Photos – Page 9 – Concert Katie

Josh Gracin Wolf’s Den 9/25/11

Katie September 27, 2011 0 Comments

Sunday night Josh Gracin played the Wolf’s Den at Mohegan Sun. The Wolf’s Den is a 21+ venue and the shows are free, but seating is limited. The first time I went to see Josh I wasn’t able to get in, the second time I was in the outer area of the Den and Sunday night I made it to the floor! (Only because I went alone and they had 1 spot to fill at a table down there!)

The show was supposed to start at 7, but it got started a little bit late. Josh has released 2 albums as well as an EP, but his new release will be coming out November 1. He did a mixture of all the songs, though the majority were newer songs that will be on the new album and he mixed in a decent amount of covers as well.

One of the covers he did was of John Mayer’s “Edge of Desire”, he mentioned that he had been really into John’s stuff lately and that he liked to remake a song on each of his albums and he asked John if he could put Edge of Desire on his next one, and John agreed!

For the encore, Josh’s band introduced each other while Josh was nowhere to be found. Then they started Don’t Stop Believing and Josh came in through the back of the venue (where we all entered) and walked all around snapping photos, giving hugs, high fives, etc as he made his way through the crowd and back up to the stage.

Once his set was over, a decent amount of people were hanging around hoping he would sign. He had thrown out drumsticks which I guess meant he had intended to come out and sign them all after? The staff kept saying he would not be coming out and while in my experience I have seen the staff “lie” (or be greatly misinformed) in the past… but I decided to call it a night and try to get home relatively early instead, so I don’t know if he did end up coming out or not. I do still want to get a photo with him… but hopefully he’ll come back after the album is released and do a proper signing somewhere so I’ll have another chance!
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American Idol Concert Photos

Elliott Yamin Infinity Music Hall 9/17/11

Katie September 21, 2011 0 Comments

Saturday night I made the trek to Norfolk, CT to Infinity Music Hall to check out Elliott Yamin and Mikey Wax. The last time I had seen Elliott was in 2007 and I had kind of lost track of his career a bit, but I knew that even if I didn’t know the songs, they’d be sung really, really well and I’d enjoy myself either way.

Opening up the night was Mikey Wax (http://www.mikeywax.com) from New York. His new album comes out on Tuesday, but Saturday night was the first night that he had CDs available for purchase. He did 5 or 6 songs, approximately a 30 minute set. His last song was the most impressive, he stood at the front of the stage with no mic and had his guitar unplugged and just sang. (From looking at his site I think the last song he did was “Wait by the Door” I really need to start keeping track of opening act setlists too, I think!)

After Mikey’s set there was a short intermission before it was time for Elliott! He came on stage about 8:45 and played until a little before 10. He mentioned that he is working on a new album that will be coming out between November and 2012. But hopefully soon and then he would come back. He also kept saying how much he loved the Infinity Music Hall venue. It is really neat, although the lighting made it difficult for my picture taking. But I guess that just gave me another reason to actually learn how to use my camera and not try to figure things out on the fly 😉

As I had previously mentioned, I kind of lost track of Elliott after his self titled release, but fortunately he did only 2 songs (by my count, anyway) from his 2nd CD and 5 from the self titled (yay! I know those!) with the rest of the set made up of songs coming off the new album. (Which I believe he said was going to be called “Lets Get To Whats Real”)

The show was great and after the show I hung around to meet him. We chatted a bit about how every year on Idol during Hollywood week someone in my family always brings up how he missed practice w/ his group to sleep his season. He assured me he WASN’T sleeping and that the magic of TV made it seem that way because they wanted to make drama. I told him it didn’t matter what he was doing because he sang better than everyone! He mentioned how Sway was in his group and usually he is part of his band (which I did remember after he said that in 2007 he was there) but they had to scale down a bit for this tour. He also mentioned another contestant as well, but I didn’t remember her. Then he told me to have a safe trip home. He’s a really nice guy 🙂

My merchandise purchase was a lanyard that had the tour dates on it (which he signed for me) but it is also a USB Flash Drive with some songs and photos on it! Which I thought was really, really neat. There are some new songs on it and a live show from Osaka! I can’t wait to listen to it! That cost $15, but if you wanted a shirt as well, it was only an additional $5, so I bought a shirt with some mics on it and Elliott’s name. Definitely a great deal and I think a lot of people went for it.

