07-23-2006, 12:38 AM
I just returned from a truly momentous event.
A thin-crust Pesto/Olive/Mushroom pizza at Zachary's in EL Cerrito.
But wait...there's more!
Three months ago I had to scrape my jaw off the floor when I read of a Flaming Lips/Ween double-bill at the Greek in July. Two of my favorite bands on the same bill! Imagine the anticipation! The excitement! The savings on parking by attending one show instead of two!
Dee Dee knew this event was a fan-boy dream so she told me to take my friend Jeff, who introduced me to Ween all those years ago. I grabbed my Pink Floyd seat cushions and away we went.
After the obscenely delicious meal at Zachary's we headed to the Greek. Frightened by the $20 parking fee at the nearby garage we found some street parking a few blocks away and hiked in the 126 degree heat to the venue.
The show started promptly at 6:30pm. The opening 'band' was the worst I'd ever seen. Ever. They were called 'The Liars' and consisted od 2 guys beating on the same drumset while the frontman hit his guitar then leaned it on the amp so he could walk over to the mike and scream over the feedback loop. 30 minutes never felt so long.
Ween took the stage at 7:45. They palyed a fierce 90 minute set of ssignature tunes including "Voodoo Lady", "Dr. Rock", "Buckingham Green" and "The Stallion pt. 3". The encore was "Buenos Tardes, Amigo" which is always a crowd pleaser.
The Flaming Lips began their set at 9:45. As usual, frontman Wayne Coyne assisted the road crew in setting up the equipment. Just before the show started he disappeared from the stage and appeared magically inside a clear plastic sphere that descended from the heavens. The crowd passed the sphere over their heads as the magnificent chords of "Race for the Prize" resonated around the amphitheater.
Wayne's 'Space Bubble' was returned to the stage in time for him to begin the next number 'Free Radical'.
Did I mention the hot, sexy space aliens on one side of the stage and the dancing Santas on the other? OK - just checking.
Wayne romped through tunes new and old while shooting miles of streamers and tons of confetti into the crowd. The audience was in charge of keeping 20 weather balloons aloft and in constant motion.
After an all-to-brief 75 minutes (thanks for nothing Berkeley curfew) Wayne and Co. left the stage wiith Wayne begging the audience to tell whomever they arrived with that they loved them. I did not do this because I arrived with a male friend and that would be uncomfortable.
So, to sum up, one delicious pizza, two awesome bands, one awesome summer concert.
My one criticism. Each of these bands normally plays 2 - 3 hour shows. I wanted the warm summer evening to last a little longer. Especially at $50 a ticket. However, I also realize that leaving wanting more is more gratifying than leaving wanting less.
This night will go into my top-ten list.
A thin-crust Pesto/Olive/Mushroom pizza at Zachary's in EL Cerrito.
But wait...there's more!
Three months ago I had to scrape my jaw off the floor when I read of a Flaming Lips/Ween double-bill at the Greek in July. Two of my favorite bands on the same bill! Imagine the anticipation! The excitement! The savings on parking by attending one show instead of two!
Dee Dee knew this event was a fan-boy dream so she told me to take my friend Jeff, who introduced me to Ween all those years ago. I grabbed my Pink Floyd seat cushions and away we went.
After the obscenely delicious meal at Zachary's we headed to the Greek. Frightened by the $20 parking fee at the nearby garage we found some street parking a few blocks away and hiked in the 126 degree heat to the venue.
The show started promptly at 6:30pm. The opening 'band' was the worst I'd ever seen. Ever. They were called 'The Liars' and consisted od 2 guys beating on the same drumset while the frontman hit his guitar then leaned it on the amp so he could walk over to the mike and scream over the feedback loop. 30 minutes never felt so long.
Ween took the stage at 7:45. They palyed a fierce 90 minute set of ssignature tunes including "Voodoo Lady", "Dr. Rock", "Buckingham Green" and "The Stallion pt. 3". The encore was "Buenos Tardes, Amigo" which is always a crowd pleaser.
The Flaming Lips began their set at 9:45. As usual, frontman Wayne Coyne assisted the road crew in setting up the equipment. Just before the show started he disappeared from the stage and appeared magically inside a clear plastic sphere that descended from the heavens. The crowd passed the sphere over their heads as the magnificent chords of "Race for the Prize" resonated around the amphitheater.
Wayne's 'Space Bubble' was returned to the stage in time for him to begin the next number 'Free Radical'.
Did I mention the hot, sexy space aliens on one side of the stage and the dancing Santas on the other? OK - just checking.
Wayne romped through tunes new and old while shooting miles of streamers and tons of confetti into the crowd. The audience was in charge of keeping 20 weather balloons aloft and in constant motion.
After an all-to-brief 75 minutes (thanks for nothing Berkeley curfew) Wayne and Co. left the stage wiith Wayne begging the audience to tell whomever they arrived with that they loved them. I did not do this because I arrived with a male friend and that would be uncomfortable.
So, to sum up, one delicious pizza, two awesome bands, one awesome summer concert.
My one criticism. Each of these bands normally plays 2 - 3 hour shows. I wanted the warm summer evening to last a little longer. Especially at $50 a ticket. However, I also realize that leaving wanting more is more gratifying than leaving wanting less.
This night will go into my top-ten list.
![[Image: magpie13.gif]](http://imagegen.last.fm/LastfmLiveJournal/recenttracks/magpie13.gif)
Nooooooooo.
