonald made a surprise appearance during "Write You A Song" since he co-wrote it with Isaac and happens to live in Nashville, so that was fun. Isaac had the crowd vote for his solo, and the options were "Deeper," "Hand in Hand," and "River." "River" won (I hear this had already  happened at a few shows and "River" was on a winning streak). It was easily a crowd favorite, especially being followed by part of "I Only Wanna Be With You."

The show ended with "Change In My Life" a capella with no microphones, which reminded me a lot of "Too Much Heaven" at the Sydney Opera House and was another one of those moments in Hanson history that I was grateful to witness in person. They sounded amazing, but let's be honest--our clapping didn't. 

Outtakes:

1. Nashville on a Friday night is WAAAY crazier than I remembered. We had to leave a bar without ever going inside because I literally could not hear my friend shouting to me on the sidewalk outside of it.
2. There was a fantastic moment where I felt like Taylor was looking right at me during the show, only to turn and realize he's looking at the girl who has materialized behind my back that is being dragged away by security. I'm not sure what all I missed, but by the time I noticed, my chair was almost folded in half with my things falling out of it, and there was a spilled drink flowing underneath it. Which brings me to...
3. If you're going to drink at a show, I support your good time, but also like...try to drink it all before you get excited and trample it? That was one of probably five or more drinks that got spilled in my vicinity throughout the night, and they flowed from every direction around me except the stage. Y'all, I promise the Ryman floor is not as thirsty as you are.
4. Note to past-self: ditch taking photos during the final bow. The really cool crowd shot from behind the stage is significantly less cool to look back on when you blocked your own face with your phone. Also not worth it when all of your bow photos are 50% your friends clapping hands anyway.

Atlanta

In true tour fashion of questionable decisions, we opted to drive the four hours straight to Atlanta after the Nashville show instead of waiting for the following day in hopes of avoiding terrible traffic. It actually paid off, but we didn't get to bed until 5am and then slept until noon. Since I chose the balcony in Atlanta, I stood in the merch line for a friend and spent all of two minutes waiting vs. the hour I spent in Nashville. It's crazy the difference a seated show makes, but Nashville also had limited special edition hatch print posters, so I'm sure that added to the demand.

The setlist was very similar to Nashville, but a few notable differences were "Broken Angel" in place of "Wake Up," "You Never Know" instead of "Thinking Bout Something," and the introduction of a fun new cover mashup that starts with War's "Low Rider" and goes into "Oh La La La." It's not a pairing I would have ever dreamed up, and "Oh La La La" is an unexpected deep cut to play at a regular show, but it totally works. I surprised myself a little with this opinion, but "Oh La La La" might actually be one of my favorite songs on this tour's setlist.

Outtakes:

1. Man Vs. Fries is good but not $40 Doordash good, especially when you're shorted fried Oreos.
2. I drifted off during our overnight drive and woke up around 3am to a heated debate about the technical definition of slavery, and all I could think is this is it. This is what old people road trips are like. 
3. Not playing "Rambling Heart" in "Hotlanta" was an actual crime.
4. My tolerance for the fist pumping "heys" at the beginning of "Don't Let Me Down" is at least 30 seconds shorter than Taylor wants to keep it up. There was a certain point both nights where it felt unnatural to keep it going and all I could think towards Taylor was "Stop trying to make 'fetch' happen."

Final Thoughts: 

I loved it and had a great time, as usual. I had a lot of fun traveling and hanging out with my friends, and driving a simple four hours between shows made me realize 1) how much my travel habits have changed and relied on flying in the last few years, and 2) how much I miss "classic" tour with weeks in a car on the road. It can be exhausting and dirty and stressful, but there's something about the long hours, the late night truckstop runs, and the utter delirium of confused and contagious crying laughter in the middle of the night that can't be replicated on a plane or anywhere else in the world. Nashville and Atlanta felt like a tease in a way, a quick dip of my toe into my favorite pool, but ultimately I didn't get to go swimming.

I suppose it's a good thing that I came away wanting more, that I don't have to worry about feeling burnt out or wonder if I'm "over" this band, because clearly I'm not. If I only had two words to describe this trip, I'd choose "not enough," which is exactly how I'd describe my very first show, too.

