Metallica September 17 2009

  This is THE show! For me personally at least. This was the show that spoiled me. Being a part of the old Metclub, I got in on the presale and was able to get floor tickets. This was the first time I had spent this much money on a concert. And it was worth every penny. I now try to get the best tickets for every show. Most of my friends wouldn't spend this much money for a show so I didn't know who was going to go with me. Especially since the ones I wanted to go with me had just lost their jobs! So I had decided that they were going even if I had to pay for it. Now that I think about it, the first time I had seen Metallica, the friend that went with me had just lost his job. I paid for that one too. I hope this doesn't become tradition! Oh well, nobody wants to go to a concert alone. So I surprised them with the tickets, and they decided to spring for a hotel room within walking distance to the venue so we could party and not have to worry about driving home. That's cool, but I don't really drink when going to a show. I want to be completely immersed into the show without distraction. But it made them feel better to contribute to the experience and I was ok with that.
  I wanted to get to the show early so we could possibly get on the rail. I did not get us there soon enough. Oh well. We still ended up in a pretty good spot. I bought a T shirt with the event date, even though they didn't have my size. I have never been able to wear it. As we were waiting for the opening band to start, we ran into "That One Guy"! You know "That One Guy". The guy who has been listening to the band since before they got big. He was telling us how he saw Metallica in Chicago back in 82 when Dave Mustaine was still in the band. I smell bullshit! Now I won't say that I was there in the beginning. I found them around 88 when I was 15. But I do my homework. When I find something new that just grabs me by the throat, I want to know everything I can about it. I have an addictive personality. And I know that his whole statement was bullshit! I didn't say anything. I just shook my head and said "Oh wow". Not to mention that he didn't look any older than us and that would have made him about 10 years old or younger at the time. If we had not been at the concert, say we were just sitting around talking, I would have called him out and showed him proof! Oh well, on with the show.
  The opening act was Gojira. I love the name. They seemed heavy, but their sound guy should have been fired! They just sounded like a wall of noise. I couldn't even make out a riff. I wouldn't mind seeing them again if they have a better sound. I found the set list online.
1. Oroborus
2. The Heaviest Matter Of The Universe
3. Backbone
4. Flying Whales
5. Toxic Garbage Island
6. Vacuity
  Second band on the bill was Lamb Of God. Now I had heard of them, but had not heard anything from them. I was hoping it would be something I would really like. But just like Gojira, The sound just absolutely sucked. It was slightly better than Gojira, but not by much. So I just stood there bouncing to the beat. I found their set list online too.
1. In Your Words
2. Set To Fail
3. Walk With Me In Hell
4. Now You've Got Something To Die For
5. Ruin
6. Dead Seeds
7. Laid To Rest
8. Redneck
9. Black Label
  And Now The Main Event! This is the "World Magnetic Tour" in support of the album "Death Magnetic" And I love that album. I know they like to change up their sound from time to time, but I would be happy if the rest of their albums would have this energy. I will break down my excitement for each song.
1. That Was Just Your Life
   Great opening song. The heartbeat on the tape was almost beating as loud as mine!
2. End Of The Line
   Another great song. This along with the first song had a cool laser light show.
3. Ride The Lightning
   Classic!
4. Wherever I May Roam
   Probably my most favorite song from the black album.
5. One
   The pyro show and explosions were epic! Just like the song!
6. Broken, Beat, & Scarred
7. Cyanide
   Two songs from the new album. Not my favorites but not bad songs by any means.
8. Sad But True
   Do you want HEAVY?!?!?! I took video of this song
9. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
   One of my all time favorites!
10. All Nightmare Long
   THE song I wanted to hear from the new album! And It did not disappoint!
11. The Day That Never Comes
   Another one of my favs from Death Magnetic.
12 Master Of Puppets
   A show since 86 without Master Of Puppets is not a Metallica show!
13. Damage, Inc.
   I think I need to change my shorts after this one! Love this song!!
14. Nothing Else Matters
   I know this is a popular song. And James's solo is unforgettable. But it is such a low point of the show. Maybe they need it to catch their breath, but I think I've heard this song enough. It's a great song. I'm just personally tired of it.
15. Enter Sandman
   "The song that keeps the pool heated" Great song.
16. Last Caress
   The song that introduced me to the Misfits! Another one of my favs!
17. Motorbreath
   A little surprised to hear this one. It's definitely one of my favorites from Kill Em' All
18. Seek And Destroy
   Another classic! During this song, they dropped a bunch of black beach balls from the rafters. I didn't get one, but fortunately my friend Tim did! One of the big ones! Unfortunately he had to pop it just to hold onto it. He ended up giving it to me. I had to dive on the floor for a bass pick, but I got it!
  This one ranks up there as my favorite concert I've seen so far. The set list was perfect and I was close enough to the stage I could get spit on by the band. Thankfully that didn't happen though.
Here's my ticket stub, the bass pick, and a few pictures I took.I took over 200 but not all of them were that good. And a link to my video of Sad But True.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arP1cfrmQAI 
  

