Seeing Double--Revised

Addendum: It has been rightfully brought to my attention (by Twitterer @inamusic)that my analogy to Germany's Love Parade, in which 21 people have now died in a preventable stampede, was inappropriate and disrespectful of the lives of both the victims, their families, and friends. I regret choosing those words and will be the first to admit that I don't always choose wisely. My deepest condolences again to all those affected in the tragedy in Berlin.
_________________________________________________________


We were all seeing double today

We all thought that wondering whether or not Soundgarden would play Lollapalooza was the biggest tease we would endure this summer, but the boys had more up theirs sleeves than that.

First, the impromptu April 16 Nudedragons concert at the Showbox in Seattle, their first official reunion gig, in which you had to be annointed by the Holy Mary to get tickets. Time between rumor and ticket availabilty was less than 24 hours. It sold out in less than 4 minutes. Reviewer Annastasia Gallaher suggested there could not have been more than 1000 patrons--all of whom waited three agonizing hours for the SG set to start. Their wait was worth every minute, as the unannointed later learned through several leaked videos. (Her review here.) Then the Lolla tease for a few months--which night???

Baby Bad-asses

That was settled after a few rounds of Jeopardy with Perry Farrell's crew, but then the SG crew threw the heaviest wrench ever into the Badmotorfinger tension brewing around the world.

Any Soundgarden news is good news, don't get me wrong, but Cornell-Land was in HYSTERIA today if Facebook, Twitter and e-mail accounts are any indication. Details emerged like wildfire once the first e-mail from Soundgarden World came out this morning, then the heart-wrenching speculation took over.

To the great majority of those going to Lollapalooza next week, the decision whether to buy a 3-Day Pass before we knew what day SG would play was bad enough. (What the hell do we do with a Lady Gaga ticket? Many wondered.) Passes are several hundred dollars each, as will be the bottled water, I'm sure. These days we have ONE Lolla, not a tour, so wherever you are in the world, the cost of getting to Chicago--not a cheap destination for anyone--was another major deciding factor.

But we relented and made our ticket purchases, then plane, train or automobile plans. Housing. It added up very fast, so we looked at each purchase as something separate, discrete, in order that we could deny that we were, in fact, spending anywhere from $500-1000 or more to see one band--granted, The Band--but one band. We're not kids anymore--most of us have them, in fact--and this is mortgage/braces/car payment money. This was a very big deal.

So this unexpected e-mail shows up in our sleepy boxes this morning that Blows Up Our Outside World. Another show. What?? How?? Where??

How to tell what colors are on sale at the hardware store...

The location is The Vic in Chicago, a venue which is quite possibly the most garishly decorated theater I have ever seen--and I've seen a few--that holds a mere 1300 rabid fans. You register for a drawing which, if you win, gives you the chance to buy one pair (and only one pair) of tickets.

Experienced music stalkers know the full value of the "small venue." It is something that those of us who continued to follow Chris Cornell through the various stages of his solo career came to treasure above all else. No tiny panorama of a tiny stage 1/2 mile away accessed only via binoculars or Jumbotrons--no, here you were in the front row, every time, no exception, watching Chris' fingers trip lovingly over his acoustic guitar, wishing you could reach over and tie those boots you were sure he would trip on, holding hands with the man over this song or that, and finally, if you were really lucky, making your way backstage with a few others to stutter your "thank you"s to the band, and the Man. You would never forget the color of his eyes.

Following the e-mail was pure chaos. Hundreds of thousands of fans jammed the lines to register for the chance to buy a pair of tickets. The drawing would not be announced until Friday, July 30, at which point you spent the last money you did not have for a show you had no way to get to, as nearly everyone fell into two camps: a) Those with plans already set for Chicago, nearly all landing after the newly-announced show, or b) Those who had accepted that they could not afford Lollapalooza and everything it entailed, but who were now tempted once again with a one-off concert in the middle of the week, not associated with Perry Farrell's money-making machine.

Anew, agonizing decisions to make. Travel plans to change for expensive fees, new travel plans for those who had passed first time around, work/kid/life conflicts that you thought you'd settled already brought up again.

Did anyone think of saying no? Of not registering? I can say that I thought of it. Closed the pop-up window twice when I couldn't get in due to traffic, thinking, I cannot pull this off too, not on top of the Biggest Circus of the Summer. But in the end, I relented, half-laughing as everyone did at the disclaimer that "if you live in Slovenia and really, really, really want to go, but there's no frickin' way you're flying all the way to Chicago for the show, don't make it harder for someone who can attend by putting in a request." What did SG have against Slovenians, anyway?

I think it is safe to say that if anyone examined the GNP percentage just for today, a distinct drop would be uncovered. Hundreds of thousands of Cornell/SG fans lost the ability to complete a full sentence by 10 a.m. CST, much less actually retain enough focus to work. I am amazed that FB and Twitter traffic over this news did not crash Wall Street itself.

In the end, exhausted by possibilities, the fans ran out of steam, and heart rates once again resumed their normal rates. But I can guarantee you that we should all be braced for a re-run of today's emotional hurricane around the same time Friday morning, when the winners are notified. E-mails will fly faster than Midwest mosquitoes, and $130,000 (plus convenience fees) will be collectively spent in the space of a few short minutes.

Who will join "Vic's 1300 Club?"

All we can do is wait.