Thankfully, I hear the road goes on forever.

String Theory: Atlanta & Nashville

This post picks up right where the last one left off, at 4am coming home from Phoenix. The abridged version is this: I am an idiot who planned a cross country trip to see two shows, then three days back home, and then a six hour drive to the next two shows with a four hour drive in between and then a nine hour drive home again. The problem is I (perhaps willfully) forgot those three days "off" from traveling were actually full overnight shifts for me at work. The day before I left for Atlanta, I worked 11 hours overnight, took a three hour nap, packed, and somehow slept again that same night and got up at 6am to leave. These shows did an excellent job of reminding me that while I am physically not the same stupid college student that once drove nine hours home overnight from Birmingham, AL to run straight into my 9am English class, sometimes I make the mistake of acting like it. It's a miracle I made it to Atlanta and back home on my own, and I sure hope I remember this feeling next time I look at flight prices and think "Nah, it's just a six hour drive."

Both of these shows were packed. Nashville was definitely sold out, and Atlanta must have been really close. For the Atlanta show I was in the last seat on Zac's side a few rows from the stage. The drums seemed a little overpowering from there at times, and I noticed during the second half of the show I had trouble hearing Zac and Taylor's vocals on a few songs, but I think that was more of a technical issue than my seat location. This particular venue had a light pattern projected on the back wall behind the orchestra that changed with each song, and I had to appreciate the fitting starry backdrop during "Reaching for the Sky."

Despite having rehearsed and performed this show plenty of times by now, this one brought out the kind of technical difficulty no amount of practice can fix. It wasn't bad or even all that noticeable if you hadn't already seen the show, but Taylor's acoustic guitar didn't work during "No Rest For The Weary."  You can't exactly stop an entire symphony for one instrument, so he kept playing silently. Isaac tried to give Taylor his guitar at first, but there wasn't time to switch mid-song. They handled it like true professionals, Taylor strumming his heart out on an oddly silent guitar on the off chance that it would work, and Isaac picking up the chords on his electric guitar to fill the void. They played the whole song that way, and it was a weirdly good performance to see them soldier on and another beautiful show overall. And as for instructions on how to act at these shows? Fear not, the Atlanta Symphony souvenir shop has us covered:

View this post on Instagram

The Atlanta Symphony souvenir shop was selling appropriate #hansonstringtheory merchandise.

A post shared by Holly (@_hollywouldnt) on Oct 24, 2018 at 11:35am PDT

(I only wish there were a few to distribute later when people screamed bloody murder and literally chased Taylor and Zac from the stage door to the bus. This is why we can't have nice things.)

I was really excited for Nashville because it looked like a cool venue with lofty ceilings, chandeliers, and some unique tiers of box seating all around the room. We opted to sit side-stage similar to where I sat in Denver, but behind Taylor's piano instead of behind the drums. It was fun to hear some bells (and a giant xylophone?) that my ears hadn't picked out at any of the earlier shows. The crowd was pretty respectful, though come to think of it, so was Atlanta pre-bus. Way to uphold the stereotype, southerners! There was a funny moment during "Chasing Down My Dreams" when Zac started early. He sang the opening line "Now that I've started" before anyone else actually started. If you're going to screw up a line, it might as well be that one. We all had a good laugh at the irony and he sang it again, this time with the rest of the orchestra. I had a ton of fun at this one and was so ready to stand up and clap during "I Was Born" when the invitation finally came. As much as I'm loving String Theory, I know I'm going to be so excited to see a "normal" Hanson show again the next time I have that opportunity.

