 New York City Trip Log Pt. 1
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Oct. 21st, 2004 @ 10:10 pm 
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Because this is a SUPER SUPER long-ass entry, I'm going to have a few cuts here. First ones for my journal!
New York City
Part 1) Leaving St. Louis & Arrival in NYC
Finally, I get around to writing up my incredibly AWESOME trip. It's all part of the legacy that is three straight weekends out of town.
29-30 September 2004
The night before was another sleepless night - I think I literally got around 45-60 minutes of sleep. Of course, this was mostly my own fault. I did have some homework (field work write-up, small paper, and math homework). Actually, the write-up's due date might have even been pushed back. A few other projects had been, so I had a lot less homework than I should have (thankfully), but ignorant me, I didn't start on the work until after midnight. I was just way too busy trying to make sure that I had everything ready for my trip (I'd already packed my bag on Tuesday night - then I just kept shoving in more crap!). And then, there was that quadruple checking of everything online. I guess I went a little insane - time flies when you're surfin' the net! So - got everything done, except the sleep thing. Because of that, I think I had a Starbucks drink to keep me from sleeping through my classes.
So - school came. I didn't need any pick-me-up, cause I kept thinking about the trip (I have no clue what we did in class - oops), but I needed the day to MOVE! During my 3 hour break, I double checked some stuff online, but then, I had to go by my apartment & triple-check everything (and pick up my bag) there. I was late getting back to class (darn), but I did get a decent (i.e. on-campus metrolink spot) parking spot, so that was okay - class dragged on, and we were even held over! ARGH!! The prof seriously wanted my head to explode! So, I power-walked to my car… and I was on E, so gas stop… and then, parking garage.
The place I parked is actually a really convenient place to park for the airport - I mean, I *HATE* paying to park, but it was cheaper than at Lambert, and their Shuttle Service rocks (car-side pick up). I was a little nervous about getting there too late (I don't fly a lot, and I always worry about the security & check-in lines), but I got there in plenty of time. I didn't realize that self-serve check-ins had taken over the airport! Big time-saver! And, the security line was quick, so I got to my gate in plenty of time. But, there was no plane. I grabbed some incredibly overpriced food… still not there. I think the plane actually ended up arriving when we were supposed to be boarding. I was a little worried, because I only had a one-hour "Oh-Crap" time bubble. I knew it was stupid to do this, but I didn't want to skip class, when I booked the ticket (Learned my lesson!). Still, we ended up getting some help from air traffic control, and we ended up less than 15 minutes late. I'd planned on sleeping on the plane… but, that didn't happen. Window seat + clear night = I have to stare out the window.
Anyway… I didn't have to pick up any baggage (just brought my backpack), so I headed STRAIGHT for the taxi stand. I was expecting something like Pittsburgh… long line of taxis, a few customers. It probably had something to do with the time I got there, but there were about 10-15 people in line, and 2 taxis. Anxious me, I than do a big no-no. Some "private taxi" guy was looking for a third person to make his trip to Manhattan worthwhile (HA!!), so I went along. I started to worry about whether I could make it to my hostel in time (the email said that check-in was only until midnight), but the driver assured me that this would be no problem, even though he was dropping the other passengers in SoHo first.
Oh, did I learn first hand what they mean by crazy taxi drivers… EGAD!!! Apparently, in NYC, if the light is red, and there isn't anyone actually in the intersection, you can go through it, as long as you honk your horn. And, going incredibly fast, when the car is about 3 inches from the next car (to the front or either side), that's just the way you're supposed to drive. Now, my mom would've been freaking out, wanting to get out, but I was more in awe of the fact that we didn't get into about 10 accidents (this was the only time on the trip that I used a taxi, though that has more to do with being cheap, than anything else). The driver claimed that he could get me all the way from SoHo to 94th in about 6 minutes and, I gotta say, he wasn't late for lack of trying. I arrived at the hostel just a few minutes after midnight, $80 (with tip & tolls) lighter in the pocketbook (kinda figured that. No more late flights for me!).