I had no idea how I was going to keep up with a setlist for his set only knowing one album’s worth of songs (and even then, I don’t know that I remembered all the song titles) but fortunately I was able to get a setlist off the stage at the end of the show 🙂 Note that Moody’s Mood For Love he just kind of started singing when someone yelled it out for him during the encore and his band just kind of stood there while he just saaang. So that song wasn’t on the official setlist, but of course I am including it.

Concert Photos

Crazy life fueled by crazy dreams… Ingram Hill 9/8/11

Katie September 10, 2011 0 Comments

Ingram Hill FINALLY returned to Connecticut on Thursday night. The last time we saw them in CT was 2005, so it was definitely a LONG overdue visit! The show was at the Fairfield Theater, who sent out an email saying there was no opening act and that Ingram Hill would be going on at 7:30. We were pleasantly surprised once we arrived that not only was there going to be an opening act – there was actually going to be TWO. Tickets were general admission, but the seats were all still there so it was just like any other show I’ve seen there (although perhaps a bit cheaper!)

First up was Sarah Jane Wilson (http://www.facebook.com/sarahjanewilsonmusic) who did about 5 songs, one of which being a Taylor Swift cover. She just recently released an EP titled “Middle of Nowhere” (now where have I heard that name before…)

Next up was Kat McGivern (http://www.facebook.com/KatMcGivernMusic) who also did a handful of songs and a decent amount of the crowd seemed to be there for her! (There were only about 25 people there and I would say about 1/5 left once her set was over!) During her set I definitely thought she reminded me of the lead singer from the Cranberries, so it is really no surprise that now reading her bio that they are listed as an influence. You can definitely tell that in several of her songs. She is currently working on a dance pop album – tentatively titled “candy pop” (at least, I think that is what she said)

Then it was time for Ingram Hill! I haven’t exactly kept up with them over the past few years when they haven’t been touring around here so I definitely need to work on that now and figure out which albums I don’t have (I am thinking I am something like three behind… though one may just be an acoustic ep. I’ll figure it out eventually) Of the setlist, there were maybe 6 songs I had recognized from the albums I did have. Also, since I had seen them last 2 of the band members had changed! Although I had read about that so it was not a total surprise.

Justin was also quite chatty and was cracking us up. After a couple of songs he asked how we were doing and the response was a little bit blah. He told us that he would ask us again later, but would warn us that he was going to ask us so that we’d know what was going on and have time to respond. When he asked again much later how we were doing, there was a lot more yelling and clapping. Then he said how he realized that if the answer is “yes” or “good” it can easily be replaced with “woooooo!” but if the answer is “no”, then “no” is still acceptable. For instance – if someone asked “Do you like brussel sprouts?” you’d yell “NO!” and then if someone asked “Do you like Ice Cream?” you could say “WOOOOOOO!” and it would get the point across. He also mentioned how at a recent show a group of guys just said “yep” when he asked if everyone was doing all right.

Another point during the show he was talking about the merch that they had and that they also had free matches and how you could never have enough matches around, especially if you had kids. He also was talking about how the shirts were cotton and they would feel good against your body but they would also make you look good so if you liked to look good and feel good at the same time you should buy one… And when a fan in the front requested Almost Perfect, he said that they didn’t know that song and that she must have had them confused with someone else – but they did end up singing it. I’m not sure if he was trying to be stealth and make her think they weren’t going to end up singing it, or what! haha.

I wasn’t able to hang out after the show because I am old and had to get back home to get some sleep in so I wouldn’t be a total zombie at work, but other than that it was a great night and it was great to see the old crew who used to go to Ingram Hill shows all the time back together again 🙂

Concert Photos

Stevie Nicks Jiffy Lube Live 9/3

Katie September 8, 2011 2 Comments

Over Labor Day weekend I went down to the Washington, DC area to hang out with a friend and go see the Mets. Before I got down there, she emailed me to let me know that her fiance managed to score us 3 free tickets to see Stevie Nicks on Saturday night. Not one to turn down a free show, I figured it would be fun. When I looked up Jiffy Lube Live, it reminded me of the Comcast Theater we have in Hartford, just on a bigger scale. I thought that we probably had lawn seats since they were given free to the USO. I was pleasantly surprised when I was told that we did in fact have seats. And neither my friend or her fiance even knew that places with lawn existed. It had been quite a while since I had gone to a concert with such newbies!

