first, I have to thank these people:
-Renee, because she is awesome and got me on the guestlist to Seattle. Renee runs What's the Word, the best fansite ever. Even better than ff[dot]org. and if you don't know what ff[dot]org is...why are you my friend?
-Dolores! because I wouldn't be on the guestlist without her, either. and remember that one time she called me and let me talk to Keith and Chris? That was awesome.
-Chris, because he put me on the guestlist and kicks butt, hardcore to the maxin' ya visa.
-Keith, for arguing with me about Arctic Monkeys and Colin Meloy, and for the hugggz!!!
-Kelli and Erin, for giving me a ride and a train ticket and a bed and food.
by the end of these amazing two days, my WAS hug-count is this:
Adam - 0 (I don't think I hugged him at all...)
Max – 2
Chris – 3
Keith – 5
This blog is really, really long because I AM A FANGIRL.
Seattle
So, even though we didn't have tickets to the Seattle show, my friend Kelli (she's a Seattleite!) and I decided we were going to go and pester WAS at the venue, and bring them presents and stuff. The show was on Monday, but I took the train up on Saturday and spent the weekend with Kelli at her and Erin's (her sister!) apartment. On Monday, Kelli and I took the bus down to the Paramount Theatre (where they were playing), with a box of muffins. I baked them chocolate cupcakes, and she baked them vegan pumpkin muffins. They were delicious. I also brought them a copy of a coloring book I made.
yeah, I know. you're jealous of my mad skilz.
I printed out a copy for them and wrote notes around the edges of the pages (but that was a bad idea, because then I couldn't connect it without poking a hole through a word and making it unreadable. I ended up making a small cardboard sleeve for it.). It's based on this video:
Anyhoo. Renee and Dolores, because they are super awesome, got Chris to put me on the guestlist (plus one for Kelli!), and Renee texted me while we were waiting for any Scientist to come out to tell me so. A few minutes after she did, we saw Chris running down the street in our direction. I stopped him and he recognized me, cuz we're BFF. :) I handed him the box of cupcakes and muffins, and he thanked us and asked if Renee had told me I was on the guestlist. I told him she'd just texted me and hugged him and thanked him, and he said he was glad they could find a spot for me. :) I love Chris Cain, I want to marry him. Then my initials would be A.B.C., wouldn't that be awesome? Don't you guys think that's a sign? Of course you do. Of course. But, Chris had to go. He had been running to his friend, who was waiting for him at the corner. They were going to go drinkin'! yay! I gave him the coloring book before he ran off.
Kelli and I went to the coffee shop across the street, and sat with our beverages, saying in turn how much we love Chris Cain. cuz we do. We went for a walk after, and checked out the tour bus-area. Then talked about Chris Cain, and how awesome he is. Once we got back to the venue, I pestered the lady at the will call section of the box office every ten minutes till 6:20, when they finally got the guestlist. I got our tickets, and we went in and found our seats. We had such good seats! I was so surprised, I thought we'd have incredibly shitty seats, but they were awesome. We were seven rows away, and on Keith's side. :) I love Keith's side. :) We sat for a while, being excited. Then I look to my left and saw Shannon, who I had met at the Neumo's show. She was guestlisted too, because she's on their street team! I didn't know there was a WAS street team, or I would've joined! She gave me the website address for it, I am definitely signing up. I talked to her till The Stills came on. They were all right. I don't think the venue was even 1/8 full when they came on, and I don't remember anyone standing up for them. But everyone clapped and cheered at the end of each song! They didn't play the only song I know of theirs, I think it's called "The Still In Love Song", but I could be wrong...
After they were over, I was so freaking excited. I thought I might hurl. I probably should've eaten more that day than a mushed chocolate cupcake and a strawberry italian soda. I kept poking Kelli and saying random and annoying things to her. But I was really friggin' excited! When they brought out the guitars, I told her I wanted to fornicate with Chris's Thunderbird...and that she didn't need to mention that to Chris, which I'm sure you don't either. Adam came out to set up the drums, and Keith came out a minute before they went on to tell a roadie something, but I thought he was Max! cuz I rock.