I was a little creeped out, having watched WAY too many crime shows based in NYC, being outside after midnight, but after ringing the bell, a slightly grumpy (or, just not friendly) attendant let me in, and I checked in… then, he showed me the room.
Ok… first impression…. "Is this some kind of brothel?" When the (male) attendant opened the door for me, I saw a couple topless girls run for cover. Incredibly bizarre way to begin my stay, so I was a little creeped out. So, I just changed into my sleep clothes, stuffed my whole bag into my locker, and laid down. Even though it was quite warm in the room (perhaps leading to the toplessness of the other gals), I fell asleep relatively quickly. The first stage of my trip was complete.
Day 1: New York City
Friday, 1 October 2004
When I woke up the next morning, I wasn't nearly as creeped out. One thing that had actually creeped me out the night (not as much as the topless girls) before was the sink sitting in the corner of the room. But, in the morning, I saw the genius of it all. The (tiny) sink, toilet, and shower were all separated, so that no one monopolized all the resources (pretty important for a room that held 8 ladies). And the whole… too little clothing thing wasn't too freaky the next morning... just cultural differences (its almost become cliché, but I think the girls were from France) - some people are a lot more comfortable about their bodies… and, it was an all-girl room anyway. I had just been in an easily freaked-out mood. Again, I'm blamin' the movies… and the usual fear built into Midwesterners (like me) of that scary place called NYC (which, of course, is full of hookers, hit-men, drug dealers, and other ne'er-do-wells, so any visitor is likely to get mugged or killed in).
Anyway, after I woke up, I organized all my crap. Its amazing how much CRAP (!) you can fit inside a normal backpack. The hostel has continental breakfast provided, but I was slow (they stop at 10am… yeah. VERY SLOW), so I left the hostel on an empty stomach. Rather than look across the street and realize that there was a small grocery across the street (I guess I was focused), I went straight to the subway & picked up a metrocard (some guy was moving to San Fran., and he was selling his for actually more than the 7-day card I was getting. I think there was some "creep me out" conspiracy going on.).
First stop? Before the trip, I'd read an interview with John Flansburgh (this was a TMBG trip, after all), and he'd mentioned a couple of really good places to get hot chocolate, the first being "City Bakery." This was also highly rated by several other places (even my guidebook), and it was kind of near Union Square, so I decided to stop by there.
I called my mom while I was walking around (a mother, a youngest child, and NYC aren't always a good mix), and gave her a happy (non-creeped out) version of my trip to that point. After a few blocks, I found City Bakery, and hung up with my mom. I looked around the place, but I decided to wait until later for the hot chocolate. When I headed back to the Union Sq/14th St subway stop, I wasn't exactly sure which corner was the most direct way to get back to Union Sq. (I'd turned right, and then had had to double back, when I was looking for City Bakery), so I ended up stumbling on "Irving Pl." Ooh, I thought… this would be a great time to look for the venue! But, I didn't actually have the address written down, and I figured that I would end up going the wrong way, etc., or that the place wouldn't actually be on that street, so I decided to look for one of the cyber cafes (yes, I looked this up, before I left, and actually wrote THOSE addresses down!) in Times Square.
On my way to the subway, I stopped at the Farmer's Market at Union Square, and was thoroughly impressed. I bought some apple cider and actual gingerbread! Mmm… quite tasty. So, stomach satisfied, I eventually made my way to the trains, and I decided to stop at Grand Central Stn. (I'd been worried about the whole "carrying around my backpack all day" thing on Monday, and I was trying to see if there was any place at ALL there that I could check a bag (I later read that there are no public lockers in any of the 5 boroughs)). I didn't find what I was looking for, and eventually, I decided to head to the net place (I'd actually originally intended also to check out some info on the shuttle to Newark, but I had forgotten to even write down its name, so I went away utterly defeated).