Our seats were in the last section of the pavilion, but dead center so they were not too bad at all! The opening act was Michael Grimm who won America’s Got Talent. I had heard that he was great, but I really could not get in to his performance. He also seemed to be promoting a new album that he had just released, but did multiple covers during his set. His chatting while he was on stage wasn’t all that engaging either, though he did have a good voice. Maybe with some more practice he will be more interesting and grab peoples attention.

A cool thing that Jiffy Lube Live had was a text number that you could send a message to if someone nearby was ruining your concert experience. I thought that was pretty cool, although I suppose if you actually used it, it would be pretty obvious who “tattled”. I had a minor issue with the couple in front of me who were either recording or just taking a really long time to decide to snap a photo (and before Stevie came on they announced she had requested no video, etc) and the camera was blocking pretty much my entire view of Stevie. Fortunately, this was easily solved by us all moving over a seat – we had several on either side of us that was empty so it was not a big deal.

Stevie came on about 5 minutes to 9 and several times mentioned that there was a curfew so she was going to talk quickly so that they would not end up pulling the plug in the middle of her set. I had found a setlist from an earlier show and typed it in my phone to follow along with, and panicked a bit when she said that the show would be unlike any other on the tour, but for the most part it was the same just in a different order. But it is nice that she uses her “sequencer” to randomize the order of the songs and switch things out each night so there is a balance of new and old. (I think there was 1 addition and 2 omissions, probably due to the curfew but she did almost all the songs that we had expected to hear!)

Before she sang Soldiers Angel she talked about her time at Walter Reed hospital and encouraged us all to donate to the hospital or to the USO. It was nice that she mentioned that, since we got our tickets through the USO. She also read a URL that was “.org” and said that she was not a computer person and did not know what .org meant. A lot in our section yelled “organization” and I’m assuming some people up front did too so hopefully that was Stevie’s new thing to learn for the day! She also talked about how she was not the governor or the mayor so she had no control over the curfew – but that SHE COULD BE! haha. For Leather and Lace she talked a bit about how she couldn’t figure out how to do a duet as one person and she never knew who to sing the song with. Then she realized that her vocal coach was on tour and he had a wonderful voice so she had him join her for the song.

Another thing we found fascinating is that after Edge of Seventeen (the last song in the main set) she made a conscious effort to shake EVERYONE in the front row’s hand. She went from one extreme end to the other, not missing a person, collecting gifts as she went along. My friend turned to me and asked if that was typical of concerts, that the artist shake everyone’s hand like that, and I said not in my experience! I thought that was a really touching aspect of her set that she cared so much about her fans and audience to do that!

Stand Back
Secret Love
Dreams
Moonlight
Gold Dust Woman
Soldiers angel
Annabel Lee
For What Its Worth
Rhiannon
Landslide
Ghosts are Gone
Leather and Lace
Edge of Seventeen

Love Is

American Idol Concert Paul McDonald Photos

American Idols Live – Bridgeport, CT

Katie August 29, 2011 0 Comments

After our M&G were over, we were free to go to our seats for the show. As we started walked forward, I realized that Row D was actually front row in front of the small catwalk! And the seat that I had was DEAD CENTER on the catwalk! (I had gone back and forth being unsure if I had 1st row of 4th row – I was convinced it was first until the Nassau Coliseum show made me think otherwise)

The show was pretty much exactly the same as 2 nights before, the setlist did not change but of course the interaction that the Idols did with the crowd did a bit. During Stefano’s set he announced that he liked one side better than the other and he did not take his shirt off as early as he did in Long Island either. In fact, he didn’t until the lights were just about off so I wasn’t able to get any photos… but he was right in front of me when he did it!

