I was at the pub for 7 hours total. That's because Days did not start until 12:30 a.m. Some mixup with the sound check. Anyway, though I typically retire to bed no later than 11, I was not about to miss this. I bought my ticket way back in November and was determined to see them perform. So I spent the evening listening to about 8 other bands. In varying stages of development, musically and technically. Some classic hard rock bands, one band that easily and skillfully moves between alternative rock and jazz, one band that was spot-on terrific, one that was what I would call screaming metal -- had to leave the room -- my throat felt raw after about 5 minutes of the frontman's anguished, harsh screams. My opera singer ears just can't bear it although it is part of the genre, I know -- it's fine -- just not for me. And nor would I want children with their fragile, as-yet-undeveloped voices to adopt such a singing model. So I'm not including that style of metal in my textbook. Believe me, they'll discover it on their own if they are so inclined.
I heard 7 straight hours of rock music and out all that, only THREE songs that I know. An Alice in Chains cover by a band called A.D.D. (with a frontwoman singer, excellent!) and two Days of the New songs that I know because I listen to their music a lot. All the rest of the songs were unfamiliar. I think. When the volume is that loud, I cannot really hear chords and melodies and things -- just noise -- so it's possible that songs I do know were played and I didn't recognize them. Very possible.
The visit to Penny Road was extremely enlightening. If/when I go again, I'll hang out in the cellar. I like the young, somewhat raw groups and the ceiling is so low down there and the room small so they don't crank up the volume to ear-splitting levels. You can sit barely 5 feet away from the performers. I love that. I could watch the guitarists stepping on buttons to change the sound, I could see them adjusting the amps, I could hear them tuning up. So in a way, that's more valuable for my research purposes than going to Soldier Field and sitting in the nosebleed section along with 90,000 others, an entire football field's length and just about the same height away from U2 -- as I did in Sept. Of course, the U2 concert was a marvelous spectacle and I just love U2 -- love their music, their sound, Bono, The Edge -- all of it. I'm a U2 fanatic. But I think I would give 1 year of my life to hear/see U2 in that cellar at Penny Road Pub. Sitting 5 or 7 feet away from them. Listening to them talk to each other, talking to us, their audience. Looking them in the eye, hearing Bono's glorious voice with minimal amplification -- just a simple microphone -- watching The Edge adjust the controls so that he maintains his beautiful, subtle guitar sound. Perhaps if I visit Dublin some day.......
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