X Fest September 13 2008

  X Fest was a festival put on by the radio station out of Indianapolis X103. My friend Vince asked if I wanted to go. He was taking his son, Wade. I thought it would be cool to bring my daughter Kristeen. They were both around the same age. I think they knew of each other, if only from social media (lol MySpace!). But then Dad mode kicked in! I wanted to make sure Vince conveyed to Wade that this was not a "hook up"! I was not setting up my daughter with any boy! Because when you are a father of a teenage daughter, boys are THE DEVIL!! All that being said, I am writing this 11 years later, and Wade grew into a fine man. Good morals and a good job. It would not have been the worst thing to have happened. It just wasn't meant to be. And I absolutely love how my daughter's life has turned out and who she married.
  One thing that I had forgot was how awkward it was to be a teenager. When we got in the car, I think they said hi to each other. And that was it! An hour of awkward silence followed. I had nothing to worry about.  When we got to the parking lot however, it got awkward for me! Trying to lead two kids through the drunken debauchery was not fun. I literally covered her eyes when we walked past a girl standing on top of the roof of a car, topless, swinging her shirt in the air!
  We had lawn tickets, and Vince had no interest in upgrading. So we stayed in the lawn. You have to keep your head on a swivel when on the lawn. Some people like to tear up chunks of sod and throw them into the air. Luckily we witnessed that, but did not have to duck for cover.
  The first two bands were Hinder and Trapt. I had heard their hits on the radio, but that was about it. The only thing that stood out was that they both sounded the same, and that sound kind of reminded me of L.A. Guns. Apocalyptica was up next. Now this was cool! Definitely different. They really impressed me with their cover of Sepultura's Inquisition Symphony. And of course the Metallica covers. Next up, Bullet For My Valentine. This is the band Wade really wanted to hear. They were probably the heaviest band on the bill. I didn't know any of the songs, but I really enjoyed their set. At one point, a small mosh pit broke out. I had no urge to do that. And some dude had to be carried out with his leg turned a direction that it shouldn't be turned!
  The whole concert, I was trying to get Kristeen to let loose a little. Have a little fun. But she just stood there. Arms crossed. I was really trying to make a connection with her when it comes to music. But I was failing. I found out later that there was a boy there, a few feet from us on the lawn, that she knew from school. This boy would eventually become her boyfriend. And a headache for me for about 4 years! Never the less, on with the show.
  Up next, Candlebox. Again, I had no clue who they were and they pretty much sounded like the first two bands. After them it was Puddle Of Mud. I knew a few of their songs. They have some good sing-a-long songs. But the thing that stands out the most from their set was that the lead singer was completely drunk. He screwed  up a few times, but he was definitely entertaining. Funny and sad at the same time.
  And then there was one. The headliner of this festival was Buck Cherry. Now they had one huge hit in "Crazy Bitch". Which is ok, but not really what I normally listen to. Most of the bands were not what I normally listen to. A few songs in, a mass exodus started heading to the gate. After coming to the conclusion that they pretty much sounded like the other bands on the bill with nothing really to impressive, I had decided that leaving early was not a bad Idea. But I didn't want to ruin anyone else's show. So I asked everyone first if they were ok with leaving early. If anyone would have said no, I would have stayed. I hadn't heard anyone say that they were there to see Buck Cherry. Everyone agreed. So off we went. After we got to the car, Kristeen admitted to wanting to see Buck Cherry. She said she wasn't going to be the only one to say no to leaving early. Dad FAIL!
  All in all, I had fun. I hope Kristeen did too. She never really said so. I don't have any pictures, and I can't even find any event posters or set lists online. But I do have my ticket stub.

Ozzy Osbourne & Megadeth June 6 2019

POSTPONED! Ozzy is rehabbing from a fall (He is 70 something). So I went to cancel my hotel I had booked and It was going to cost me 90% of the total. So we (Tim and his wife along with my wife Maria) went any way. We went to Coney Island Amusement park, Belterra Casino, And the Cincinnati Zoo. Had fun, but was disappointed I couldn't see the show. To be continued...
   Here's a picture of a gorilla.

UPDATE

This show was rescheduled to June 4th 2020 with Marilyn Manson instead of Megadeth. And as we all know, everything got cancelled for 2020. And since then Ozzy has pretty much retired from touring. In preparation of this show, I had bought this bootleg T shirt from Ebay. And that's all I have. Oh well, It's my own fault for waiting to long. Thanks for all the Music Ozzy. Enjoy retirement!

Mayhem Festival August 13 2008

  This was my first festival show. I went in not really knowing any of the bands playing. It was myself, my friend Tim, and another friend of ours, Josh. We showed up late and missed most of the opening bands. And I couldn't tell you who I was watching on the smaller stages anyway. There was a stunt bike show... Missed that too. Josh really wanted to see Five Finger Death Punch...Missed them too. We were walking around the main stage and I think Machine Head were on. Wish we could have stopped and watched, but the other two wanted to look around a little longer. We ended up standing next to an autograph table. Not in line, but next to it. And then a band walked up and sat down. It was Mastodon. Cool. Wish I could have seen them play. At this time we had discovered that for only $10, we could upgrade our lawn tickets to get actual seats. A trick we would use in the future as well.
   So we finally get to our seats as Dragon Force was finishing their set. They had a song on the recent Guitar Hero video game. That's the only way I recognized them. Disturbed was up next. I had heard of them, but could only recognize one song. They were good, but not really anything exciting in my opinion. Up next, Slipknot. They were headlining this show. And they were the ones my friends wanted to see. I was just kind of along for the ride. But, I was pleasantly surprised. Slipknot puts on a hell of a show! One of the things that standout was Sid Wilson. The DJ for Slipknot. He had broke both of his heels from jumping off of an elevated part of the stage at the first show of the tour. They brought him out in a wheelchair and he did his thing. They have a very energetic stage show and the music is heavy! So all in all, it was a good show.
Here's a list of the bands that were there (most of whom we missed)
   Slipknot
   Disturbed
   Dragon Force
   Mastodon
   Machine Head
   Airbourne
   Five Finger Death Punch
   Walls Of Jericho
   Under Oath
   Black Tide
   Suicide Silence
   36 Crazy Fists
   The Red Chord
   Dead Broke

Here's the setlist from Slipknot
   Surfacing
   The Blister Exists
   Get This
   Before I Forget
   Disasterpiece
   Psychosocial
   The Heretic Anthem
   Prosthetics
   Duality
   People = Shit
   (sic)


  No pics. but here's the ticket stub

   .

Dr. Chud's X-Ward October 31 2007

  One week later. It's Halloween! I had been preparing for this one for a while. When I found out the Halloween show was going to be close enough to go to, I started getting my costume together.I had decided to do Chud's costume from the first time I had seen him. The Army Of The Dead! Now mine was not exactly like his. I went to the local army surplus store looking for clothes. The only problem is that most people that serve this fine country are fit and a lot smaller than me. I did the best I could, but everything was a little tight! Chud sold patches that I (or my wife to be more accurate) could sew onto my uniform. Along with a Misfits patch and a little freehand work with a sharpie, It didn't look half bad.I found a plastic helmet and made it look like a medic's helmet. I was going to go authentic with the helmet, but those things are heavy as hell! Much respect to those who have to wear those to protect themselves.After having my wife help me with my facepaint, I was good to go!