James gave his bandana to a cute little boy up front… Lauren was very interactive waving and trying to shake hands with various people in the front. (There was a good few feet from the barricade to the stage, but if someone reached as far as they could and Lauren reached as far as she could they’d reach each other)

The 2 people next to me had told me how they asked to talk to Aaron Spears, the drummer on the tour and spoke with him for 10 minutes, but then it cut in to their time with the Idols. At intermission, the drum tech came up and said “These are from the drummer” and handed them some sticks! When the tech found out they both played drums, he went back and got them a couple more sets. I thought that was so cool of the drummer, and when he came back on stage after intermission they waved to him and he gave them a salute.

I’m really not sure what else to write about this show… so I’ll just leave you with some more photos under the cut 🙂 (Plus as I write this we are anticipating Hurricane Irene so it is probably best I move on to something else before we lose power!)

American Idol Concert Paul McDonald Photos

American Idols Live – Uniondale NY

Katie August 26, 2011 0 Comments

Last week I won tickets to see the American Idols Live tour on Long Island from a twitter contest sponsored by Mastercard. The show was Tuesday night and I didn’t remember until we got there that Pia is from Long Island so it was her hometown show! (I didn’t remember until I saw all the people in neon Pia shirts walking around!) The seats were on the floor, Row 8, which was actually 12 rows from the stage because the section started with A1, A2, A3, A4.

The show started out with all the girls dressed in white singing Lady Gaga’s Born This Way. Then Pia came out and said hello to her hometown crowd and sang some of Empire State of Mind. Looks like that is the over covered song of the week 😉 At least it was appropriate this time since we were in New York! Then Pia went in to California King Bed and Stefano came out to sing with her. My mom was nudging me that he was on the stage but I couldn’t see him at all because there was a HUGE guy a couple rows ahead of me who was standing up to let someone else in to their seat! Of course! This would end up being the theme for the night as somehow every time this guy stood up he managed to only block Stefano.

Paul came out and sang Maggie May – and man does that guy run around a lot. It was damn near impossible for me to get a picture of him because by the time the camera focused, he was already on the other side of the stage! This happened a lot with the guys on the more upbeat songs but Thursday I’ll get a second chance so maybe I’ll be able to figure out how to get a good shot with them running all around. Thia came out and did Selena Gomez’s “Who Says” and her dress had a long tail that almost looked like a cape. Then she ended up taking that part off and joining Pia, Haley and Naima to perform Janelle Monae’s Tightrope.

Then it was time for Stefano! He did Bruno Mars Grenade and the girls joined him for DJ Got Us Falling In Love. And near the end of the song he TOOK HIS SHIRT OFF. Somehow I managed to get a picture and then realized he did it on the catwalk which is right where my seats are for Thursday. At least now I know to be prepared for it!

Then the guys (minus Scotty, who was not on stage at all in the first half of the show) performed Neon Trees Animal. We got a video greeting from JLo and Naima came out and peformed On The Floor. She also had a breakdown where she just danced. Pia came back out (it seemed to very much be the Pia show) and performed her first single – This Time. Then it was time for Casey! He started his set playing his upright bass and did Santana/Rob Thomas’ Smooth. Then Haley joined him for Moanin’. He said how he was getting hot in his leather jacket and it was getting harder to breathe and then of course sang Maroon 5’s Harder to Breathe. Then the whole crew (minus Scotty, of course) came out and did Forget You and I think there was some Crazy mixed in there as well.

Then it was time for intermission. I liked that it wasn’t in the order of being kicked off doing 2 songs, etc like it was in years past (plus Lauren was out there a lot in the beginning, Haley and James too which probably wouldn’t have been the case with the old format) but it seemed like it was not an even spread of who was singing what. For the places they came in it seemed like Pia sang too much and Paul, too little.

After the intermission Lauren came out first. I assume this was to separate her and Scotty so it wasn’t back to back country. She has great stage presence and was saying how Randy Jackson was at the show and backstage. She did Flat on the Floor, Like My Mother Does and If I Die Young. Then it was time for James. He started at the back of the venue and walked up to the front and ended up going right by our section (We were 4 people from the aisle though) while singing Sweet Child O Mine. He also did Muse’s Uprising. Then Jacob came out and did Never Too Much and You’re All I Need To Get By which he dedicated to Ashford, the songwriter who had just passed away. Haley did a great performance of House of the Rising Sun and Bennie and the Jets.