I've really enjoyed seeing this show from so many different angles, and by this point I have seen it just about everywhere from front row to the balcony to the side of the stage and behind the orchestra. They've all offered something a little different and I've enjoyed each one for different reasons. If you only get to do it once, I do think going for center in the middle of the crowd or balcony is the best sound and view, even if you love front row every other time. Of course if you have front row for your only show, you also aren't going home disappointed. In any case, see it if you can, and try a few different views if you get the chance. You know the drill. Get out there and Do, Go, and Be(have). If you're not sure why, just ask the Atlanta Symphony. 😉

MOE Tour: Atlanta

Every roadtrip seems to have that one low point where everyone is too tired to go on. The seven hour drive from St. Petersburg to Atlanta was that moment for us. We originally planned to drive as far as we could after the St. Pete show, stop at a hotel for the rest of the night, and finish the drive after checkout. In reality, we made it about 30 minutes outside of St. Pete before completely giving up and beginning to search for a hotel (one foiled attempt to switch drivers that spiraled into some sort of delusional crying laughter about “prostitute fires” sealed the deal that we all needed to stop to sleep). It took roughly eight phone calls to hotels in three or four cities before we realized we weren’t going to find something right off of I-75 so soon after hurricane Irma, and we finally found a place about 20 minutes off of the interstate in Dade City, wherever that is. In my most sleep-deprived moment, I turned back to look at a pile of assorted things I was about to carry inside and completely lost it. I realized I was about to walk into a hotel a disheveled mess at 2 AM carrying chocolate milk, a sandwich, and a bottle of peroxide. In the moment it felt like the most ridiculous situation, and I wound up face-down against my suitcase in the trunk just whimpering because I was too tired to even cry. That night definitely goes somewhere in my top 10 most desperately needed sleeps.

Screenshot from a video that probably never needs to see the internet.

We got in a surprisingly short line in Atlanta around 4pm. We were still so exhausted that we planned to aim for the balcony because it was seated, and the idea of standing for an hour before the show just sounded awful. By some miracle, I saw a few front row spots still open when we got inside. I walked about 10 feet towards my happy place, then felt myself turn around almost involuntarily and walk back up the balcony stairs instead. I sat in a cushioned seat before Hanson took the stage and during most of the slower songs, and I still don't regret that decision.

Just surprised myself & went for seated balcony over the end of front row for @hansonmusic. #whenyougetoldandstartneedingachair #hanson25

— Holly (@_hollywouldnt) September 20, 2017

I'm not even going to lie to you. I'm looking at the setlist right now trying to decide what I need to say about the show, and I've got nothing. I had fun; I'm glad I went, but I was still tired enough that it probably didn't stand out to me the way it must have for someone seeing their first, last, or only show of the tour, or even just someone who got more than six hours of sleep in the previous two days. I auto-piloted through it and my brain and body did all of the right things at the right moments, but it's kind of a haze looking back. It's not a testament to being jaded or burned out; it's a PSA about what happens when you don't take care of yourself and make sure you get enough rest. Maybe it's also a PSA about aging and trying to do the same crazy stuff you've been doing for 10 years. I did it to myself and I know it (though they manage to put just enough time between tours that I'll probably still think I can power through three days on virtually no sleep next time, too). I'm sure it didn't help that we had to drive all night after Atlanta without sleep too so there was no time to rest and retain any memories, but that's a really fun story for the next blog post and actually doesn't have anything to do with a Hanson show for once.

Fortunately, being crazy enough to drive around on little sleep and spend dozens of hours in line does have the perk of making new friends. So here's an actual Atlanta review from one I made this tour. Enjoy!

Roots & Rock 'n' Roll Tour: Atlanta

The great thing about traveling for this band and being a part of this fan base for an extended period of time is that there comes a point where going to a show "alone" stops existing. You can plan alone, you can float between friend groups, but the feeling of "I don't know anybody here" just ceases to be a thing. Still, Atlanta was my first time in seven years planning a trip on my own without gluing myself to a specific group of friends the entire time. I carpooled with one group of friends, shared a hotel with another, spent time in line with yet another group, and then braved the shows surrounded completely by strangers.