The walk to Times Sq. was an interesting one. I found the cyber café (easyEverything) pretty easily, and afterwards, I started walking around, and found a "Hello Kitty" store! That place would have been awesome… when I was 10. Nearby, I found the same souvenir shop that we'd stopped at when with the Chatham hockey team (previously, my only NYC experience… that, and a bus tour). It was overpriced (though quality), and I needed to buy some postcards, so I walked around to look for a place with SUPER cheap crap. I found a couple stores with 10 cent postcards that didn't totally suck, and along the way, I discovered where the peep shows had moved. No point to that… just amusing.
At this point, I decided to stop by the Museum of TV and Radio. That place is cool. Of course, in all my fuss, I'd forgotten to actually, I don't know… look up some shows that I might like to watch. But, I did some random searches when I got there (it's a cool place, with probably too many, though helpful, workers), and I picked: an ep of the Jon Stewart Show (way back - 95, with guest Jeff Fahey), a Days ep (Calliope & Eugene's wedding), a Joe Franklin documentary (with an appearance by TMBG), and some old movie with Bill Pullman & Neil Patrick Harris (which I then realized I'd actually seen, already). Since I only had 2 hours, I ended up Ffwding through a lot of the videos, but they were pretty interesting. Then, it was off to checking out if I could find the concert venue (I've had some serious problems getting to venues in unfamiliar places before, so I'm a little anal now… no more 3 hour tours of the 'burbs of Chi-town, thank you very much!). I found it quite easily (with the address… though, if I'd looked, I probably would've found it earlier), after first getting that hot chocolate from City Bakery (which was good, but I don't know if it was $5 good) and I checked for the quickest way to the subway from the venue (again… worried about riding the subway late at night in NYC), as I headed back to the hostel, where I was going to meet Kara a little later.
I can't recall her LJ name, but she emailed me through here, because she was similarly trepidacious about the whole heading to a concert in NYC alone, so we decided to meet up. Ideally, we would've been in the same hostel, but apparently, mine was a popular destination, so we met up, instead (I'd picked it, because I didn't have to change subway lines for the concert… and I was told it was in a good neighborhood). So, I got ready for the concert, filled out & mailed the postcards, and Kara arrived, and we headed off.
Apparently, I have no mute button with fellow TMBG fans, so Kara probably got far more than she bargained for by meeting up with me. We stopped by a food shop, and then we sat in line for awhile. Even though we got there a good 90 minutes before doors, we were probably behind 30+ people. I wasn't surprised, because when I'd walked by before 5pm, several people were already in line (doors at 8pm). So, we chatted a bit, and, at least for me, the time went by relatively quickly. Then, finally, the doors opened, and it was time for the concert.
Day 1 Part 2:
The Concert
We had to wait a full hour before the opening act, a comic came on. The usual pre-show tape was playing, so that was good, but otherwise… time could not move fast enough. By virtue of our spot in line, and not RUNNING for the stage, we ended up about 5-6 rows back (small stage). It wasn't really too bad of a spot - a tall guy (who I named Chewbacca) was near the front, and I was worried about getting a really bad vantage (both nights I lucked out, and Chewie ended up getting a much less obtrusive spot for the second night… I saw him in line on Saturday, and he actually seemed like a nice guy, despite whatever thoughts I had about him on Friday), but I was okay.
Eventually, the opener came out - he was some random comic, who was a little funny, but not hilarious. The guy started up, and then brought out a guitar and harmonica. It was a decent set, but I mostly remember the set for giving an annoying drunk guy (named Frank) an ego boost. This got a little annoying later. Anyway, on to the concert:
TMBG
NYC / T-Bird / Memo / Older / Damn Good Times / Particle Mo / Drink! / Alphabet of Nations / Museum of Idiots (!!!!!!!!!!!!) / Dr. Worm / Famous Polka / Stalk of Wheat / 30 sec Boss of Me / Twistin' / Bastard / JLS / Experimental Film / No One Knows My Plan (!!!!!) / Birdhouse / Fingertips / Violin / Polk / She's An Angel / Istanbul
Ok, the setlist was AWESOME, as you can tell. Mark Pender & Dan Levine provided the horns, and they RULED the stage. Seeing Museum and NOKMP with horns was worth the trip!! But, first, I must comment on the more annoying part of the concert.