When they came on, I stood up, of course. :) Two other girls on Chris's side stood up as well, but only one of them stayed standing the entire time. But the crowd was pretty good to them, a lot more people had filed in so the audience was a decent size. People clapped and cheered pretty loudly for each song. I hate really fancy lights, but they made huge shadows of Keith while he ran around the stage against the walls, and it looked really cool. :) I think it was one of the last few songs when Keith got on his knees right in front of a bright green light, and it made a really weird light/shape thing on the backdrop.
I still have the setlist written on my arm. :)
Impatience/Let's See It
This Scene is Dead/Inaction
Chick Lit (written as "c'lit" on my arm, of course)
Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt
After Hours
That's What Counts
It's A Hit
Lethal Enforcer (AKA "Hot Dog Break")
The Great Escape
When they introduced That's What Counts, they asked if anyone was on a really hot date, and said if they were they would get lucky. That was the song that a group of drunken girls near the front decided to stand up and dance, and they stood standing for the rest of the set. Keith kept laughing at them, it was adorable. :) I think it was during Lethal Enforcer when a couple in the second row decided to stand up so everyone could see them make-out. Keith was looking at them as if they had either defiled his beautiful song or he was watching for tips...or maybe I just see things. After that song, they said if you didn't get lucky during that song you were pretty much screwed. Dang.
The set was incredible, and I wasn't at all sad during The Great Escape because I knew I'd see them again tomorrow. Kelli and Shannon and I left and hung out in the lobby till Kings of Leon started. Shannon went back to her seat to watch, but Kelli and I waited too long and by the time we decided to go watch KoL the aisle was so full of people we couldn't get back to our spot. So, we hung out in the lobby some more... Apparently Eddie Vedder came on stage at some point? I think that was after we'd already left, but I don't mind because I don't remember who that is...
We left a little before they did their encore, and went outside and hng around near the tour bus area. We hung out and were cold for a while. And then were cold some more. And then I saw Keith coming down the street! I yelled at him, and he recognized me and ran up and gave me a hug, then hugged Kelli. :) HUGGGZ! He said he had to show the two people he was walking with into the venue so they could watch KoL, but then he'd come right back out to us. :D He left, and we fangirled because Keith touched us. XD The show ended soon after he left, and we saw people start to pile out. We saw Keith trying to make his way back to us, but being stopped by someone every few feet. Then Shannon found us, and told us she had just talked to Keith, then Keith came back to us! He said right as they had got inside the show ended. We talked to him forever, it was great. I barely remember what we said, but that's okay because he's Keith Murray.
I told him they should play Altered Beast in Portland, but he thought that was a silly idea. I told him I was glad they played That's What Counts, cuz that song's totally awesome and under-appreciated because it's so weird and unlike WAS's other stuff. He agreed (I'm sure I'm the first one to ever tell him that, yup) and said that's why he felt fine playing it in front of a crowd that wasn't there for them. And he told us that it was because of Max that it stayed on the setlist! They were going to play Dinosaurs instead, but Max thought they should keep That's What Counts on. When he said they were going to replace That's What Counts with Dinosaurs, I made some noise like "tcch" and made a face, because That's What Counts should totally be picked over Dinosaurs, but Keith said "it's not
that bad!" I hope he doesn't think I hate Dinosaurs, cuz that song is awesome.
He must've said something about the muffins, because I told him that I was going to make him some vegan cookies and before I could tell him why I didn't, he asked if I was a vegan. I'm a vegetarian, and so is Kelli, and he told us we should hate vegans! Because we are the elitists! And then he dissed on vegans some more, and I told him I didn't make him the cookies because he had threatened to punch Keithdoll in the face in San Francisco. He totally denied it. I pulled out Keithdoll, and he cradled him like a baby and it was ADORABLE. I wish I had gotten a photo! I told him Dolores had told me he said it, and he said she obviously wasn't my friend. pssh, how dare he. I asked if he had seen the Nickdoll I made for her, but he thought I meant Nick Lachey and didn't know what I was talking about. I told him it was Arctic Monkeys' Nick, and told him that I hate Arctic Monkeys. Then we argued about Arctic Monkeys, and he went on and on about how much he loooooves them, and said they were his favorite band.
me: "I read you say in an interview that they're your favorite band."
