Tag Archives: pittsburgh

Mar18

Omg Omg Omg.

Posted on by
Standard
Omg Omg Omg.

HELLOOOO!! As you all know, I love Jack White. I have loved him since I was probably eight years old and my feelings have only deepened as time went on. I have all of his albums from all of his bands, I have his lyrics tattooed on me – but, sadly, I have never seen him in concert. BUT THAT IS ALL ABOUT TO CHANGE THIS JUNE!!

With Jack’s new album, Boarding House Reach, coming out on March 23rd, a tour to celebrate only seems appropriate. So, when I got word that Mr. White would be gracing Cleveland with his presence, getting tickets became an absolute necessity. And, using the old “Can I get the tickets for a birthday present” trick worked very nicely with my parents!!

After confirming that this would be my birthday gift, even though I totally would have paid for the tickets myself had it not worked, I began scouring the various ticket venue websites. I landed on LiveNation and was about to purchase two tickets for the pit in the front of the stage (Eeeek!), until I saw their exorbitant processing fees, which totaled to an extra hundred dollars. An extra hundred dollars my ass!!

I instantly poo pooed LiveNation, and decided to see if Jack White had any other performances that were farther away in the calendar that might be cheaper. Of course, I realize that this logic was skewed, but desperate times, man. Desperate times. It was then, that I discovered that Jack White was headlining X Fest, just outside of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania along with AWOLNATION, Cold War Kids, Sir Sly, and other performers to be announced. I could definitely work with that!

I ended up purchasing front of the stage pit tickets on Vivid Seats and wound up saving about sixty dollars in processing fees. Suck it, LiveNation. And, now, not only will I finally see Jack White in concert, but I will get to see AWOLNATION for the second time, and Cold War Kids and Sir Sly for the first time. And, I just so happen to deeply enjoy them, too! It doesn’t get much better than that!

THANKS MOM AND DAD!!!! ❤

Five days before my June 7th birthday, I will get to attend the concert of a lifetime and I’m so excited I could cry. Now, can it hurry up and get here, or?!

Which artist would you love to see in concert? Who else is a huge Jack White fan? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct2

Monday Update: Marilyn Manson Concert Edition

Posted on by
Standard
Monday Update: Marilyn Manson Concert Edition

Hi everyone and happy Monday! This past Friday my sister, Kristen, and I trekked to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (About a two hour drive.) to see Marilyn Manson in concert for his Heaven Upside Down tour at Stage AE. After literal months of anticipation for this show, it was finally the night and the performance definitely didn’t disappoint. ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THAT WE WERE RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE STAGE!! Take a look at some low quality iPod pictures and let’s discuss:

marilyn1marilyn2marilyn3marilyn5marilyn4

^^^ Lol, I love that last picture. “Ayyy”.

First of all, Stage AE was an absolutely excellent venue. It seemed like no matter where you stood in the crowd, your visibility of the stage was average at a minimum and amazing at the max. Kristen and I began our concert experience with an okay viewing for the opener (Alice Glass, who I’m not even going to talk about because she sucked.), and ended our night in front of the stage.

How, you might ask?

Well, it’s not like the crowd was intensely rowdy throughout the show. Some fights definitely did break out but nothing “major”, and some people just weren’t comfortable with it (understandably) and opted to get away from the vicinity of the mosh pit. So as soon as people left the area for safety purposes, drinks, or what have you, Kristen and I would make our way forward until we had a view of Marilyn Manson at all times during the concert.

And speaking of the concert…

It. was. AMAZING. Manson is nearing fifty years of age, and I told Kristen on our way home that this is probably the best we’re going to see of him since he isn’t getting any younger. There was no on stage self harm, no crazy gimmicks with girls, minimal audience banter, and not even an inkling of violence. This show was everything that his performances weren’t when the band was just starting out, but that doesn’t mean that it wasn’t a lot of fun.