The whole experience brought me back to what it felt like to be the new kid that doesn't know everybody. It's a little unsettling and awkward, but it also holds a lot of potential for new friendships if you let it. While I would have loved to share these shows with the girls I have grown so used to traveling with, I have to say it reminded me of what I miss out on when I do that every other time. I like to think that I'm open to meeting new people and making new fan friends, but the truth is having that core group of best friends can also be a little bit of a crutch. It's not one I use on purpose, but I think when you get a little too comfortable in the space you've carved out for yourself, you wind up letting other opportunities to make new friends suffer for it. So yes, I  missed my usual partners in crime in Atlanta. But I also really enjoyed getting to connect with some newer friends I might not have had the opportunity to spend time with otherwise. High fives to you girls for making my time in Atlanta a fun one. :-)

As for the shows, I was ecstatic about the whole cover song concept from day one. I may or may not have told Zac in Cancun that the Christmas/Cover song set was one of my all-time favorite Hanson shows ever (to which my friend immediately pointed out "You do realize you just told the guy your favorite Hanson show was one where he didn't play any of his own music, right?" Oops. Not what I meant). It didn't disappoint. "God Only Knows" was phenomenal. Zac and Taylor's voices blend together so well it's like the same person singing a duet with themselves sometimes. "Me and Julio Down by the Schoolyard" was an unexpected highlight too, and it has been stuck in my head ever since ("Goodbye to Ro-o-sie, Queen of Corona...").

I've heard "Chain of Fools" before, but never cared much about it. Let Zac sing it though, and it's time to do a double take. Isaac looked really into it too even though he wasn't singing lead. Zac nailed "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" as I knew he would, though I'll never be able to sing along to "touching you, touching me" with a straight face.

There were two big stand-outs to me over the course of these two shows.

1. A Song For You. (video courtesy of Rachel H. from the Dallas show)

I had never heard this Leon Russell song prior to the livestream of Hanson's Chicago show a few weeks ago. I was hooked the moment I heard it on Yahoo, and hearing it in person was even better. People can argue about the quality of Taylor's voice and who should sing lead on what song, but I feel like this song showcased every good thing about it. Tell me Taylor's voice is gone, and I'll point at this song and carry on my happy fan way.

2. How much I actually appreciate Hanson songs.

That probably sounds ridiculous, but what I mean is that hearing the cover songs I was so excited about made me realize how much I really do appreciate Hanson's original songs. Every time they threw in a Hanson tune on covers night, I got this huge involuntary grin and couldn't wait to sing along. Absence makes the heart grow fonder, I guess.

I try not to give mine too much down-time to find out, though. Can't wait for round two of my Roots & Rock 'n' Roll Tour experience in Los Angeles and San Francisco next week!

Norfolk, Charlotte, Atlanta

Norfolk 10/23/11

Occupy Norfolk wins for being the best occupy group we encountered. They had fliers to hand out and seemed to actually know why they were there, and they were really nice and brought us snacks and brand new pillows without us asking for a thing.

And then there was the incident nobody really understands. Let's just say there was some expired NyQuil, a homeless man, and a lot of confused shouting involved. No one will ever really know what happened that night, but I have a feeling that it may be for the best.

For some reason I really wasn't feeling the show when it started. I felt sick and out of it and generally miserable--perhaps some latent affects of the NyQuil? Or maybe I was just run down from being sick in the first place, but I spent the entire time before the show began with my head resting on the barricade, and it took a lot to not do the same through Charlie Mars's set. Even the first few Hanson songs didn't do it for me, but at some point I got over it and had a good time.

No thanks to the crazy girls pushing in the crowd, of course. I was never directly hit by whoever was doing it, but the girl behind me got shoved into my back repeatedly. Normal at a GA show, right? Except I turned and looked several times to see a whole group of girls being slammed into each other and trying to call for security, but they were too far back for anyone to notice. For a few seconds, it looked like someone was trying to start a mosh pit. I was able to motion to a guard off to the side who finally came over to check out what was going on. As soon as he came and stood over the barricade, about 10 hands shot into the air and all pointed at the same two girls, who then looked around as if they didn't know what was going on. If it were a cartoon, they would have been whistling and looking shiftily at the sky. I ended up having to call security over twice more and I think the culprits were finally removed, but not before throwing a full cup of beer over the barricade and all over my friends, and not before Isaac noticed and gave a brief speech about "watching over" the people around you before starting "Watch Over Me."

Then while we jumped during "If Only," the barricade in front of us rocked back so hard I thought for a second that it was going to fall on us. My friend a few people down with a different segment in front of her said she only ever felt hers shift forward a few inches closer to the stage. The one in front of me literally fell in towards us at about a 45 degree angle before landing back in its original position. I think we all jumped a little more carefully after that.

