You've got a Cheshire Cat grin

I wish I had nothing but good things to say about the Radiohead concert last night, but in all honestly it was pretty bad. No, not Radiohead. But everything else, certainly. First of all, everyone knows I have SAD so a concert for me is like a milestone even though it is just a normal activity for anyone else. (And just FYI to the creators of the ridiculous rule about no waterbottles: some people do indeed need to keep hydrated to survive, especially those with anxiety disorders. God. They took mine away going through the security check.) It is very hard for me to be in a crowded areas, especially where you are almost cheek-to-cheek. I did feel very panicked at times but I did not have a full-blown attack. There was sweating and rapid heartbeat, but no collapsing. Though, in the washroom afterward I thought I might have an attack so I stayed in the stall until everyone was gone. I am pathetic.

Anyway, I was only able to see about four songs. For whatever reason, even though these tickets were extremely expensive and in a nice seated venue, people stood the entire time. For 23 songs, people stood. Our seats already sucked but I was hoping to make the best of it, yet everyone made that impossible. Now, if it had been standing-room only I probably would not have gone because I cannot stand for two hours straight. (And I do not think most people would pay $80 for a standing-room only venue.) I have back problems and a bad knee. Sean has back problems too, so I do not think either of us would have enjoyed that. So I could only stand so long before I had to sit down and stare at people's backs. Sean sat down for some songs too. Even when I was standing, of course, I got stuck in front of an extremely tall man and could barely see then. Sean was getting pissed off because he thought I could still make the best of it... even though I was unable to see? Hm. He offered to switch with me but being short, it would have been pretty much the same everywhere. Unfortunately, being short and being at a concert do not mix. I think even Sean would have had a hard time seeing over this asshole (who was also wearing a hat, by the way), and he would not have been able to see at all sitting down either, so I declined his offer. No sense having it ruined for both of us.

It was just ridiculous. Even during the really slow songs where it was respectful to sit down (ie. Exit Music (For a Film)), people still stood! You could see people sitting in all of the other sections during some slow songs, holding their lighters up, but not in ours. It was just my section that felt the compulsive need to stand. The section right beside us was sitting throughout most of the show, comfortable and happy. I was bored out of my mind. I mean, sure I could hear the music but that is just one of two required elements at a concert. I wanted to see them. At points I wanted to go out and sit on the steps between the seats, but I know Sean would have been mad if I left him and plus, there were a lot of people sitting there already and standing on them, even. You know, standing for the first three songs, fine. I stood for those too. Standing for the encore, okay, I stood for that too. But come on. A lot of people did get tired and sat down for some songs, but lucky for them they were tall enough to actually be able to see. I was not. Needless to say, I was pissed off and I was in a bad mood for the majority of the concert, and that could have all been prevented if people would have just sat down some of the time. Or if I had been in another section with considerate people who sat down when they saw others sitting down.

So yeah, it basically sucked. I did manage to see some of the songs, as I mentioned, and from what I did see it was great. They were back to their old selves, Thom gyrating and hovering over the mic, Johnny hunched over with his hair across his eyes. Thom's voice sounded nothing like it did at the Amsterdam show, luckily. It was smooth, clean, perfect. This was especially noticable during Nude (a song where he actually started laughing at the beginning because a girl had yelled something out like, "THOM'S FUCKING SEXY!"). One of the most impressive things was seeing Johnny play guitar with a violin bow. What. The. Fuck. That man is talent on legs, honestly. He can do everything. Everyone in the band can play multiple instruments, and it is very sad that people like Britney Spears get so much recognition for just getting up there and singing. Who cares? Tons of people can sing. Tons of people cannot play multiple instruments. Thom played piano and to everyone's surprise, drums (during Bangers 'n Mash). Aside from not being able to see most of this, I was a bit upset that they did not play many of my favourites. They played Exit Music and Street Spirit, but they did not play No Surprises, Karma Police or My Iron Lung. I really wished they had at least played No Surprises. :( One of their new songs that I really enjoyed was Open Pick. I need a clearer bootleg.

After the concert, and after some bickering about what happened inside (Sean admits I had shitty luck and that it was stupid of people to stand the entire time), we hung around downtown until 1a.m. We sat on some benches around the financial district (one of the places the terrorists planned to bomb) and talked about terrorism, Canadian government and other exciting things. We talked about the guy beside me who was obviously on speed, seizuring, bopping his head and tapping his foot throughout the entire show, even during slow songs and even when Radiohead was not even on stage in between encores. At first it was funny but then it was annoying. You could always see him out of the corner of your eye and it was distracting. He also knocked my water over with his vibrating leg. And the guy beside Sean started smoking a cigarette too, which was lovely. The smell of weed permiated throughout the venue until the show's end, and all I could think was, 'Shouldn't the live music be enough of a euphoria for you?' Obviously the venue was non-smoking, but it is now illegal to smoke in any public place in Toronto. So yeah, another piss off there. I have to smell weed 24/7 at home, thank you. I do not need to be choking on that and cigarette smoke at a non-smoking venue, you assholes.

We took the subway half way to my place where I was ready to fall asleep. We took a cab from the station the rest of the way to get there faster. The end of the night made me feel better. I was in such a bad mood but luckily the night did not end that way. We laughed and talked... talked some more. Sean left around 3:30a.m. and after talking to him on his cell for a bit on his way home, I passed out almost immediately.

( Set List - Toronto - 06.07.06 )