  The same six that had gone to last weeks show loaded up into the Jeep again and away we went. All of us were wearing costumes , but not everyone was ready. We stopped at a McDonald's to use there bathroom mirror so the two could do their makeup. The rest of us waited out in the parking lot trying to avoid the homeless people (that smelled like piss!) trying to bum cigarettes and money from us. They finished up (those poor people at the McDonald's that had to clean that mess up) and off we went. 

  We get to the bar and we see some of the guys in the band hanging out already in costume. We took some pics together. Talked to the new bass player(who I think was very high!) and just kind of relaxed before the show. The drummer (Al X)  asked me if I could use his video camera and tape his performance. He said there was only enough battery life left to do about half the show, but he wanted all I could get him. How could I say no? I don't really remember any of the opening bands. Except one. Dr. Satan! He was just one dude. playing guitar along with a tape as his backing band. Now you might laugh at this, but I think it takes courage to stand up in front of a bunch of people and do that. There was a costume contest before Chud came on. I lost. But one of my friends won. He dressed as Dr. Chud. He looked good, but I think it was rigged! 

  On with the main event! It was another great show by Chud and the guys. The energy they bring is at a very high level! A few songs in, a friend that came with me offered to do some of the taping so I could just enjoy the show. But he kept turning the camera sideways for some reason.I asked him why and he said he "was a film editor and could fix it later." That bugged me, my OCD kicked in and I took the camera back! Then I got the nod to come up on stage to film Al up close. That was cool! It was definitely a different view than the crowd. And just like expected, about half way threw a song, the camera died. So I just stayed up there until the song was over jamming out. When the song ended, I jumped back down in the front row and continued to rage. At some point, my zipper on my tight camo pants that I got from the army surplus store broke! My shirt kind of concealed the broken zipper, but I had to be a little careful not to raise my hands up to far! Chud's Army Of The Dead costume came with a mask that he glued to his face. At some point, the glue had failed and his jawline was starting to flap. It must have gotten annoying to him because mid song he just ripped it off his face without missing a beat! During the song "Goodbye", Chud plays guitar. He threw a pic out into the crowed that I snatched out of the air! The Setlist was the same as the previous two shows, but that doesn't matter. We had a blast!

   After the show was over, the party continued. We stood around talking, drinking, and taking pics. Chud signed everything he was asked to. Including my plastic helmet! The bar put The Misfits cd "American Psycho" on the house pa. There was a group sing along when "Dig Up Her Bones" came on. And then everything turned to shit! One of my friend's wife, who had a little too much to drink, started getting to friendly with the MC of the evening. And when my friend saw this he became enraged! And who could blame him. "That's my wife!!" was the last thing I heard before he charged the guy. I don't know if he landed any punches, but I did my best to pull him off the guy. "I didn't know!!! I didn't know!!! She kissed me!!!" screamed the MC. I had my friend secured holding on to him, trying to calm him down (and was succeeding in my efforts), when out of the side of my eye I noticed a photographer from a local magazine that was there, raise a beer bottle ready to nail my friend that I was holding on to! Holding my friend with my left arm, reaching up trying to stop the beer bottle with my right arm. I couldn't hold my friend any longer. He tackled the photographer and started wailing. Somehow during the scuffle, my friend's very drunk wife got knocked to the ground. We pulled everyone apart. The cops showed up and the party was over. Nobody pressed any charges, and nobody went to jail. Although the rat ass photographer was lying through his teeth about the whole situation. I wanted to blast him in the face standing right in front of the cops! The cops called an ambulance to check out my friends wife. They decided she needed to go to the hospital for further tests. The only thing wrong with her was that she was extremely drunk! So she got hauled off in the ambulance, we all said goodbye to Chud, and then we were off to the hospital. It was about three in the morning when the hospital told us she couldn't be released because of the level of her intoxication. I had to be at work at six! And there was still an hour drive home in front of us. So I left my friend with a half a pack of Camels and twenty bucks to stay with his wife. I didn't want to but I had no choice. I got home with enough time to shower and down a pot of coffee. It was a long day at work!

   With all that happened after the show, it still doesn't take away from the hell of a show That Chud put on! I had a blast! Here are some pics and the event poster. Again, the fog machine reeked havoc on the pictures, but oh well.