Keith: "I just told you that! You mean in this interview?"
snaps.
I asked him if they really were his favorite band. He said they're the only band that he gets excited for new stuff, but not his favorite band of all time. I asked what his favorite band of all time was, and he said Fleetwood Mac, but then changed it to Hall & Oates. I told him I'd never heard Hall & Oates, and I think he was embarrassed for me. He told us That's What Counts was a total Hall & Oates rip-off, and that there were even specific things from Hall & Oates songs they had ripped off. I asked which ones, and he didn't want to tell me because once I heard them I would know exactly what it was...but he told us "I Can't Go for That", then sang part of it for us. :)
me: "You know who my favorite band of all time is?"
Keith: "Huey Lewis and the News?"
me: "Of course. How'd you guess?"
Then I told him it was WAS. :) Then he said something like I have no music taste and of course I hate Arctic Monkeys.
I think when he was dissing on vegans, he told us about some cookie shop he had passed called something like "Cow Chips". He said something about how he really wanted a cookie but couldn't have one? I don't remember. Then he said something about how "we" (as in Seattle) had a cookie store...
me: "It's not
mine, I don't even live here!"
Keith: "Oh, right. Where do you live again?"
me: "Vancouver. Not the Canadian one, the Washington one. It's like, in Portland almost."
Keith: "So, are you gonna be at the Vancouver show?"
me: "I'm going to be at the
Portland show, yes."
Keith: "Right, yeah. You messed me up!"
I think I told him about how it reeked of pot when KoL came on-stage. Then I told him the same thing happened when I saw Kaiser Chiefs, and said they should tour HERE with Kaiser Chiefs. He was horrified and offended that I would even suggest such a thing, but wouldn't give me a reason why they shouldn't. I told him Kaiser Chiefs played really awesome venues, like the Crystal Ballroom, then told him about the Crystal (cuz he's never been there and it's awesome). I mentioned that The Decemberists always play there, and that whenever they do they always work some Fleetwood Mac into a song. Then he started dissing The Decemberists! He said he hates Colin Meloy because he's so pretentious! And a bunch of other stuff that I can't remember! jeez, Keith wishes he were as cool as Colin Meloy. I told him that I'm seeing them in November, and he told me that I shouldn't applaud, I should just stand there with my arms crossed, and at the end of each song I should hiss.
I bought this tape player a few weeks ago at Value Village, and it's pretty awesome. It's a Talkboy, and apparently it was in one of the Home Alone movies. I brought it to the show with me to get signed. When I asked Keith to sign it, he said no cuz he's a jerk. But he did anyway, cuz he loves me. When I took it out of my bag he didn't know what the heck I was holding. Then I explained it to him...there's a handle on it for you to put your hand through so you can hold it and look super cool, and Keith put his hand through it, but he took it out quickly and denied he'd ever done it. :) He drew a skull and cross bones, but not like the kind on a pirate ship. Like the kind on a bottle of poison, with the skull on top of the cross-bones. I'm going to try and get some pictures of it, because by the end of the night it looked pretty awesome.
Shannon and I got photos (Keith said no when I asked him for one, cuz he's a jerk).
me: "Can we be tigers?"
Keith: "Yeah...well, we can't actually
be tigers, but we can pretned to be tigers."
Yes, we're awesome. I know. Right before we took this, Keith put out his arm to put around me for a photo, but I jsut saw an open pair of Keith arms so I went in for a hug. Then he laughed and asked, "was that the photo?"