Early on - sometime around Particle Mo, Frank pushed his way up to the front area (he ended up behind me, and I kept backing up, until he moved a few people down.). He yelled a few things, but he was most annoying during Corn Mo's bit, because he kept yelling "Corn Mo!" at inopportune times, and then he yelled "We Are the Champions!" (After which he told the gal he was next to, "He'll play it, too!" This was annoying because 1) It was stupid and 2) It showed he was actually a fan.). Normally, he would be "the annoying guy at the concert," but because of some other guy, he wasn't really all that bad. He went away from me sometime after the end of Particle Man (probably went for another beer), and I didn't see him pull anything else, after that.
It was probably around Stalk of Wheat that this annoying guy with an (bad) afro came up to the front area. He wasn't a TMBG fan, but he came for the moshing (he actually said this). When TMBG started playing "Boss of Me" (and the crowd was jamming), he yelled, "What the F@#% is that music?!" I had to think… come on guy… that's fairly mainstream. Since no one would mosh with him, the guy started flipping off/yelling at fans and the band. Actually, it kind of freaked me out, for a bit, because during Twistin', the guy moved to the second row (couldn't get past the true die-hards of the first), and looked to be planning to jump the stage (this freaked me out, because that's the song the Nashville guy jumped the stage during). Then, he moved back, and found the person who I dubbed his soulmate (who I originally thought was a gal, because it looked like they kissed, but I think its just cause soulmate dude was either REALLY high or drunk), and they tried to start a two-person mosh pit. This went on for a bit, and they thoroughly (particularly bad-afro-dude) p-ssed off many of those around them (they moved back - it wasn't worth it). This was during BWTHM that the stuff was (appropriately) getting worse. Afro-head p-ssed off a blond girl, she started yelling at him (he remained a jack-ass), and the area around this incident (again, less than 5 feet from me)… the people gave them room, particularly when blond girl's friend kicked afro-dude and it looked like a rumble was going to break out. I was a little worried.
Then, a few seconds later, a security guy (big black guy - much better presence than the scrawny guys at Nashville) came through the crowd and took away the menace (some of the refugees of the front row had sent for him), and the front few rows cheered. This all happened during JLS (which I didn't really mind ignoring), but it seemed MUCH longer (it was hard to focus on the show at that point). Before the next show, I heard some of the die-hards mention talking to Marty and Danny, who said that they were going to stop the show, and "The Enforcer" would've taken the guy out, if security hadn't come over.
A more entertaining random person at the show was a guy who was high-fiving everyone (he was having a contest, trying to see who would get more high-fives. Actually, he ended up high-fiving some girl with a thing about touching other people, but she didn't totally freak-out.
Other thoughts:
New York City: This was just awesome to hear when I was *in* NYC!! Woo-hoo! After the song, J & J revealed their secret identity: They are really Slipknot
Thunderbird - I apparently just had to follow the band around to hear this live. And at the beginning of the show! Oh, and for those who DLed the show, I'm fairly sure its Frank yelling number three (yes, I cheated - its been weeks!).
Damn Good Times: I still love this song (even if this recording wasn't the best) - they better keep this in their arsenal for the next few tours! The more I hear it, the more I think it could be about a DDR freak.