Out by the bus we thanked Isaac for his attempt to calm the crazies behind us in the crowd, and he ranted with us about how obnoxious it is for people to pay good money to have their time ruined by that kind of behavior. There was talk of hypothetically wanting to punch such people, but I think his mind changed when he thought about the ratio of male to female in the crowd. "Of course, I don't hit women," he recanted with a grin. Neither do I, Isaac. But that doesn't stop me from really wanting to sometimes.

Charlotte 10/25/11

I'll get my rant out of the way first. I HATE Amos' Southend, have hated it since I was unfortunate enough to witness my first full-length Hanson concert there in 2007, and have continued to hate it all five times I've been there. Why? The sound sucks, the lighting sucks, and you can't see from anywhere.

But for all the crappiness of the venue, the guys always put on a particularly good show in Charlotte. And to continue a tradition, this one was a day after my friend Laura's birthday (last year it was on Valerie's birthday). To carry on a different tradition, we surprised Laura with cupcakes and then unceremoniously smashed them in her face. It was a good night.

P.S. Props to Holly #2 for making some amazing cookie dough cupcakes!

Atlanta 10/26/11

Little Five Points:  home of the weird and creepy. This year we met a girl dressed in pirate attire who introduced herself as a pirate ninja. Funny, I always thought the two were mortal enemies in the books of nerds everywhere, but she clearly didn't follow anything by the book.

I always say the shows are good, but this one was particularly good. The energy of the crowd seemed extra strong, and that can make or break a show. Putting aside all of the amazing energy and crazy dancing for a moment, the one part that stood out to me the most was Zac's performance of "The Walk." Most of the time, Hanson shows to me are about having a good time with friends. I live for the high-energy, upbeat songs, and the deeper moments are few and far between. Something about that song that night though was so perfect that I want to use sappy words like "flawless," "captivating," and dare I say "moving" to describe it. I just stood there and listened and almost forgot where I was until it ended, and I could tell by the looks on the familiar faces around me that I wasn't the only one that felt that way. It's moments like those that keep me coming back.

Atlanta 11/10/10 & Charlotte 11/12/10

These shows were great because I got to spend time with more friends I hadn't seen (okay, hadn't seen since Halloween, at least).

ATLANTA

We got up early the day of the show and drove to Atlanta from Orlando. Even with a good night's sleep behind us and driving during daylight hours, it felt pretty long. We arrived around 2 or 3 PM and were in the 60's in line. We also had pretty perfect timing and ended up directly next to our friends in line even without making any specific plans about meeting up.

This walk was the first I took on the trip since I worked the walk table at the FL shows, and it was also the first walk that was pitch dark outside. Bare feet + night time + Atlanta = scary combination, but I did it anyway. Atlanta was actually the first city I ever took the walk in over three years ago, so I was glad I got to participate. As per my usual, I ended up at the back of the walk before the halfway speech, which added an extra layer of creepy. As we neared the end, a small group of us got stuck at a red light with Zac leading the way as everyone else got away. Or was that Charlotte? I'm not sure anymore, but it's entirely possible that it happened twice.
Getting in line after the walk was, once again, chaotic. This time I had a will call ticket that wasn't released until 6 or so, so after we came back from the walk, there was a massive crowd taking over the front of the venue. The venue/Hanson tried to separate the line in two, with walkers on the left and non-walkers on the right. The box office was located directly between the two lines, so you can see how this got messy fast. It was impossible to discern who was trying to get a ticket and who was trying to smash themselves into the walk line. I talked to the people around me and found that I was standing behind 3 people who also needed tickets, so we reasoned that we were as "in line" as we were going to get. We stood waiting for what had to have been at least 15 minutes without ever moving, even though it was obvious other people were managing to get tickets. It was so packed that when I looked back, I saw Taylor and Isaac looking around looking like they were trying to assess the situation to find a hole in the crowd so they could get back inside. Instead, Taylor had to push his way through, and I ended up sandwiched even closer than I already was when he went past us. In the end, those of us needing will call tickets had to forcibly push past lots of people who were "in line" for the show.

