Karl's Corner - 12/03/2001

...today's venue, the Redbird Arena, apparently takes no chances with crowd injuries, and employed the "T" type barricade which splits the crowd into left and right sides. I detected a definate lessening of the crazy side to side shoving thats been going on of late. Anyway, the crowd looked like they were having fun, so perhaps the Arena chose well in this case...?
Jimmy Eat World returned to the tour today after their Florida side trip and got right in the groove again. Rachel had to stay behind while they were gone, so she was happy to be getting back on stage with them again. Meanwhile, the 'D' is really on a roll now! They are getting funnier, and rocking harder than previously known possible. Weezer continues to tweak the new songs as well as the old ones, with the varying solos, and a key change for 'Dont Let Go'. See the Audio Video section for some recent examples...
...mucho props must be given to the VERY weez-freindly local radio station, 107.1 WPGU The Planet . From the fan reports I get, they always play weezer when requested, and listeners report hearing any number of different weezer tracks almost hourly. Now thats what i call music.
...some fans' "p.o.v.'s"...
:::"Waiting for this concert for a month sure was hard. But they made it completely worth while. Jimmy Eat World started off with a kickass set of songs.. The crowd was really digging Sweetness. The D rocked the house for about a hour set. It was unbelievable of how big of a response they got. The D even commented on how they were amazed. Then Weezer Rocked the f'n house! I about pissed my pants they were so damn good. The fog during only in dreams made it perfect. The crowd really got into Undone and my name is Jonas. Only a few people left after their 1st finish. After 10 minutes of none stop clapping screaming and a Weezer chant at the end, Weezer walked back on. They broke out a kickass rendition of Buddy Holly and Surf Wax.... In the end everyone walked off the stage except Rivers of course with a little help on the drums. Rivers played a single guitar riff for about 2 minutes. The crowd was about to flip. Then Rivers played alone on the stage continueing the riff. Finally he set it down and the riff ecoed out as he walked off the stage as if nothing happened. It almost brought tears to my eyes. Rock on Weezer! IL Loves You!!!" --Rich
:::"I was a "rock concert virgin" before this evening, and I can't think of a way I would rather have been deflowered than by tonight's show. Although listening to Tenacious D. is a bit like being mauled by a bear, I must confess that I did chuckle a few times. J.E.W., meanwhile, complemented weezer nicely with their slightly edgy, boy-next-door sound. By the time the weez took the stage, I had recovered from Tenacious D.'s assault, and I soon found myself singing "Say It Ain't So" and "Hash Pipe" along with all the tone-deaf fans behind me. When I wasn't singing off-key, I was borrowing my friend telescope thingy to get a better gander at Rivers. After the show, my friend Marie, a fellow grad student, said, "You know, when Rivers plays, it's like he's saying, 'I don't need stage moves because my guitar does it for me.'" "Rivers does it for me," I answered." --Sarah
::: ""My sisters (nikki and corinne), my boyfriend Greg and
::: I went to the Normal concert at the Redbird arena and
::: Had a blast!! Weezer started with "the Dawn" and
::: played a concert full of many new songs and a perfect
::: balance of the Green and Blue. (sadly only one
::: Pinkerton- Tired Of Sex- the ONLY one they ever play)
::: I absolutely adored Only In Dreams! Not only was there
::: fake clouds but they dropped tons of silver confetti!
::: Rivers also played the song much longer than usual.
::: Scott seems to be a great addition. From the way he
::: plays, it's easy to tell that he loves being part of
::: weezer and is really enjoying himself on stage. I was
::: expecting only one lit =W= sign but to my suprise saw
::: two- one hanging green one and one silver one in front
::: of Pat's drums. Rivers didn't say much but did show
::: us how a rock star is really supposed to perform. He
::: was better than I had ever expected! Brian spent some
::: time during JEW in the sound station in the middle of
::: the floor. He was immediately recognized and ran out!
::: During Weezer's set Brian did an amazing job with his
::: harmonization! (oh yeah- happy 33rd b-day!) Karl could
::: be seen taping the show throughout. Hopefully we'll
::: see that in the Audio/Vid. I actually got to talk to
::: him! He told me he like my shirt- which is actually
::: quite a compliment considering the work it took to
::: make. I got Scott's pick and he gave me the Rock and
::: Roll hand sign. It couldn't have been a better night!"
::: --Molly Maloof, Peoria, IL. "
::: "Jimmy Eat World opened, and was fantastic. The crowd showed little support for J.E.W, but J.E.W was fairly spectacular; they had an incredible stage presence. Jimmy was jumping around, head banging, jamming solos... Next came the D, demon posters and all. Tenacious D was great! I loved their Saxophone bit. Following the D performance came Weezer. Weezer was (and is) good. Very good. Also, very loud. But loud music is good. Therefore, Weezer is good. Weezer rocked. Although I wasn't all too pleased with The Green Album's slower songs, I enjoyed Weezer's newer/metal material.