Right before Keith left (his bladder was about to explode!), I asked him if he really hated Belle & Sebastian (I read in an interview that he does). But he doesn't hate them anymore! I told him they're one of Eddie Argos's favorite bands, which took him by surprise. I pulled out Eddiedoll from my bag and showed it to Keith, and he just laughed at it. He noticed the "press here" sticker, and pressed there.
Keith: "I can guess which tour this was recorded on!"
I told him the eye and eyebrows were Eddie's handiwork. He said they looked right, but he'd never seen Eddie shirtless before (lies!)...haha I should make Eddiedoll a shirt.
I got a third hug (I rammed my chin into his shoulder, it was awesome), then Keith left us, because he didn't want to pee his pants. He tried to make it through all of the people waiting for KoL, but he kept getting stopped. We stopped him a second time to ask where Chris or Max were (they were still inside, partying). He pointed us to their van so we could wait by it. He tried running down to the front of the venue to get inside, but I don't think they let him in, because we saw him running back up the middle of the street less than a minute later. I'm betting he used KoL's toilet.
So, we waited and waited for someone else to come out...no one came out for a while. We saw KoL come out to sign things, but they were behind this barrier. It was really strange. And they had a camera man. I think after them and their fans cleared out was when we spotted Max. I yelled at him, and he recognized me. He said he liked the muffins. :D I got him to sign my Talkboy, and told him about it being in Home Alone. I told him we'd see them in Portland, and we agreed that it was really weird that they'd play the Schnitzer (the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall is where they played in Portland). We got photos with him. :)
Then he said he was going to get into the van and pass out. He said their friend had gotten them completely drunk earlier. Class in a glass. When he left, we spotted Adam next to the bus, and I called him over. He had his hand in his blazer and said that he was going to pull a gun out and shoot us. It was hilarious and weird. I don't remember much of the conversation with Adam, but I do remember getting him to sign my Talkboy and complimenting his shoes, cuz they were neat.
After Adam got back in the van, we saw Chris. He came right up to us before we said hello or anything. :) I heart Chris Cain. I asked if he wanted to see Chrisdoll now that I finally managed to not erase his recording. When he listened to it, he kept switching Chrisdoll from hand to hand, like the recording says to do. :)
I got him to sign my Talkboy! Next to the headphone jack, it says "phones", and Chris drew an arrow pointing to it and wrote "are for losers" - then another arrow - "letters are what people want!!" When I handed it to him, he saw that Kelli had signed it and written "Get off my nuts!" He asked who Kelli was, then berated her.
Chris: "What if her grand-children read that?"
yeah, Kelli! my grand-children will be traumatized enough without your help, thanks.
I told him the show was awesome, and he said the Portland show would be better. I told him I loved his Thunderbird, cuz that thing is awesome. and we talked about bass guitars. :) He asked me what I play, and I told him (an Ibanez). But I never told him that I play bass!
me: "Who told you I play bass?"
Chris: "You told me!"
me: "I don't remember ever telling you that!"
Chris: "I've met you like eight times."
me: "I haven't even seen you eight times..."
Chris: "OK, six then."
Then I told him about my acoustic bass, which is a Fender, and he asked me about that...he told me how he used to have an acoustic bass, but he returned it or exchanged it or something at Guitar Center because he was just starting out and acoustic basses are harder to play because the strings are thicker. I told him that I used to think Thunderbirds looked stupid, till he got one. He agreed, they do look stupid. But then he kept going on and on about how light it is, and how close together the strings are, and how smooth the neck is, and how incredibly awesome they are, despite how stupid they look...son of a mother. He told me about this acoustic bass that he really wants, but I can't for the life of me remember what it's called. If I could, I would make him a little tiny one out of felt and cardboard. I do remember that it's a Gibson.
Chris: "So if you see one, and you're not interested in buying it..."
me: "I'll keep a look out for you."
Then we got photos. For my photo, we traded glasses.
me: "I've tried on your glasses before, and you are one of the few people I've met whose glasses are-"
Chris: "Sufficient?"
me: "Yes. Whose eyesight is as bad as mine."