Particle Mo: I'd grown rather tired of Particle Man, before they added Corn Mo. I gotta say that half the fun is just seeing how excited Corn Mo looks to be playing on this song. The other half is the simple joy of seeing an accordion duet. Really, they could just keep going - it's much fun. On this night (this is incredibly hard to explain) - as JL was singing his "Tri-ee-aye-ee-aye-ee…" part (drawn out triangle), JF walked past the mic for a… sound like "ahhh." It's hard to explain - you had to be there.
Drink! - Another edition of audience participation, the "Drink! Drink!" part didn't come out great (too bad, its sounds AWESOME live), but you can hear it better than
Alphabet: Usual intro for this song, but this time, JL's keyboard didn't like Dan Miller, so it decided to switch settings on him. So, after a bit of confusion, they had to start the song over. I still don't understand why Dan plays keyboards, and Linnell has on the accordion for this one… I don't think he plays a single note.
Museum of Idiots: To my knowledge, this is the only tour stop to get this song. Pender & Levine were awesome, and I loved the song. Beautiful, just beautiful. It was educational, too… I realized that I'd been messing up the lyrics.
Dr. Worm - more horns! And, damn, those are some high notes! Listening to the song again reminds me just how awesome the horns were live. Oh, and the confetti went off here - it was silver and shiny and cool.
Polka: The whole front got to play Flansy's guitar. Sigh. Oh, and brass duo played on the song, too. More great fun!
Stalk: More Horns! Great addition! Too bad I was a little distracted right here. GRRR… Afro = bad.
Bastard: There's some crazy bastard that I want to hit…
JLS: Actually, I did start to groove to this song a bit, 'cause afro-head was gone. And, I got closer, because he freaked the people out.
No One Knows: I've been waiting to hear this again for SIX YEARS!! And was still great! I didn't see a conga line, though. This was doubly good, because there were no more psychos making crazy. I'm so glad this is preserved on…um, mp3.
Birdhouse: More Horns! I've got to see the next "Other Thing" show.
The Wave: Seeing Jamie Kitman do the wave (a little half-assed) was a little funny… otherwise, same ol', same ol'.
Istanbul: Oh my god. That intro was tremendous. Mark Pender is a trumpet god! And Dan Levine is a pretty fair musician, himself. It was also great watching the band watch them - I think they were enjoying it as much as (or more than) the crowd. I wasn't ready for the concert to end.
But it did. Its probably no surprise to ANYONE who has gone somewhere with me, but afterwards, I ended up ditching Kara (and the group of cool people we met - they helped save my spot during a break, and they kept finding me holes to get closer). Actually, it wasn't something I had much control in - I was trying to fight the crowd, so I could get to the inconveniently located T-shirt stand. I had to replace my Vote John & John T-shirt! So, I fought another crowd to get my shirt, and I headed downstairs and out.
Remember, this was still my first full day in NYC, so I still had a bit of the "scary town" thing going on, so I walked VERY quickly to the subway. I felt pretty good, in that, despite the hour (about midnight), there were many people there (I forgot about it being Friday night), so I waited around (I lucked out and got a seat on a bench, next to a TMBG fan) feeling fairly safe. The uptown #6 arrived, and I happily got on, ready for the many stops to 96th…. And then, there was an announcement, that the train was turning express, so I would have to get off at the 82nd street stop (or bypass my stop & double back). Now, walking the 12 blocks, I didn't really mind. It was the whole walking alone on NYC streets after midnight.
Being on the Upper East Side, I suppose I was actually fairly safe, but I pretty much power-walked my way to the hostel. I probably should have figured out I was okay, though, when I started seeing people out to walk their dogs. But, the important thing was to get back. I was planning to write up the show review that night (online), but the common room actually closed at midnight, so I had to wait (as you can tell). So, I concluded the night by writing up the review in my paper journal, before it was time for bed… a different one (though with access to a window - no more suffocation!), because people can't understand the whole assigned bed thing. Oh well.
I have no idea when the next segment of my tales will come, but I think I've written enough for the night!