::: *Gasp* I even picked up a guitar solo. Multiple guitar solos. I haven't heard a solo since... Pinkerton? The new rendition of Don't Let It Go was great, strangely melodic. Eventually, Rivers and Company cranked out "My Name is Jonas." I rocked out, and played some mean air guitar. I was jumping up and down, air drums, air guitar, singing, enjoying myself, when this kid grabbed me and rudely said, "woah woah woah, settle down." As a fan can imagine, I was insulted. I was watching Weezer, a rock band. I most certainly wasn't watching a symphony. I'm entitled to rock out. You sir, are a moron. I hope you read this, idiot. I didn't wait years for a jerk to yell at me for rocking out to my favorite band. Overall, the general admission audience was pretty lousy. I expect running around, rocking out, body surfing, mosh pitting, and Weezer fan goodness. Heck, most in attendance didn't even know the lyrics. I guess they "settled down." Ugh!
::: Weezer encored with Buddy Holly and did an awesome job with Surf Wax America. By the time Weezer encored... I didn't want to go home, just like they sang. I can't wait till next tour!" --Casey
::: "tell the guys they have outdone themselves for this tour. there was so much
::: rockin' all night long. here are the top 10 reasons this was the...
::: BEST ROCK SHOW EVER
::: 10. saxamabone. (sp?) the newest tool in the D rock arsenal.
::: 9. girl in front of me vomited on floor instead of leaving, said she didn't
::: want to miss any of the rock.
::: 8. Only in dreams... you guys nailed it. always a hit with the ladies,
::: always good live.
::: 7. a security guard tries to break up a fight in the crowd and the kid hits
::: him in the face. not cool to try an take out a 300lb security guard, but
::: that's another entertaining moment; watching the kid get dragged out to his
::: certain death.
::: 6. Cold wasn't there.
::: 5. New weezer songs are in full rock mode, and played with style. we are
::: ready for the 4th album.
::: 4. Jack telling me to quit my day job. that's the true rock message. i am
::: putting this list in my letter of resignation today.
::: 3. can Pat get any cooler?
::: 2. Rivers' new guitars.... wowsers, they go along with the new sounds of
::: the new songs.
::: 1. Obviously, without a doubt, Rachel Hayden was the cherry on top of this
::: rock n' roll sundae. cool surprise. instead of liking JEW alot, now i have
::: to love them. we've missed her.
::: now that we have been spoiled by this rock juggernaut, which is the extended
::: miget tour, we expect this same kind of line-up every tour. so go sign some
::: contracts and make sure JEW, D, and the WEEZ, never split up." --kris
::: "Me and seven of my friends trekked all the way from East-Central Indiana to
::: see the Weez. I gotta say... the concert was great. Jimmy Eat World was
::: awesome! I love their newest cd, but they are really so much better live
::: (just like Weezer). Tenacious D was probably one of the funniest things I
::: have ever seen in my life. J.B. and K.G. are rock and roll gods! I loved
::: when Jack talked about the "Ginger" or the "It" or whatever you wanna call
::: it. Some of my friends tried to sneak down onto the floor after the D's
::: set, but they got shot down. It's too bad we had seats, 'cause the floor
::: looked like it was happening, well, in a safe way of course.
::: Weezer's set blew me away... again. I saw them in September in Chicago, and
::: they were great there, but I liked the all of the new songs they played
::: here. I only wish I could have heard "So Low" again! Only In Dreams was
::: really great, the smoke and the glitter were totally awesome. It rocked my
::: socks off.
::: On the way home on I-74 east, at about 3:00, we saw two tour buses (one with
::: a black top and the other, maroon i think) after Champaigne Illinois. I
::: would like to think that it was either Weezer or the D or J.E.W., but I
::: don't think we'll ever find out for sure, so I'll just tell all my friends
::: it was." --chad
::: "I had to e-mail you this because I can say
::: without a doubt that I had the best time out of anyone
::: at the concert in Normal. Here's why. Our seats were
::: up in the upper bowl at the back of the arena, but 5
::: minutes into tenacious D's set, my sister and I were
::: on the floor and moving our way up. We were on a
::: mission to get Rivers a copy of my band's demo CD. We
::: got to the front right about when 'Undone' was being
::: played. We threw the CD up there and Rivers looked at
::: me, smiled, and mouthed"thanks" to me! It was so
::: awesome!!!! Weezer is my favorite band ever, and the
::: thought of them hearing my band's music made last
::: night that much better. Afterwards I got to meet Scott
::: and Brian and they both signed my shirt. I also got to
::: talk with Rachel Haden, and she is incredibly nice,
::: too. All in all, great show!!!!! I can't wait to see
::: the weez when they come around again!!!!" --Eric
:::"I'd like to say I've just got back from weezer in Bloomington/Normal, but that was 16 hours ago, and I'm still absorbing in the "rawk". Jimmy Eat World, was absolutely fantastic, and I'm really glad they are on the tour with weezer! They completely rocked, but not a lot of people knew who they were, or really got into it. After jew, "the D" came on. They were really great. But the people I came to see, really made my night. My friends and I were jammin' in the seats to every weezer song. Massive sing-alongs along with tons of crowd surfers were occuring too. I sang to every song, and I lost my voice for a bit today at school, but it was definately worth the 6 hours of sleep and the sore throat. I couldn't be more pleased, it was definately a night to remember. And one more thing... Who picks the music to play in between the sets? Jay-Z was blaring, and then it went to 40's and 50's swing, and then back to full blown 80's. Crazyness, pure crazyness..." --Bridget R.
(...as always, these and many many more fan's stories will be up in the "weezer fans" section, as soon as i dig out from the months-old backlog of great stories and get them all posted!)
Category:Karl's Corner - December 2001