Once Dylan and I were in our seats, I had a chance to surreptitiously take some pictures of the venue, since I managed to bring a camera in past security (who it turns out, were patting me down neither to find my camera or to admire my killer body, but because they were searching for weapons. Dylan was caught with a knife. Because he's a terrorist.)
We were stage right, a bit, but the above picture makes our seats look much worse than they actually were. However, it is the only picture I had of Dancing Grey Head Man, whose many stellar dance moves (including "Hands in Pockets Shuffle" and "Trying to Get Action from Girlfriend Jive") entertained and annoyed me throughout the evening.
Here's a job that seems like it would be fun:
You may have to magnify it a little, but it's the guy running the spotlight above the stage.
It wasn't quite dark yet, when suddenly
Hey, who's that?
Oh yeah, those guys! You can see all those long light poles (or something) that surround the stage. They were all about the color.
Wait a minute. Is there something weird going on in that last picture?
Oh, right. Jonny Greenwood is playing his electric guitar with a bow. Because he's Jonny Greenwood, dammit! He does whatever he wants!
So at the back of the stage there is a screen with cameras on all of the band members. They did crazy angles and psychedelic effects, which I liked. The night I got in Dylan and I stayed up watching a Pearl Jam DVD, and one of the things I liked about it was the really interesting angles from which the filmmaker shot the concert. This reminded me of that. Anyway, here are some better looks:
My friend Shawn (not pictured) calls Radiohead "music to slit your wrists by." I disagree, in part because OK Computer is one of the greatest albums of all time, and in part because Radiohead mellows me like nothing else (except for Sigur Ros). But there's no doubt they're a little different. For example, at most concerts the singer tries to build rapport with the audience and be entertaining and have a big stage presence. Thom Yorke, on the other hand, said probably eight sentences the entire night, and six of them were "Thank you." He did, however, dance like a skinny white guy.
SILHOUETTE TIME!!!!!
Oh, hey, now the lights are up.
And is that . . . Is that a Free Tibet flag? Is this 1998 or something? (The previous joke was brought to you by Dylan, and in no way reflects the author's view on Tibet, China, or 1990s benefit concerts.)
I couldn't tell if this lighting effect was making words (it sort of looked like it when you squinted) or if it was supposed to be raining.
Let's say raining.
Whoa, it just got bright in here.
See?
So I've been trying to teach myself a little more photography lately (I'm pretty pleased with most of these pictures), and Dylan taught me about playing with some of the exposure settings. I like this effort, but I have to admit it also looks just like squiggly lines:
These are some of my favorite shots of the night. I especially like the colors (what am I, a six-year-old girl?) and I think they capture the night pretty well.
All in all, though it wasn't much of a sing-along type concert, it was tons of fun. Don't we look happy?
Oh, dang. I forgot what a pain it is to get out of concerts. Let me put on my crazy eyes.
That's better. The crowd was ridiculous. We were slammed together to filter through the music venue's tiny little exit, and I was reminded of the subways in Japan. Also, I was really glad I'm not claustrophobic, because I would have been hyperventilating.
Once he agreed not to stab anyone, Dylan got his knife back, and after what felt like twelve hours sitting in the parking lot waiting for our turn to go we headed back to Kokomo.
All in all, it was a great day. Radiohead was one of the bands on my list of "Must See Live" musical acts, and they didn't disappoint. Good times, my friends. Good times.
Up next: Day 2 - Barbeque! Wilco! Pot Smokers!
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