Dr. Chud's X-Ward October 25 2007

  One year had passed since we had last seen Dr. Chud. And during that year, I had become addicted! I listened to the cd I had bought at the last show (Diagnosis For Death) non stop all year! Along with his cds with The Misfits and I even bought a cd of his previous band before The Misfits (Sacred Trash) and the Sardonica cd that Sal Bee had given to me. That's it! That's pretty much all I had listened to all year long. I was on such a high! And when they announced the tour for 2007, it got even worse! Especially since there were going to be 2 shows in short driving distance that we would be able to go to.
  As high as I was, I was about to hit my lowest of lows before the first show. 4 days before the show, my Grandmother passed away. I was very close with her. She had pretty much depended on me for everything the last 10 years of her life. She had been in a wheel chair for I'm not sure how long, stricken with  really bad arthritis, and needed help with most everything. Some people look at that as a burden, but I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. She was not a burden. She was awesome! And I love and miss her very much.
  The last time I saw Dr. Chud, we were able to sit around, have some drinks, and talk. He had told me that his song "Goodbye" was written after he lost his own grandparents. The combination of my endless plays of the album, that story, and what was happening to me right then, planted that song firmly in my brain moments after my grandmother passed.
  She passed on Sunday, the funeral was on Wednesday, and the show was on Thursday. I needed this show. Now more than ever. I needed a little escape for a few hours. So there was no doubt in my mind that I was still going.
  The Show was in South Bend IN (about a 2 hour drive from where I live) and I volunteered to be the designated driver, because drinking in my state of mind would be a disaster. So 6 of us piled into a Jeep and hit the road. As we walked into the venue, we noticed a familiar face sitting at the bar. It was Sal Bee! He wasn't in makeup yet so we all gathered around to shoot the shit before he got ready for the show. There was some commotion off to the side. It was Dr. Chud and the Promoter (?) arguing about something. There was talk that the show might get cancelled! The 2 ladies in our group went up and talked to Chud after this. Now I don't know what was said or if it had any impact on whether the show was canceled or not, but the show would go on!
  The opening bands were some local bands that I had never heard of. They were good, but to be honest, we didn't pay much attention to them. The one thing I remember was that one of the bands were using a large Rubbermaid trash can as a bass drum! I laughed a little when I saw them setting it up, but when he started playing, it sounded pretty good! He killed it! Then came the main event! The showmanship of the opening intro is really fun. Not to many bands go that far. I love it! The ladies that were with us (wives of 2 of the guys with us) were invited "up on stage" (there was no stage, only a drum riser) to be back up dancers.  The X-Ward had a new guitarist this year, I never really got to connect with him (he was more interested in the ladies!). Also, not a new drummer, but a different one from last year. Al X (as he would be called) was the drummer on the album and a member of Sardonica. 2 great musicians along with Chud and Sal Bee, put on a hell of a show! Again, I don't have the setlist for this show, but I'm pretty sure it was the same as the last years show. The difference was that I new all the songs this time. It was a little hard when they played "Goodbye", but I sang along as loud as I could, with a tear in my eye, thinking of my Grandma. Some of the songs didn't quite sit right simply due to the situation I was in. Such as "Bury You Alive". Now normally I would love this song, it was just the timing of it all. That being said, It was a great show!
  After the show, we hung out taking pictures and having stuff signed. I had brought a home made greatest hits cd compiled of Chuds works from some of his other bands as well as X-Ward. It was a hobby of mine. I was tired of buying crappy bootlegs and was trying to see if I could make my own. It definitely looked home made as it was one of the first ones I had done, but Chud loved it and signed it for me. At this time, Someone had told him what I had been going through the past week, and I told him how "Goodbye" really helped me through this. He must have been moved by that because he gave me one of the biggest hugs I had ever received. Sal Bee had to take off early to catch a flight back to NJ. This was his last show on this tour. A new bass player would be joining them for the rest of the tour. We continued to hang out as the band loaded up. This time, we knew it would not be a year before we saw them again. Next up, The Halloween Show one week later. We all piled back into the Jeep and I drove everyone home, I was the only one still awake by the time we got home!
 I brought a camera this time! The smoke machine is great for the ambiance of the show, but it sucks when it comes to photos! Anyway, I still got some great pics

SLAYER!!! May 16 2019

  This was a really fun show! Lets start at the beginning. I first became aware of this show from a facebook post by the venue. Now the original post listed about 15 different bands for the date of July 23 2019. It looked like an awesome lineup, and I shared the post with my concert going friend, but he never replied that he wanted to go. And I didn't push the issue. Then I was talking to my Son in law,  he had saw the same post and reminded me that that was his birthday. So I started thinking, what a great birthday gift. I always try to give the gift of music in one way or another. usually it's in the form of a cd or album. But this was perfect. So I went on my phone right then and there and bought 4 tickets to what I thought was a festival show on July 23. Lawn "seats" were the only thing I was able to purchase, which I don't really care for standing during an entire show (see my previous post). But, I really wanted to get these tickets so I was willing to stand. Bought the tickets, told my daughter and Son in law we were going to this on his birthday and he could bring a friend it's on me.
   After buying the tickets I started doing a little research, and noticed that Slayer were playing on May 16 . It was not a festival. It was a multi event ticket. I had never bought tickets like this before so I really didn't know about these kind of ticket sales. I ended up buying 4 tickets to 4 different shows. And the lineup of bands listed for his birthday were the bands that none of us really knew of or followed. So this was a little disappointing, but now we have 4 shows to go to. Oh well, we'll just have to go and have fun at all of them! Oh darn.For this show I decided to give my friend the fourth ticket. They had decided to purchase another ticket for a friend of there's to go with us as well. The more the merrier.
   This show was on a Thursday, which is a good thing for me since my weekends are actually Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday. I work Friday through Monday. So It works out well. But this particular weekend was the same weekend I had planned on celebrating my 25th wedding anniversary. No big deal, I can do both! (side note, we had a blast! My wife is my everything, and I love her more today than I did 25 years ago!) I live in central Indiana. And this show is in central Indiana (Nobelsville) as well. But I was traveling to St. Louis MO for a few days for my anniversary. So the day of the show, I start out with a 5 hour drive. I got home and had enough time for a quick nap. Which at this point in my life is so welcome! I wake up and then we drive another hour to the show.
   We arrive at the show and some dark clouds are rolling in. We were doing a little tail gating before the show when It started raining. We decided to just hang out in the cars until the storm passed. And It's a good thing we did. It was a short storm, but a nasty one! Also, the venue had sent me an email saying they were going to delay the opening of the gates until after the worst part of the storm had past. The lightning show was pretty cool! Very Metal!!! So stay in the cars and drink em if you got em!
   The storm passed and everyone jumps out of their cars and gets into the mile long line. While in line, we are hearing that the first band on the bill, Cannibal Corpse, had been canceled due to the delay. That sucks. We get inside (finally!) And the next band, Amon Amarth is already on stage. I really wanted to see them because I had heard a lot of good things about them. But, upgrading our tickets from lawn to pavilion was a little more important. So we stood in line to do that while they were on. From what I could see and hear of Amon Amarth makes me want to check them out even more. So the process of upgrading is taking a little longer than I had hoped. Amon Amarth finish their set and the next band, Lamb of God are setting up.We are still in line when Lamb of God starts playing. Now I had seen them 10 years ago, opening for Metallica, and while the music is great, there is something about the vocals that just doesn't do it for me. I'm not saying he is bad. He is a very energetic front man. Just not my cup of tea.We finally get our upgraded tickets and head to the seats. Yes a seat!! They are just off the lawn, barely under the pavilion. but they are better than the lawn! Lamb of God are still up there doing there thing. I look at my daughters arm and she is covered in goosebumps. Not from the excitement of the band, the storm brought in a much cooler temperature. So I decide to make a run to the merch table and get her a Slayer hoodie. Unfortunately  the only Slayer hoodies they had were 3X and she's a little thing. She would be swimming in it. So she got a Lamb of God hoodie instead. And I picked up an event poster for myself. After a quick trip to the bathroom and a stop by the pretzel stand since I had not had anything to eat since lunch and the thick cloud of pot in the air was giving me the munchies! Now back to my SEAT! Lamb of God was finishing up and it was about time for the main event.
   This is the Slayer farewell tour. It's a long farewell but it's getting closer to the end. They had just played here last year and I was kicking myself that I had missed it. So glad they came back for one more round. This is not the first time I have seen them, but It is the first time I've seen them with a full headlining set. And If you have read my first post on this board, you would know that it should have been the third time seeing them, alas it is only the second. And last.
   The cries of "FUCKING SLAAAAAAAAYER" fill the air. You can't go 10 seconds without hearing someone screaming it.  As the intro tape rolls the crowd starts going nuts! They hit the stage in a earsplitting fury!! Here's the setlist with a little breakdown.