As soon as I got my ticket I got out of the mess and found my other friends in line, past the big cluster of people, thankfully. Being in the front is great, but sometimes it feels equally as great to relax further back and not have to worry about all of the chaos.

When we got inside, we saw that each side of the venue had raised sections with chairs and tables. There were probably 4 on each side, and each one was raised slightly higher than the one below it, so they offered a good view. It was the perfect size for all 6 of us to spread out across the front of one. It was so nice to be able to sit before the show and during the set change, and it was especially nice for the pregnant one of the bunch.

The show was great, with the exception of closing with The Ugly Truth. I love my Hanson, but I can't love that song no matter how hard I try to. I think Taylor loves it because he gets to run around the stage uninhibited and jump from the piano, but it's a little bit of a crowd killer. People don't seem to sing along so much or jump around, and it's just generally not one of my favorites. I had a great time dancing with my friends during the rest of the show, though. We all did the TBS dance, or what we could in a confined space, anyway. Though I've heard Strong Enough to Break probably a dozen times in the past, it felt more special that night after having quit my job recently. It was definitely my own personal anthem for a little while during that time. We were all a little ridiculous acting out Oh Darling again, and of course we danced during Give a Little.

This was the 2nd time I watched as a guy and a girl were pulled on stage (not counting my own experience), and the whole thing ran pretty smoothly. Taylor picked the guy out first and then let the guy pick the girl, which I thought was cute. They did a good job going with the flow and looked like they had a good time up there. Suddenly I wonder if a lack of guys near the front ever has any impact over whether or not they do the whole dance bit on a given night, but this guy was in the front row ready to go, so it worked out. (after seeing the stage in Baltimore and St. Pete, I realize that stage size must be another important factor in the planning. No way would they want someone tripping and ripping out important cords on on of those tiny stages!)

We waited out by the bus with Heather because it was her last show, and we were thoroughly entertained by some cats as we waited. Someone had propped the stage door open with a brick, and we all watched and laughed as a cat stealthily sneaked (that's right, sneaked. Snuck isn't a word no matter how much better it sounds) past the door and into the venue. When a worker came out, we let him know, and we laughed even harder as moments later we saw the cat come running out after clearly having been chased. It gets better, though. Instead of being scared off, the cat returned with a tiny cat gang, and we watched incredulously as not one, but THREE cats slipped through the door a second time. This time when they were chased out, the door was shut firmly behind them, lesson learned. There was also the creepy remains of what must have been some kind of Halloween costume laying off to the side in some overgrown weeds. It was metallic silver and looked like some kind of space suit without a head, but the body still retained shape, so if you didn't look carefully, it looked like a shiny dead body thrown by the wayside. I should have taken a picture for sure. Zac was the only Hanson to come out, and once again he took his time with the fans, giving out both autographs and pictures. I caught a random piece of conversation where he mentioned having been naked at some point, and stating that he couldn't remember whether or not he was in the shower at the time. No idea what that was about! He also seemed enamored with Megan's little brother and was all smiles while talking to him. Her brother got Zac to autograph the back of his hand, and Zac warned that he was a little sick and didn't want to spread germs. A few days later when my cough came into full force, I realized he wasn't lying.

CHARLOTTE

I can't remember what time we showed up for this one; some time between 12 and 3 is my best estimate. I think we were somewhere between 50-70 in line (this is why I need to start forcing myself to write this stuff down closer to when it actually happened). It was Valerie's Birthday and we were all really excited to be there. Two friends even came to surprise everyone else and didn't let it slip that they were coming, which was fantastic. I think in all there were...8 of us that stood together in the balcony. I'll cut off the numbers there because I think we'd reach the upper teens if I included everyone we were collectively friends with at the show; it was definitely like a big party!This was dark walk #2, and this time I smartened up and fished my flashlight out of the trunk (or rather, Rachel mentioned how useful it would be to have a flashlight, and I realized I actually had one somewhere in the car). It got really cold that night for some reason, and stepping in freezing mud wasn't one of the highlights of the day. Once again I ended up in the back of the walk, and I think Valerie and I were actually dead last at one point. I think Valerie or Rachel commented on the lack of fire ants since previous Charlotte walks, and Isaac turned around and added that it was probably too cold for them. I'd believe it. On the way back, our group got cut off from the front portion by a red light and traffic once again, and Taylor waited impatiently on the other side of the road. As we finally crossed, Taylor stood defiantly in front of a big truck to make sure we made it. As we passed him, the guy in the truck actually started revving his engine in a threatening way. As Taylor stepped away and the truck drove off, I heard "Hey, ya'll, I've got a big truck!" in that mock-hick voice, followed by a chorus of giggles. Back in line, I met back up with all of my friends and found out just how awesome Taylor had been to Morgen, and my respect for them grew even more.