Then of course it was time for the main event – Scotty! They did a medley of announcing all the winners on the video screen. I still love that Kris Allen’s reaction was =-O! Appropriately Scotty came on stage singing… baby lock them doors and turn the lights down low! I would have been so disappointed if he did not do Josh Turner’s Your Man because he had sung it SOOOO many times in Hollywood week. haha. He also did Are You Going To Kiss Me OR Not and then his first single, I Love You This Big… Lauren joined him and they sang When You Say Nothing At All and then the girls joined him on backup vocals for Gone. I also noticed that Scotty was holding the mic like normal and NOT like a flute like he did during the season. I wonder how hard it was for him to break that habit!

Then it was time for the final number which was very high energy and again, pretty hard to get photos of. James was doing wrestling moves on Casey and Scotty while they were singing and hime and Paul did a weird little dance… Then all the contestants were introduced and when James came out he had on a clown nose! lol They did a little bit more of their final song and then the show was over!

Setlist under the cut!

Concert Photos

KC101’s Ticket To Ride August 21

Katie August 24, 2011 0 Comments

Sunday was a bit of an interesting day. The crazy-ness actually began before, when I asked Six Flags about handicapped accesible seating for the concert and was told that ADA seating was available – but only for those in wheelchairs. We decided then that I’d use a wheelchair for the day because even though I was more of a liability standing in a crowd of rabid fan girls, six flags didn’t seem to care unless I was in a wheelchair! Plus, my friend Christine had asked previously and was told if I was in a wheelchair I could be put anywhere so we figured with our VIP wristbands we could position the wheelchair at the back of the VIP area and then stay with our friends.

We got to the park when it opened, picked up a Guests with Disabilities guide book and then picked up our VIP tickets. We decided to wait in line and there were only about 25 girls in front of us so we thought we could easily position the wheelchair against the barricade and we’d be all set. Except that Six Flags decided they were having a flashmob for Jason Derulo (you should be singing that in your head every time you see it mentioned here) and that 500 people would be let in first. If they had VIP they’d go to the front of VIP and if not they’d go to the front of the GA area. Basically there was no way we could get ahead, but we decided to stay in line anyway.

Originally the plan was that doors would be at 2:30. Then we got told they were pushed to 3. Then security said that it was going to “rain heavily” and we should prepare ourselves. If we got out of line, we would lose our place even if our friends stayed in line and even if we had to go to the bathroom! Then we were told that since the storm was coming they were moving us in to a pavilion and we had to stay seated and that we could NOT leave – even to go to the bathroom. Or we could not come back. Obviously they soon realized this was ridiculous and those who did leave to use the restrooms were NOT kicked out.

Fortunately we made it in to the pavilion before the rain began and we all sat around. We were entertaining ourselves just fine in the line and could have continued doing so in the pavilion but they set up a mic and ended up having Art and Colin of ‘The mop squad” come to entertain us. I certainly hope whatever act they do in the park was better than what they did for us… I felt like I was in summer camp hell. Surprisingly, there were people who seemed entertained and they didn’t get boo’ed off stage.

The rain stopped and the sun came out and we were told the other pavilion (flash mob) would be let in first. They tried to do everything orderly and we were worried the wheelchair would get stampeded, but the six flags people stuck to their guns that we would have to walk in with everyone else. Once we went to get in to VIP we were told to go in to the wheelchair seating instead of VIP and we were separated from friends. Basically we spent $10 for VIP for nothing and we could have been on rides all day and ended up in the same spot. Oh well… at least we got to hang out with our friends in the line. The other weird thing was that those with All Access (radio station peeps, sponsors, etc) had the section in front of the wheelchairs and were standing and moving around so even if you thought you had a good spot, at any moment someone else could jump in front of you and block your view!

Andy Grammer was up first. He did 3 or 4 songs and some beatboxing and was really good. The only downside to his set was that he did a bit of Empire State of Mind which has to be one of my least favorite songs, but otherwise he was entertaining so I won’t hold that against him.