  1.Repentless : From their newest album. Still killing it!
  2.Evil Has No Boundaries: Classic
  3.World Painted Blood: Great song. One of my favs from that album
  4.War Ensemble: This is the sound of my teenage years! Love this song!
  5.Gemini: Not one I'm really familiar with,but still thrashtastic!
  6.Disciple: Another on of my favs! Great to hear thousands scream "God Hates Us All"!!
  7.Mandatory Suicide: Another song from my youth that I just love! Beautifully Evil!!
  8.Chemical Warfare: Another classic
  9.Payback: Great song
 10.Temptation: Thrash at it's finest
 11.Born Of Fire: Can't get enough of this album
 12.Seasons In The Abyss: My first and favorite Slayer album
 13.Hell Awaits: I'm going to start sounding repetitive here, but I love this song!!!
 14.South Of Heaven: See above!
 15.Raining Blood: This is it! This is the last time you will get to hear this song live! And let me say the music took over my body! "The Power of Satan Compelled Me" I am 44 years old at this point. Completely out of shape with a bad back, knees, and feet. But when this song hit the old eardrums, I started headbaning like a sixteen year old kid. No pain! Just sheer joy and adrenaline! How could it get any better than this.
 16.Black Magic: This is how! This is the one song I learned most of on guitar that I would play to death! Now I'm not a guitar player. I try, and I mostly just learn parts of or half of a song. No different here. But I absolutely love playing the parts of this song that I know! The headbanging continued during this song!
 17.Dead Skin Mask: Another one of my favorite tracks from my favorite album!
 18. Angel Of Death: Has to be one of the greatest Thrash Metal songs of all time!

   And that's it! One of the best shows I have ever seen! I loved spending the time with my daughter, son in law, and my best friend. That is the only part of this that was better than the show. And thanks to a guy that goes by the handle of Ironchef who recorded the audio of this show, I'll be able to listen to it over and over again.
  I never got the chance to see the original lineup back in the day, so missing the chance to see Jeff Hanneman really sucks. But you could not find a better replacement than Gary Holt. replacing one legend with another without skipping a beat! At the end Tom Arya said "No speech. Just thank you for coming. Thank you very very much. I'm going to miss you guys." And we will miss you too.
   Here are some pics. My camera sucks and we were pretty far back but oh well.

 

Metallica March 11 2019

METALLICA!!! I had bought the tickets to this show over a year in advance. Leading up to the show, I needed to do a crash diet. I'm a little on the "husky" side. So no carbs after the Superbowl. I had bought floor tickets instead of seats. And I knew my feet would be killing me by the end of the night. So I wanted to lesson the pain as much as I could. I only lost about 16 pounds, but every little bit helps. 
  Metallica are on the "World Wired Tour" in support of their new album "Hardwired...To Self Destruct". Now in a previous post, I professed my love for this band. But I have not really connected to this album as much as I have for others. I'm not saying it's a bad album, It has many great songs. I just haven't really felt close to them. So even though they are my favorite band ever, I was not overly excited like in the past. Still pumped, but not over the top. That makes me a little sad as I think about it now.
 Day of the show! We get there about a half hour before the doors open. It's a packed house. But not completely sold out. Normally I would try and get there as early as possible to get as close as possible. But this time was different. We got in and checked out the merch table line. It was almost as long as the line outside to get in. I'm not going to stand in that line. They don't have any shirts in my size anyway. Metallica are selling their own beer at these shows. "Enter Night Pilsner". Now I have to try at least one. And that was more than enough. No thanks. I'll stick to MGD.
 Walking around the concourse (looking for a merch booth that wasn't packed), my concert buddy and I happened upon a little (not so) hidden gem. A table, with real chairs. Just the spot to rest the feet for a few minutes before we head down to the floor. And what do you know, a beer vendor standing right next to us. We'll have 2! (domestics this time) Didn't even have to get up. Table service! And then we noticed a green door right next to the table, with a small sign next to it. "All Gender". A private bathroom with nobody in line. I don't know if many people know about these, but they are nicer than the regular bathrooms. So we sat there while Jim Breuer was on stage doing his thing. As we sat there, the line for the merch table got a lot shorter. So I decided to jump in line before we hit the floor. Not much to choose from. Picked up a tour program. Now onto the show!
 We were not to upset with where we ended up on the floor. And to all of you people that show up late and worm your way to the front jumping in front of people that had been standing in a spot for a while, "YOU SUCK"! Anyway. Here's the set list with a few added notes.