When we got inside, we headed for the balcony on Isaac's side and got decent spots where we could see (well, as decent as you can get at Amos's without being on stage. There really is no decent spot in that venue between the random poles and high-mounted speakers). I thought the crowd was going to be horribly dull watching their reaction to Jarrod Gorbel, but they perked right up for Hanson. Oddly I think out of the whole trip, this was the worst reaction I saw for Jarrod, and the best reaction I saw for Hanson. How sad.

The show had great energy and a great setlist. I'm tempted to say it was my favorite of this leg because of the people I was with; we had so much fun that night. Change in My Life had several of us in tears; it was an awesome moment for sure. Give a Little and Lost Without Each Other brought a full on dance party where we quit looking over the balcony at the stage all together and just let loose. I think I had my back to the stage for the entirety of both of those songs. To anyone else, we probably looked like crazy drunk people, but really, we were just ridiculously happy. In the City brought the perfect end to the perfect show, and Rachel and I had just been talking about how we wanted to hear it as a closer. We jumped like crazy after dancing like crazy, and we walked out feeling like we had been beaten up, but in a good way. That is probably the most tired I've ever been after a show, which was really unfortunate since we had a 7 hr drive to Baltimore and we planned to leave immediately. After cupcakes and hugs, a few bittersweet goodbyes and a cracked hubcap, we hit the road yet again.


*1/18/11  I'm not going to edit this entry because it makes for a good laugh, and quite frankly, I obviously don't really remember enough details to correct the error anyway. As Valerie pointed out in the comments, she didn't even take the walk in Charlotte, so scratch all of the stuff I attributed to her on that walk. I think maybe it was Whitney U.? How the heck do I not know who I walked with in Charlotte? I guess when the number of friends I saw matches the number of shows I went to on that leg, things can get confusing.

Catching Up: The Walk Tour

Though this blog began in Nov. 2008, I started writing down notes about the shows I went to after my very first show in 2007.  Myspace hosted my first show reviews, and though my Myspace page is long gone, I saved those blog entries.  Instead of writing a new post for this site, I'd like to simply share the original, excitable, marginally embarrassing first responses. Below are two excerpts from Myspace in October 2007 and May 2008. These blog posts cover my first six Hanson shows: Charlotte, Atlanta, and Savannah on The Walk Tour in fall 2007, and Asheville, Myrtle Beach, and Durham on the spring leg of the Walk Tour in 2008.

Excerpt from an old Myspace blog, posted on October 21, 2007 after going to my first 3 Hanson shows:

Clearly I had an awesome week because I saw Hanson in Charlotte, Atlanta, and Savannah. It's a good thing I can't afford to follow them more places because I'd totally do it.

Charlotte highlights: *My first official Hanson Concert *Getting to go with 3 friends * Showing up an hour before doors and still being in the center *The whole setlist- esp. Every Word I Say, On the Rocks, Rock 'n' Roll Razorblade, and Joy to the World (3 Dog Night cover)

Atlanta highlights: *Meeting some cool people in line * Doing my first barefoot mile * Being in 3rd row * Hearing Zac's "Oh Darling" Beatles cover * Hearing a never-before heard Isaac solo * Hearing Taylor cover Elvis's "Love Me" * Almost getting in a fight with some drunk girl...more of a lowlight I guess

Savannah Highlights: * Driving around downtown Savannah for 45 minutes before finding parking * Hanging out with some more great people * Blistering my heel from barefoot walk #2 on hot pavement * Having Zac jump out from beside me and try to scare me (he didn't). *interviewing the band * Zac's random off-the-wall, made up on the spot poem* Getting front row against the stage about a foot in front of Isaac * Having the obnoxious drunk girl pried off of my back by security during MMMBop * Hanson & Locksley coming out to do the encore, "Long Way to the Top"* The awesome pictures I took * Leaving the parking garage after it closed and not having to pay * Getting a $180 speeding ticket on the way home...another lowlight. ...anyone care to join me for some similar awesomeness next time they come back?