Next up was Shaggy. His DJ played intro music for what seemed like forever. I don’t know if he was stalling for time or what… but finally Shaggy came out. He did Mr Bombastic, Angel, It Wasn’t Me, Sugarcane and Mr Lover. AND he also did a little bit of Empire State of Mind! I could see if we were in New York but we were in Massachucetts…

Then it was time for the reason most of us were there – Joe Jonas. He came out to Love Slayer and also performed Just In Love With You, Fast Life, Kleptomaniac, I’m Sorry, See No More (his last song which he jumped in to the crowd during.) As well as Jonas Brothers songs – When You Look Me In The Eyes and Hello Beautiful. After Joe we left the area and went to the bathrooms, where Andy Grammer was outside signing and taking pics. We waited for a bit to try and get a photo but he kept getting called off to somewhere else so we gave up and went to get me a hair feather while we waited for Jason Derulo. We heard a couple of his songs (and cheered when he came out and sang ‘jaaaason deruuuullloooooo’) and then decided to head out. I had such a headache that as much as I wanted to ride a coaster I just didn’t think it was a good idea because I’d probably have made myself sick! We decided to head out and ended up getting home at a fairly reaasonable hour.

In the end, everything worked out for the best but it was very frustrating for most of the day trying to “go with the flow” when we weren’t sure at time if we’d end up trampled or not!

Concert Photos

Britney Spears XL Center 8/9/11

Katie August 13, 2011 2 Comments

Tuesday night Britney Spears brought her Femme Fatale tour to the XL Center in Hartford, CT! It had been quite some time since I have seen her and I have to say I was a bit nervous going in to it, especially since the tickets were so expensive!

“DJ Pauly D” started the evening with a 30 minute DJ set. Everyone was standing up and screaming for him and I really had never seen such a thing with an opening act. But I am always complaining about how openers don’t get people pumped up – Pauly definitely did. It was about this time that some girls “snuck” into the seats in front of us and waved their arms in the air like they just didn’t care. Unfortunately with all the ushers on the floor, there wasn’t much that could be done about them and they managed to stay there all night snapping away with their cell phone cameras.

Next up was Nicki Minaj. I’m really not familiar with her at all – but her set was very entertaining. There was a side story going on where she was fighting her Nemesis (named, appropriately, Nemesis) and the dancing and all that for the songs would go along with the story. It kept me interested even when I had no idea what she was singing about and I really like that. Everyone else seemed to really be in to her set as well. During her last song, she and her dancers sprayed the crowd with silly string!

After Nicki’s set, a countdown appears on the screens to the side of the stage and a light up “Femme Fatale” sign was dropped. The countdown ended and it was time for the main event – Britney, bitch! While the choreography of Britney was a bit on the watered down side based to what I was used to, her group of dancers were there to help round everything out. The stage was very elaborate with several lifts and stage doors strategically placed throughout. There were multiple costume changes while we were treated to a video of a guy who was looking to capture Britney. Similar to Nicki, we had this plot line that went along with the performances.

The setlist was predominately newer material (aka the stuff I am not as familiar with), with some older singles mixed in. The show was highly entertaining, definitely kept your attention and I’d dare say worth the price of admission. Was she singing live? No. Was she dancing her ass off? Not really. But I’m pretty sure almost everyone who bought tickets knew going in to the show what they could expect from Britney and I think she met, if not exceeded expectations for many.

The only thing I thought was strange – the last song was a remixed version of Til The World Ends featuring Nicki Minaj. Why not have Nicki come out and perform instead of just having her up on the screen? We know she was there since she had just performed! That would have brought the whole show full circle.

Setlist under the cut!

American Idol Concert Photos

Siobhan Magnus at Summer Wind Windsor, CT

Katie August 11, 2011 0 Comments

Saturday night Siobhan Magnus of American Idol fame kicked off the season at Summer Winds PAC in Windsor, CT. I had never been to this venue before – it is right in the middle of a lot of corporate buildings. We tried to find a spot to stop and eat before the show but the GPS led us to a McDonalds that was non existent (perhaps in one of the buildings) and a Dunkin Donuts that was only open M-F.

The show kicked off at 7:30pm with Siobhan doing a solo set that lasted about an hour. She did 4 original songs that will be on her album coming out in the next few months – Beatrice Dreams (the first single), Hollywood Carousel, Black Doll and Escape Goat. The venue was a giant tent with lawn in the back and she told those out on the lawn to move forward, especially since the forecast was saying there would be some thunderstorms. She also sang many covers and covered many genres which shows just how versatile her voice is. She did songs from Stevie Nicks to Hanson to Oasis to Jackson 5 and more. Just before he set was to end, the rain started. She told us that she would be back singing with the Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra.