  Hardwired
  Atlas, Rise!
  Seek And Destroy (Love this song!)
  Ride The Lightning (Great song, but they played it last time I saw them and I was hoping for something different)
  The Unforgiven (one of my favorite Kirk solos! And he nailed it!)
  Now That Were Dead (Cool drum thingy with all 4 band members)
  Creeping Death (CREEPING DEATH!!!!!)
  For Whom The Bell Tolls (Classic! Cliff!!!!)
  Here Comes Revenge (Only the third time they've ever played this)
  Kirk/Rob Doodle (They like to cover local stuff with just the two of them. First was the Zero Boys classics "Vicious Circle" and "Amphetamine Addiction". Then they tried their hand at a Mellencamp song "I Need A Lover")
  Hit The Lights (Another Classic!)
  Fuel (PYRO!!! Now it was at this time when the feet started to hurt!)
  Moth Into Flame
  Sad But True (Lost feeling in the toes!)
  One (A little disappointed that there were no explosions during the intro)
  Master Of Puppets (MASTER!! Back starting to feel the burn)
  Fight Fire With Fire (All the pain went away with the excitement I felt to hear this song!)
  Nothing Else Maters (There it is, Feet, calves, back!)
  Enter Sandman (Great sing along)

 All and all, a great show! Dove on the ground for a pick thrown by Kirk. I hope it won't take another 10 years before I see them again. Next time, I need a seat instead of the floor. Getting old sucks!!
Here are some pics

Dr. Chud's X Ward October 14 2006

 On October 14 2006 I was not expecting to go to any shows that day. Some friends of mine called me up and said that The former drummer of "The Misfits" had his own band and was playing down the street at the local National Guard Armory. So , why not go and check it out.

  A little backstory is kind of necessary here. I was not an original follower of punk music. I learned of the Misfits from Metallica covering "Last Caress" and "Green Hell" on their 1987 "Garage Days: Re-Revisited $5.98" E.P. But when I did, it was an instant addiction of mine. I had to get everything I could of the Original Misfits and all things Glenn Danzig. Now the Original Misfits had disbanded in 1983. Then reformed without Danzig in 1995. Dr. Chud was from this 1995 line up. Now I was aware of this new formation of the band. And even bought both albums that they had released. I didn't dislike it, but a part of me said "No Danzig,No Misfits". So I kind of just listened to them a few times and then pushed them to the side and forgot about them. But My friends were a little more enthusiastic about the new line up, and had went to Chicago a few times and seen them without me. And then some things happened and that version of the band had split up as well. Which brings us to this point. Dr. Chud with his own album and band out on tour. I love live music and am always up for a fun time so why not.

  We get to the armory and I really have no expectations for this show. I didn't know any of his album, and barely new his stuff from the Misfits. None the less, on with the show. I felt a little out of place, most of the audience was made up of young teenagers. I am around 32 at this time. The crowd wasn't very big, but they were full of energy. And the band were even more so. Dressed in bloody medical garb, The band was good! And since the show was at an armory. The good Doctor was dressed in a special "Army of The Dead" costume. I really hadn't been to any shows where costume was a part of the shtick. But all of them looked great. It was Halloween time and it worked. My friends and I stayed off to the side and watched the madness. I loved it. I thought they sounded more Metal than Punk, but it's all Rock n Roll when you boil it down. After the show, I bought the album on CD. and Doctor Chud graciously penned his autograph on the cover. I told him I really enjoyed the show and thought that was it. Little did I know, My friend had other plans.

  As The Doctor was signing autographs, the rest of the band and roadie were packing up. My friend Tim was off to the side chatting up the bass player. One Sal Bee. We made our way to their tour bus and he invited us in for a little after party. A little funny cigarette got lit and was beginning to make it around. I passed. Not really my thing. Then Doctor Chud came in. And it was like being busted by dad! "I told you not to do that shit on the bus! It messes with my throat. And I can't have that when we're on tour!" I thought the party was over, but it was not really an argument. More like brothers just bickering. Everything was cool. After the bus had been loaded up, Tim (Always wanting to keep the party going) invited the whole band down to the Corner Pub for a few drinks before they hit the road. And I'll be damned they accepted. so a group of us all walked the three blocks down the street and decided to just take over a corner of the bar. Now this band that some still had some make up on their face and with their thick New Jersey accents, all piled into this little red neck bar. We got some funny looks to say the least but all was good. We just had some drinks and sat around a shot the shit for awhile. Quizzing Dr. Chud about the Misfits. Listening to road stories and just having a fine old time.

   It didn't last too long, because the band had a long haul ahead of them to the next gig and had to get going. So we all walked back to the bus. Sal Bee gave us all CDs of his band Sardonica. And we said our goodbyes. I listened to both those CDs I got that night for quite a while after that night. And even gave the Misfits albums that I had once shunned another listen. Giving them a chance to stand on their own without linking them to Danzig. And I'm glad I did. They are great. But the chance to connect with these people on a personal level, face to face is the main thing I will take away from this show. They are some awesome human beings that treat their fans like gold! And they made some lifelong fans that night. It helps that the music is fun too.

  I don't have a setlist from this show, but it was primarily made up of Dr. Chuds 2004 release "Diagnosis For Death" Album, The songs that he had a hand in writing in the Misfits, and some from previous bands of his. I also didn't have my camera (Something that haunts me to this day!) so, no pics. But here is an online announcement and a flyer from the show.