Myspace Blog #2, posted on May 11, 2008:

Here's another installment. I just got back from seeing Hanson in 3 concerts in 3 days (Asheville, NC, Myrtle Beach, SC, and Durham, NC). It was all pretty special, because of course they're all within traveling distance, but the dates turned out perfect. Asheville was on May 5th, exactly 1 year since I saw them live for the first time. Myrtle Beach was on May 6th, which is a hometown show AND Hanson Day (I know you're all beyond laughing at this point, so just go with it). And Durham was the final show of the tour AND was on my 20th birthday. I couldn't have planned it any better myself.

Asheville (May 5, 2008)

Asheville was probably the best concert I've ever been to. The whole experience was wonderful. I camped out for the first time (along with 50 other people as crazy as myself), which was an experience in itself. I got front row, and the setlist was KILLER (Magic Carpet Ride, Never Let Go, With You in Your Dreams, Coming Back for More, Let's Get it On... I could keep going!). But aside from that, I met some awesome people. I was absolutely shocked when they showed up with my favorite kind of cupcakes for my birthday! Thank you SO much ladies! It's hard to keep faith in the fan base with so many crazy obnoxious people around, but these girls just proved that there are still some awesome people worth knowing out there. I also got to talk to Zac on the walk and tell him about our fundraiser, which was pretty exciting. The SC ST had been working together for a while to raise money for HIVSA in honor of Hanson playing our state on Hanson Day. Katie told him he should donate a dollar to us, so he pulled out his wallet and donated $20!

Myrtle Beach (May 6, 2008)

First of all the fundraiser went pretty well. Unfortunately the guys were running late and the walk had a HUGE crowd, so we weren't able to get their help again. But overall we still had lots of people donating and helping out, and it was a success.

I ended up being 3rd row on Isaac's side and could still see pretty well. It was another awesome show. Once again the setlist was one of the better ones I've seen/heard, and I was shocked and delighted when they played "Money". The guys looked like they were having a blast, especially Isaac. He came out during one of the SK6ers songs ("Start the Day Early"), and served up shots of "moonshine" to all of the 6ers and himself. I was having so much fun that it completely slipped my mind that it was my birthday at midnight until I got a few text messages with birthday wishes. I wish I had paid attention so I could remember what song they played at midnight. After the show I went out by the buses and got Isaac to autograph my ticket stub.

Durham (May 7, 2008)

It was yet another good show--with the added plus of being the final show of the tour as well as my birthday. It was a seated show and I had a front and center ticket (right behind 3 rows of pit seats, so I was row A but technically 4th row), so I had a perfect view. It was awesome. Zac played my favorite song from The Walk,"Fire on the Mountain," that he pretty much never plays live. For the Sk6ers final song, they played "Time of My Life" from Dirty Dancing, and all of Hanson and their crew (techs, backup players, tour managers...EVERYONE) came out. It was probably my favorite performance of the night. Some of them set up a table and pretended to play poker, some came out drinking beer, and the rest came out with air soft guns shooting each other. They kept throwing out cards from the "poker game", and I got one! It was one from the Hanson caricature deck, a King of Taylors. I guess I can say that technically Hanson gave me a birthday card lol! Taylor was even running around the stage with either a phone or a camera, repeatedly taking myspace style pictures with everyone. Hanson's final encore was a cover of "Feelin' Alright", and they brought out the Sk6ers and Kate Voegele and her band. It's not my favorite song, but I can't say I paid too much attention to it when everyone except Hanson and Kate came out in their underwear. It was a pretty awesome way to end a birthday and a tour.

And on top of it all, they filmed all 3 walks and shows professionally, so I really hope it will surface soon and I'll get to relive such an awesome week!