Then he said he could see pretty well through my glasses. I could see through his, too. They didn't hurt my eyes; everything was just a bit...er, wider? I think.
Everything was sort of enlarged. And his glasses were very dirty.
Then Keith yelled to Chris from the van, "see you in Portland, Chris!" so Chris had to run off. But while he was running off, he turned around to see if Kelli wanted a photo because she hadn't gotten one. :) I LOVE CHRIS CAIN.
That's pretty much the end of night one. They drove off in their van, and I yelled "bye, WAS!" like I did the very first time I saw them. Kelli and I were being picked up by Erin, and while we were walking to meet her we saw WAS's van drive down a random street.
and that's the end of my story-OH WAIT IT'S NOT.
Portland We didn't get to the venue until after doors because Erin and Kelli are fools. But they did buy me a delicious veggie burger from Burger King. woo. We drove down from Seattle the day of the show, and it was a very long drive. We stopped at my apartment first, and I saw my kitty! I missed my kitty. :) also, I had to get some stuff. I had to get a note from my mom, because my ticket was in will call under her name. and I had to get the tiny Thunderbird I made for Chris out of felt and cardboard.
I stuck it in my case for Dog Soldiers so it wouldn't get bent up. Plus, I wanted to get my Dog Soldiers case signed. :)
We left and got to the venue, I got out while they parked. I got my ticket! yay! I was really worried that I wouldn't because Ticketmaster is a jerk, but Dolores told me what to do and it worked. But my seat was horrible. It was pretty hilariously bad. Not that I couldn't see the stage or anything, it was just much, much closer to the back then it was to the front.
The waiting was a lot harder and more boring without someone to sit next to and pester. Erin and Kelli were a few rows behind me. But I didn't have to wait very long at all for The Stills since we got there so late. They were as good as they had been in Seattle, and dedicated the same song to McCain and Palin that they have at every other show so far...I wish that they had at least played that one song that I like, since WAS shared their cupcakes and muffins with them and all (Chris told me they did)...
The wait for WAS was really long, because I was alone. But I was on Keith's side again. :) I would've been directly in front of him if I had been at the front... When they came on, I stood up for the whole show again. And I was the only one this time. :) I saw a girl at the very front standing up near the end, but I don't know how long she had been up for. And my friend Amanda was in the balcony, and she saw one guy standing up and dancing, but he was escorted out...go me.
There was no room on my arm for a setlist, so I wrote it on the back of my hand and fingers this time.
Impatience/Let's See It
Nobody Move, Nobody Get Hurt
Chick Lit (again, written as "c'lit")
Cash Cow (that was a surprise)
After Hours
Textbook
Dinosaurs
It's A Hit
Lethal Enforcer
The Great Escape
No Scene is Dead, Inaction, That's What Counts, or Altered Beast! The last one isn't really a surprise, but I was totally surprised when they didn't play This Scene is Dead or Inaction. I never thought I'd see WAS not play those!
They were really, really good, but I don't think it was better than Seattle. It definitely wasn't worse, and I'm glad they changed the setlist (pfft, even though they took off That's What Counts), but it wasn't better. They were both amazing.
During Textbook, Keith picked up his beer and took a few swigs. Then, he ran it down the neck off the guitar while picking. he played his guitar with his beer bottle! He is a true rock star now.
He kept hitting Adam's cymbals! first with his hand, then he hit them with his Telecaster. I think he did that in Seattle as well.