The Guess Who June 30 2018

  I'm going to jump ahead here as this one is still fresh in my head. Every year in my hometown There is the Haynes Apperson Festival. A weekend festival celebrating the achievements of a couple of local automobile manufacturers from the early 20th century. It used to be a weeklong festival in my youth that took over most of the downtown area. It has sense been regulated down to a couple of days around the 4th of July weekend and moved to a local park (Foster Park) which is half the size of what it used to be. One thing that has improved though is the entertainment. The park has a nice permanent stage for bands to play on, and the shows are free to the public. Most of the bands are bands that are not quite in the limelight anymore. Most are missing most of their original members or are regional favorites that didn't quite make it to said limelight. That being said, all of the bands that I have seen have always put on a good show and given 100%.
  This years act was The Guess Who. Known for some great hits like "American Woman". I don't always make it down to see the bands play and have missed a few I would have liked to see. I really wasn't planning to go to this one at first, but then gave it a second thought when I found out that Rudy Sarzo had joined The Guess Who on bass. Now I've never really given The Guess Who much of a thought. Not saying that they aren't a good band. They just came a little before my time and not really what I would normally listen to. But Rudy Sarzo has been apart of my music library for almost my entire life. As a young child, my early music influence was my older sister. She is 6 years older than me and we shared a room when in the early 80's. So I pretty much listened to whatever she listened to. Thankfully she was into hard rock at the time and was my introduction to the likes of Ozzy Osbourne, Motley Crue, and Quiet Riot. Quiet Riot's "Metal Health" album was the second cassette tape I had bought for myself and was in heavy rotation in my walkman along with my first tape "Bark At The Moon" by Ozzy. Now when I latch onto something I go in full force. I try to learn everything about the bands I listen to and try to connect on a more personal level. And The Ozzy Osbourne Band was no exception. I started collecting all of his back catalog from Black Sabbath to the brilliance of the Randy Rhoads era. The "Blizzard Of Ozz" and "Diary Of A Madman" albums really made an impression! Then in 1987 Ozzy Osbourne released the "Randy Rhoads Tribute" album. It was the first "Live" album I had ever bought and it blew me away! I have listened to that album more than almost any other album in my music library over the past 30 years. And playing that great bass riff in the song "Believer" on that album was Rudy Sarzo. So when I found out that he was going to be in my hometown playing with The Guess Who, I told myself I needed to go and witness this major part of my youth.
   The day of the show, I was thinking my wife and I could walk down to the festival on a urban trail system that led pretty much from my back door straight to the park on what used to be a part of the Nickle Plate Railroad system. It was only a 1.7 mile walk and shouldn't be much of a problem. BUT! I had worked a 10 hour shift already getting up at 4 AM. The temperature was in the low 90's. And by the time I had got off from work, I had made up my mind that I wasn't going to make it. I have Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia and get tired pretty easily. I was telling my wife my original plan and she seemed pretty excited about the idea of the walk. She loves to go on walks. So I decided to give it the old college try. I grabbed my camera and headed down the rails (of the Crazy Train!)
   We got to the park and the opening band was still playing. We walked around a bit killing time before The main act hit the stage. Most of the area around the stage was already full of people who had brought chairs and had camped out in the blazing sun.We sat off to the side in the shade on the ground for a bit while waiting. Then the band took the stage. We got up, and There he was! I started taking some pics and listening to songs that I had really never heard before. As I watch all I could do was picture Rudy wailing away next to Randy and Ozzy. The band sounded great, but The heat and walk got to me pretty quick. And we still had to walk home. During the only song that I heard that I recognized ("No Sugar Tonight") I decided I wasn't going to make it for the whole show. So we decided to head out. We were walking past the back of the stage. There was like nobody back there. It's not like a typical backstage as it was open to go behind. I stopped my wife for a second and said I wanted to take a few more pictures from that angle. Just then The band ended the song it was playing and Rudy stepped to the side of the stage to get a drink of water. As he stood there catching his breath facing my direction, I decided to try to get his attention. I waved and yelled "Rudy!" And I'll be damned he actually looked! I was by myself about 50 feet away from the back of the stage so I knew he was looking at me. I couldn't believe it! I got his attention! I had to think quick. What do I say? So I raised my "Horns" and I shouted out "YOU ROCK!!!" Rudy then pointed at me and gave me the old "Thumbs up" then turned back to the stage to continue rocking out for the rest of the crowd. In that moment, I connected with one of the people that had been a part of my life for so long that previous to this moment, only came out of speakers. He doesn't know me ,but I've known him for 30 plus years. He won't remember that small 3 second interaction, but I will never forget it. I turned to my wife to bask in my happiness and SHE WASN'T THERE!! She had decided to go sit down on a rock and missed my moment! I was on cloud nine! Felt like a giddy little schoolgirl! But my body was still telling me it was time to go home. So we headed off. She didn't see our interaction but she got to hear about it all the way home!
   Here is the full setlist via Setlist.fm, although I missed most of it
  Bus Rider
  Clap for the Wolfman
  Undun
  No Sugar Tonight
  Haunted Heart
  Shakin' All Over
  Hand Me Down World
  Share the Land
  American Woman
  In America
  These Eyes
  No Time

 And here are some of the pictures I took. And might I add, Rudy Sarzo is one of the most photogenic people I've ever seen!


   *****UPDATE******
  Since I wrote this, a lot has happened! I had also posted these pictures on my facebook page. One week later, Rudy tagged himself in one of the pics from his personal account. I was ecstatic! I know it's just a little tag on a social media account, but he saw my picture of him. He liked my picture enough to tag himself in it. That means a lot to me. So just like my moment behind the stage, I decided to try and reach out. I sent him a message saying how much it meant to me that he liked my picture and asked if he had a spare minute, he could read this blog. And I included a link to this original post. It was late at night and I was ready for bed so I didn't wait around for a reply. Then I woke up to his response.

I know some people might think I'm getting a little over excited about this, but I don't care. Yes I'm a little star struck, but music has been such a huge part of my life. And Rudy was there for most of it. This put me over the top!

Metallica August 19 2004

   Ok, so there's a little bit of a gap between this show and the last. In that time, I got a job, got married, had a daughter. Starting a family takes a lot of time and money. Concerts just weren't in the budget. But at this time in my life, things were starting to look up. And with my all time favorite band was coming to town, I couldn't pass it up. I have what I consider a "Unhealthy addiction" to this band. I like lots of different kinds of music and bands, but there is something about Metallica that just clicks with me. And has since I first heard them back in 1988. There's a lot of haters out there that will tell you how some other bands are better or how they're not this or that. I don't care! This is my band! And I was not going to deny myself (again) the chance to see them live. At this time most of my friends were on the "Metallica Sucks" bandwagon so I wasn't sure who I would go with. My wife is not into metal music so I didn't think she would enjoy it, but I didn't want to go alone. So during the Met Club pre-sale. I bought 2 tickets without knowing who else was going.Turned out to be a friend from work. He was going to pay me back for the tickets, but lost his job a week before the show. So I just couldn't bring myself to ask him to pay it back. So! Onto the show!!!

