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What an experience! I bared the cold to go to the Eric Church concert on Wednesday at the Frank Erwin Center. Although I knew who Eric Church was, I didn\u2019t know very many of his songs and was honestly not sure if I was going to enjoy myself at the concert. Now thinking back it\u2019s really hard to differentiate between liking the artist and enjoying the concert. In my opinion, the concert was okay, but I really liked Eric Church and have a new found interest in him as an artist. Confusing, right? Not really once you start to think about all of the things that can affect a concert experience.<\/p>\n
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The openers, Drive-By Truckers, were a rocky start. The guitar drowned out the vocalist to the point that I really didn\u2019t understand what he was saying the entire time. Their stage presence was so-so; they seemed more involved with what was happening on stage and not the audience, at some points completely turning away from the audience. Watching from high above (in a seat where even the jumbo viewing screens were blocked), it was obvious that the crowd was not feeling them either. The general admission floor was practically at a complete stand still. Because I am more attuned to really active floor audiences that come with other genres of music, this was really surprising, but as it continued, it became more and more obvious that it wasn\u2019t just because this was a country music concert. Continuing to scan the audience, I noticed that nearly everyone around me had their phone out and was scrolling through Facebook and Twitter feeds. If people don\u2019t even want to put their phone down to listen to you, you are doing something wrong! When a high pitched squeal rang out in the Frank Erwin Center, a guy behind me summed up there entire performance perfectly, \u201cThat was the best thing I have heard all night!\u201d.<\/p>\n
Already frustrated with the night, my friend and I decided to snag some seats down closer to the stage. Once we sat down, crossing our fingers to not have an awkward encounter with someone saying \u201cUmm.. That\u2019s my seat\u201d, the view of the stage was epic. We waited for Eric Church anxiously. As he began with a few of his more well-known songs, it became obvious that the people we were sitting by were ready to party, and party hard. The couple immediately next to us proceeded to make-out, grind on each other (at one point the guy picked the girl up in a very intimate position to say the least) and scream the entire night. When Church played \u201cSmoke a Little Smoke\u201d, a few brave souls decided it was the perfect time to light up a smoke, not the legal kind. The smell surrounded us, and the crazy woman next to us was intent on finding out who she \u201cneeds to be friends with\u201d to have a little fun of her own.<\/p>\n
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Now don\u2019t get me wrong; Eric Church was phenomenal! His stage presence and audience interaction was incredible; from playing fan favorites to telling stories to signing boots that were thrown on stage, Eric did it all and gave us more than we could have ever imagined for a Wednesday night concert. No matter how fantastic an artist\u2019s performance is, a concert experience can be hindered by anything from openers to the people around you. With this in mind, in the future, I would like to ward you against intertwining the two. Eric Church was awesome! My experiences at the concert were not quite as good, but that does not mean I think poorly of the artist.<\/p>\n
How was your experience? Has a bad experience at a concert made you think differently of an artist in the past?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
What an experience! I bared the cold to go to the Eric Church concert on Wednesday at the Frank Erwin Center. Although I knew who Eric Church was, I didn\u2019t know very many of his songs and was honestly not … Continue reading