After a half an hour intermission, the rain really started to come down (and the rain was collecting on the top of the merchandise and guest services tents as well as on the tent over the stage!) and the Ultrasonic Rock Orchestra took the stage. They put on a great show and did songs from The Who, The Beatles, Queen, David Bowie, and more. They rotated who sang lead on songs and had plenty of voices to choose from in the band (I think there were something like 9 different singers throughout the night – including Siobhan!) Their set ended just after 10pm and the rain was fortunately just a slight drizzle as we walked back to the car.

I bought myself a new camera for my birthday – so my recent concerts (Jonny Lang, The Voice, and Siobhan) have all been taken with the new camera. So far I love it – and can’t wait to learn some more tricks with it to get even better photos ☺ It has a massive zoom which I used for just one photo of Siobhan – since we were 3rd row the full extended zoom wasn’t really needed for most of the show.

Setlist under the cut!

Concert Javier Colon Photos

The Voice On Tour!

Katie August 8, 2011 0 Comments

Friday night the The Voice on Tour rolled in to Connecticut, home state of the first season winner, Javier Colon. The show was at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, CT one of only a handful of performances that the Top 8 would be doing.

Doors to the theater opened at 7:30 and everyone filed in to their seats and sent text messages to the screen to get a chance to win a Sprint Tablet. Around 8pm the warmup guy from Karaoke Battle USA came out on stage. What? Yes. Bill, the warmup guy from last month when I went to see Karaoke Battle USA tape was there to warm up the crowd. For a concert?

Honestly, we could have done without this. When he went through the crowd in the beginning asking favorite moments, ok, maybe that was a bit amusing. However, what is Carson Daly doing? He could have recorded video clips to be played in between sets. Or better yet – don’t mess with the momentum of one performance to the other and just let the contestants keep the energy up! (Everyone wasn’t sure if they should sit or stay standing when he came out on stage and it just made things very awkward)

The show started with the entire Top8 performing a mashup of George Michael’s songs Freedom and Faith. The top 8 for those of you who don’t recall are made up of Nakia, Vicci Martinez, Xenia, Dia Frampton, Frenchie, Beverly McClellan, Casey Weston and of course, Javier Colon.

After the song, Bill came out and talked about Team CeeLo. Nakia did a song, then Vicci followed with 2 songs.

Bill came out and talked about team Blake. Xenia did a song, then Dia did two. (Which had most of the crowd sitting since they were not very upbeat)

Bill came out and talked about Team Christina. Then Frenchie came out and did a song and then Bev did 2 songs.

Finally, it was time for Team Adam. Bill did his reading about the team, then Casey came out and did a song and then Javier came out and did 2.

After each performance the contestants thanked everyone for voting, watching, and making the show such a success. It was nice because they were stumbling over words at times so it seemed like these things were not rehearsed and rather from the heart.

After we were introduced to the teams, it was time for the contestants to come back out and sing again. Each contestant had just 1 song this time in the order of Xenia, Casey, Frenchie, Nakia, Beverly, Vicci and Dia. Javier once again had 2 songs.

The contestants also did back up for each other at points. Beverly and Nakia dueted for Beautiful (and walked through the aisle right past me!) and Javier was on guitar. Beverly and Casey played guitar during on of Xenia’s performances. Vicci and Beverly played buckets on Casey’s Black Horse and Cherry Tree performance. Everyone came out to back up Frenchie on Like a Prayer.

After Javier’s second to last song, Bill came out and talked to Javier a bit. He told him how people from his school were there (he talked to one of the nun’s from Javier’s school before the show started) and that he wanted to hear Javier sing something from Oklahoma. Except that the nun said that he performed in Showboat! Javier corrected him and did do a bit of Old Man River. He also gave the slip of paper with the chosen finale song – Don’t Stop Believing.

The 8 then came back out and all did a rendition of Michael Jackson’s Man In The Mirror.

I have to say, I was very impressed with all of the contestants. And Vicci is SO tiny and she really puts all of her body in to every note (and maybe then some!). Xenia seemed over powered by the band at times, but really has grown so much since the beginning of the competition. They all put on a great show and it was a really fun night!

Setlist under the cut!