Go Cards!Current Mood:  accomplished |
I thought he got kicked out during Experimental Film.
Yeah - I couldn't remember exactly - so, I was going entirely on what someone else said. Heck, I couldn't remember the song that the crazy dude jumped up on stage during the Nashville concert, and he fell 5 feet behind me. My memory is really worth crap - that makes sense, with JF making a comment after Film on the recording.
Or maybe, I just forget the songs, because I'm worried about getting crushed/too close to a brawl.
| From: | (Anonymous) |
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October 30th, 2004 05:19 pm (UTC) |
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NYC show!
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Hey, it's Kara...been checking back to read your review, as I've survived many weeks of law school by thinking back to those two great nights in NYC (and now in anticipation of seeing People Are Wrong! in a couple weeks!).
I'm pretty sure it's Frank yelling "Number Three!" for the third song and "Ana Ng!" the rest of the night. Listening to the concert mp3s really reminded me of my experience with Frank- at first I was just really annoyed, but then after realizing what a huge fan he is and what a great time he was having, I was much more forgiving (like at the end, after "She's an Angel," when you can hear him just gushing, "Thank you for that song," you can hardly hate him). Also, when Flansy talks about high-fiving, that was Frank & Michael (the kid from Long Island at his first TMBG show). Whatever else you can say about the guy, his heart was in it.
I know it's probably just because I was there, but I kinda wish you could hear the audience a little more in some of the mp3s. Not only does "Drink!" sound weak, but you really can't hear anything on "Stalk of Wheat," when I thought the (unsolicited) audience participation really added as well.
"No One Knows My Plan" was just awesome. Just absolutely excellent. And then right into "Birdhouse." Both reminded me of why the New Haven show didn't leave me with the high I expected- hardly any dancing, and certainly no mass pogoing. Irving Plaza gave me what I expected from a TMBG show.
I really thought this was the better show (the sheer power of the horns), but I'm still looking forward to getting the second show- if memory serves, the stage banter was great. Linnell really seems to enjoy himself when he knows he doesn't have to do any more concerts for a while.
![[User Picture Icon]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/28255702/4230856) |
| From: | ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) k1cup |
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November 10th, 2004 01:54 am (UTC) |
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Hi. I was checking out your journal because I knew you had gone to the IP shows. We met at the second show when we were all standing in front of IP during the rain.
It's fun to read other people's accounts because it helps me to relive those fun-filled evenings.
Anyways, I too have downloaded the shows. The horns rocked the Friday show, but I still think the Saturday show had more enthusiasm from the band. Besides, I don't think They intended for "No One Knows My Plan" to get undermined by Linnell's forgetting the words.
![[User Picture Icon]](http://l-userpic.livejournal.com/81987430/1860770) |
| From: | woodsie22 |
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November 10th, 2004 11:35 pm (UTC) |
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Howdy!
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Yup! I remember you! And, I LOVE reading other people's accounts of shows, too! Its always funny to see how much difference 10 feet can make in one person's perception of the show.
To the shows... for me - I've only heard NOKMP live once, and I love horns, so I just had to prefer that one. Heck, Linnell could have hummed the whole song, and I would've been excited!! But yeah, it was obvious that the guys were much more "up" for the second one.
Oh, and I didn't realize that the second show was finally up! Woo-hoo! Thanks for the heads up! Time to DL!
| From: | (Anonymous) |
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November 21st, 2004 09:16 pm (UTC) |
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I was just listening to this show again, and I have a theory on why Linnell doesn't play the keyboards on Alphabet. Do you guys think he could play and remember all the words at the same time? I mean, he kinda has trouble with the whole lyric thing as it is, and this one might require more concentration than usual.
This is not to say that he's incapable of doing both at the same time, but that given his tendencies to kinda space out while playing and get distracted by stuff going on at concerts, it may just have been better to let Mr. Miller take over.
That is a really good theory - I think you might be on to something.
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