Doug Van Pelt

Evanescence.v3

I took my daughter to see Flyleaf and Evanescence on Sunday. I tried to calculate my drive time to catch Flyleaf's set, but wouldn't you know it ... we arrived right after they finished their mainstage set. We checked out our seats and watched a little bit of Atreyu. They're a funny band. They've got some good elements: a singing drummer with a good voice and some guitar players that can wail. Collectively, though, they leave a little something to be desired. (at least in my humble opinion -- or IMHO) At times they sounded a little like Underoath, but not fully. At other times, my daughter pointed out, they had that hardcore riffage a la The Devil Wears Prada. We ended up wandering around for the rest of their set. We came back to our seats to see all of Evanescence. This was the first time I'd seen them. After their incarnation and first album's round of touring, Ben Moody left. The second incarnation of the band included John LeCompte (of Mindrage) and Rocky (from Living Sacrifice), but they have been jettisoned. This third incarnation, which includes members of Cold, is still real solid. I wasn't sure how they'd look and sound live. I've got their live album, but I admit I don't listen to it much. Overall, Amy Lee and company sounded real good. It was interesting to hear her sing "Bring Me To Life" without the help of any male vocals. My mind kept completing the expected voice/counterpart each time they hit the chorus. That was funny. The song still "works," but it sure ain't the same.

I would have taken some great shots, but I soon found out that my "media" pass wasn't the same as a photo pass that I had thought I was given. I hadn't bothered to look at it closely and seen the word "photo" crossed out. Oh well. It was funny to be accosted by the people running the photo pit. Instead of putting up a fight, I went along. I really never want to be the kind of person that gets offended easily and tries to argue my place somewhere. And I never want to be the kind of person that "pulls rank" in situations like that. I'd rather vomit (which I hate) than argue my importance or right to be somewhere. Besides, it was probably a better example for my daughter to see me not argue with someone instead of the other way around.

After Evanescence we bailed. I would've stuck around to see Korn if I was by myself or if we had been able to hang out with Fieldy for a few minutes, but neither case presented itself. So we headed for the nearest Jack In The Box and the freeway home. It's not easy getting in contact with a travelling entertainer. They are separated from the public by security forces, gates and walls. I had a publicist contact for the tour, but my voicemail didn't make the magic doors open and we didn't hook up. That might've been cool, as Fieldy and I had a really good interview last week. We both talked about hooking up on this date for further discussion, but connecting means going through other channels, and I kind of get turned off by the effort it takes sometimes to break through all of that. Even if I was related to the guy, I would find it hard (and mildly offensive or "distasteful") to experience that kind of "let me in" struggle.