The Heaven Upside Down tour didn’t seem so much of a celebration of his new album of the same name, rather, an ode to some old school Marilyn Manson hits that even people who don’t even like Manson love. We’re talking The Dope Show, Lunchbox, mOBSCENE, This Is The New Shit, No Reflection, Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This), and The Beautiful People.

Marilyn Manson played four songs off of Heaven Upside Down and opened the show with the album opener of Revelation #12. He then peppered KILL4ME, WE KNOW WHERE YOU FUCKING LIVE, and SAY10 into the set list. The rest of the show was filled with Deep Six (I’m disappointed that more songs from The Pale Emperor weren’t played.) and Tourniquet, which is another old love. (Manson then encored with Coma White but, alas, Kristen and I had to make the two hour drive home so that she could work early in the morning.)

^^^ Obviously the set list rocked…

And the performance that came along with it was just as good. The lighting, the different costumes Manson donned, his gorgeous speaking/singing/screaming voice – it all worked so well. I mean, a front row view doesn’t hurt, but it was a damn good show. Fans that were able to see Marilyn Manson in the beginning might think that he is slowing down (Unfortunately, I was a toddler so until time travel is invented, I will never know what his early shows were like first hand.), but, to me, he is just getting started.

Marilyn Manson dragged his last album, The Pale Emperor, through some gritty, rough blues influence and it came as a triumphant, different comeback. Yes, some tracks off of Heaven Upside Down does sound like classic Manson (KILL4ME and WE KNOW WHERE YOU FUCKING LIVE, anyone?) but that doesn’t mean that the whole album will, and I’m looking forward to exploring it in its entirety when it comes out on October 6th.

Marilyn Manson is at a stage of experimentation that is working in his favor – from his art, acting, and playing with new and unique sounds – everything seems to be a success. I expect Heaven Upside Down to reflect these gutsy changes and the fact that he is soon going to be a half a century in age. Friday’s concert brought us some old school fun mixed with new favorites, but it seems like the party is raging on just fine for Manson in a way that’s not only, dare I say, age appropriate, but totally fucking cool.

So there you have it, this week’s Monday Update: Marilyn Manson Concert Edition! What was the last concert that you attended? How do you feel about Marilyn Manson? I want to hear from all of you, so leave me a comment and let’s chat! Much love. -Sarah

Oct14

A music dream come true! Part 2!!!

Posted on by
Standard
A music dream come true! Part 2!!!

So as many of you know, I love AFI. And if you’ve read my post A music dream come true, you’ll know that I’m seeing them in concert in Pittsburgh. AND THAT HAPPENS TO BE TODAY!!!!! Words can’t even begin to express how excited I am. I’ve been longing to see them in concert since I discovered AFI almost ten years ago. I’ve never been to a real punk concert before – like in an actual stadium with mosh pits and swarms of emo kids so I’m very much looking forward to this experience! One of the first albums I bought was Sing the Sorrow, so I’m really hoping they’ll play a lot from that album. One of my all time favorite AFI songs and songs in general happens to be Silver and Cold off of that album. I remember hearing it at eleven years old and thinking it was the most beautiful thing in the world. Here I am at twenty, and I still feel the exact same way.

There’s something so special about getting to experience one of your favorite bands live. I’ll never forget seeing U2 live in Pittsburgh two years ago with my family. That was a show for the ages and one of my most treasured memories. I cried so much during that concert, but they were happy tears. I can guarantee you guys that I’ll be crying a lot during the show tonight. I’m sure they’ll be tears of pure joy though! I’m just so excited to hear all of the songs that I’ve felt like were written specifically for me live. AFI’s music has made me feel like they flipped through the pages of my journals and wrote albums upon albums about my struggles. I think that’s why I love them so much. They understand the darkness of life and they understand pain. You would think that hearing that type of music would make me feel upset – but it does quite the opposite. It makes me feel like I’m not alone. It makes me feel like I’m understood. And that is so, so beautiful to me.

I can’t wait to tell all of you guys about the concert! Also, please send good vibes my way, as there’s a pretty bad storm passing through the area that my sister and I will be driving through. Have a fantastic day – I know I will!!!! -Sarah