 The "Madly In Anger with the World Tour" opening slot went to Godsmack. I wasn't really sure who they were before the show, but was a fan by the end of it! Great musicians! Great set list!
       
  1. Straight Out of Line
  2. Awake
  3. Faceless
  4. Bad Religion
  5. Mistakes
  6. Keep Away
  7. Voodoo
  8. Batalla de los Tambores
  9. Whatever
  10. I Stand Alone

 Now onto the Mighty Metallica!!!!! Out promoting the "St. Anger" album which did not go over to well with fans despite debuting at #1 on the charts and winning a Grammy. I have mixed feelings about the album. There's some great riffs and heavy stuff on there. They only played 2 songs from that album this night. It wouldn't have bothered me if they had played more. The set list had many of my favorites so I was happy either way.

  1. Blackened
  2. Fuel
  3. Harvester Of Sorrow
  4. Fade to Black
Now I have to stop right here for a second. "Fade To Black" is one of my all time favorite songs! I've learned most of the rhythm guitar parts and can play them pretty good. I love this song!
Some ASSHOLE Threw a lighter and hit James Hetfield in the face! Forcing him to stop in the middle of the song and collect his bearings. If I could find the guy that did it, I would stomp his face in!!!
  5. Frantic
  6. No Leaf Clover
  7. I Disappear
  8. St. Anger
  9. Bass Solo
 10. Sad But True
 11. Creeping Death
 12. Battery
 13. Wherever I May Roam
 14. Guitar Solo
 15. Nothing Else Matters
 16. Master Of Puppets
 17. One
 18. Enter Sandman
 19. Jump In The Fire
 20. Seek And Destroy

The Pyro almost melted my face and my ears were ringing hard and I couldn't have been happier! Why did I take so long to see them? I did not take a camera so I have no pics of my own. Here's my ticket stub.

I have no pics, but thanks to LiveMetallica.com I can relive this concert forever!
http://www.livemetallica.com/live-music/0,60/Metallica-mp3-flac-download-8-19-2004-Conseco-Fieldhouse-Indianapolis-IN.html
 

1. Play Video
2. Awake 
3. 
   

Warrant, Trixter, & Firehouse June 22 1991 Noblesville IN

This was my first "Real Concert". There is a little backstory to this one. I don't recall the reason, but Deer Creek Music Center was having some sort of festival. All Lawn seats were free for several different shows all week long. Which included "The Clash Of The Titans" tour featuring Slayer, Megadeth, Anthrax, And I think Alice In Chains were opening. This show was June 18. I was super excited about this, but! I was only 15. Noblesville is about 40 miles away from where I live. So travel would pose a problem. My mom was dating this real douchebag at the time, and I think he was trying to get on my good side so he offered to take me. I didn't care if Satan himself was driving as long as I got there! So June 18 rolled around, and I waited... and waited... He never showed. And was forever on my bad side after that. I was super pissed and very disappointed. Well my mom and sister saw this and wanted to make it up to me. So they found out there was another free show 4 days later and they were going to take me to try and make it up to me. Now... Firehouse is not Anthrax! Trixter is not Megadeth!! And Warrant is most definitely not Slayer!!! But, my mom and sister were trying. So I was going to make the best of it. I was scared for my mom. She looked out of her element. We stood at the back of the crowd so she didn't have to deal with the crowd. First up, Firehouse. The only thing I really remember during their set was there was a crane  with a platform set up on the other side of the back fence where they were bungee jumping. Most of the crowd had turned their back to the band so they could watch some girl jump! She was scared, and didn't want to jump. The lead singer got a little pissed and between songs said something like "Jump already"! She did, they finished, and that was that. I was never that big of a fan of Firehouse so I don't know any of the songs. Here is a set list I found from a different show from the tour.
 1. Lover's Lane
 2. Oughta Be a Law
 3. Overnight Sensation
 4. All She Wrote
 5. Love of a Lifetime
 6. Rock on the Radio
 7. Shake & Tumble
 8. Don't Treat Me Bad 

  I don't know if theses were the songs I heard, but it could be. Oh well, on to Trixter. I remember even less about Trixter. So here is a setlist from the same tour. Could be like the show I saw, Could not be. I don't know!
 1. Heart of Steel
 2. Play Rough
 3. One in a Million
 4. Bad Girl
 5. Ride the Whip
 6. Surrender
 7. Line of Fire
 8. Give it to Me Good
   Now, on to Warrant I did know Warrant. I like a large variety of music. All 15 year old boys knew who Warrant was when the "Cherry Pie" video came out! They sounded good. You could tell that lead singer Jani Lane was getting smashed during the show. He sang fine, but the beer commercials between songs were funny. The main thin I remember from this was the last song they played. The Beastie Boys classic "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)" A little music trivia here. Who played the guitar solo on the Beastie Boys track from the album "License to Ill"? ..... Kerry King from SLAYER! And that's as close as I got to Slayer for about 20 years! Here's a set list from a different show that I'm pretty sure is the same that I heard.
 1. Inside Out
 2. Down Boys
 3. 32 Pennies
 4. Mr. Rainmaker
 5. Uncle Tom's Cabin
 6. Train, Train (Blackfoot cover)
 7. I Saw Red
 8. So Damn Pretty (Should Be Against the Law)
 9. Love in Stereo
 10. Song and Dance Man
 11. Blind Faith
 12. Sure Feels Good to Me
 13. Heaven
 14. Cherry Pie
 15. (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)
 Well that was my first concert. It's not what it was supposed to be but, it is what it is. I am thankful for my mom and sister. Here is a pic of the shirt I got. Not my pic but same shirt