Keith went off-stage twice, into the tiniest, luckiest bit of audience that was squished in fold-away chairs right against the stage. I remember paying a lot more attention to Max then I ever had before. He's a good dancer. :) He kept pelvic thrusting and making Chris laugh, it was adorkable. And they dedicated Lethal Enforcer to some girl named Danielle who was turning 19. Someone yelled something that sounded like "new teeth", so Chris asked if there was a dentist in the house. And there weren't any, which surprised Keith. I got a bit sad during The Great Escape, but I tried not to think about it. I didn't want to think about how long it'd be until they'd come back. :(
after WAS ended, Kelli and I peed! yay! Then we went back to our seats. It took a while for them to set all of KoL's stuff up...the bassist has a Thunderbird, just like Chris's! but his isn't as cool, it's white on white. When they came on, I think they opened with that one song...is it called "Sex on Fire"? I don't like that song. I think Caleb sounds like Steven Tyler, and I hate Aerosmith, so it's kind of hard to get past that...but I mostly watched Matthew, cuz he's beautiful. After the first four or five songs, we went out to the lobby to hang out. We stayed out there on the couch for the rest of their set, and were going to leave at around 10:30, which is when we left in Seattle and about the same time as their encore starts. But then Keith and Max came walking through the lobby towards us! I said hi and waved, and Keith noticed us and stopped.
Keith: "We'd stop and chat but we have to leave NOW! We're being yelled at!"
I asked if he was just leaving for a bit or leaving for good, and he said for good. :( I got a hug and asked if I wouldn't see them for two years.
Keith: "Two years. Two and a half years! Two years and nine months! Three years!"
Keith is such a jerk.
Some random person asked where they were going. Max told them Denver (jeez, stupid Denver), and Keith pretended to punch him in the face. Max turned his head at the perfect moment, it looked very well-rehearsed. Keith told me that only he and Max were leaving, and that Chris and Adam were going to stay and party all night. Then I got another hug from one Keith. I wasn't planning on ever letting go, but once he did I followed suit. Still, I'm betting it was the longest hug I've ever had. Then I got a hug from Max. Then they left. :(
We went outside to where the buses were parked, and waited around for Adam or Chris to show up. Once the show ended and people started filing out, we moved closer to where WAS's van had been and near the door we thought anyone would come out of. After a while, Amanda and her cousin, Robyn, found us and joined us in the waiting. Not too long after, we saw Chris, Adam, and a woman come from around the corner and cross the street into the parking lot (where Erin and Amanda had parked their cars), so we followed them. But they got into their car before we caught up to them, and I thought it might seem too psycho if I ran up and banged on their window.
We all started walking to our cars, but we stopped and stared at the car Chris and Adam were in for a minute, hoping they'd get out or see us or something. I knew that if they drove away before I got a chance to talk to Chris, I would probably cry. Then Chris got out to put something into the trunk! I ran for it. I caught him before he got back into the car.
me: "Chris!"
Chris: "Oh, hey!"
me: "I have something for you!"
Chris: "ooh, what is it?"
He told me he liked the muffins while I dug in my bag for his cardboard Thunderbird, but I wasn't paying attention so I missed it. I pulled out the Dog Soldiers case, but I didn't bother trying to get it signed. When I pulled out the case, I think he reognized it because he said "oh, what is this?..." I gave him the Thunderbird, and he gave me a hug! He said, "thank you, Adrian!" He said my name to the side of my head. :) I WIN AT LIFE!
Amanda and Robyn came up. She got a hug, and Robyn a handshake (since it was her first show, Chris said she only got a handshake).
me: "I'm not going to see you again for two years, am I?"
Chris: "We're going to try and come back a lot sooner then that!"
I got another hug, and asked him if he enjoyed the coloring book. He said he loved it and that it was very humorous. I told him he had to share it with the rest of the band and asked if he'd broken out the crayons yet. He said he was sharing it, and all he had was a black Sharpie, so he hadn't colored it yet.
Chris: "Actually, I had a friend who hadn't seen the video yet, and I used it to explain to him what happens in the video."
I love Chris Cain. He is so totally jokes.
Then, he had to get in the car, so I just told him to please please please come back soon (Chris: "We will!") and ran back to Erin's car. Aaaaaahhhh I was so happy I was shaking a bit. When I got close enough to Kelli, I fell on top of her in a hug. It was incredible, guys. I don't think I'll ever have a better two consecutive nights.
Then those kids drove me home, and I was far too excited and happy to sleep, so I wrote this instead. Go, me. I think I'll sleep now.