9/26/08 It's all Isaac's fault.

It had been 9 months since we had last seen Hanson. At this point in our fandom we didn't really know how to keep updated with them. They had done a "Wisconsin tour" (an easy couple hours drive from us) somewhere in that 9 month dry spell but for some reason we thought that throwing a Titanic party, taking midterms and spending time with the guys Beth and I were dating at that time seemed more important to us... But come September Beth got an email notification that they were coming back to First Ave in Minneapolis and we were excited to go. We were so excited that we decided we wanted to get there a little earlier than just the time of doors so we could try to get closer to the stage. We didn't really know much about camping out but Beth had informed me that at the Hanson show she went to in 2004, girls camped out for days. We decided we weren't going to be THAT crazy (yet) so we just decided to head to the venue when we woke up. 


One problem. Sherlock Holmes. I had an exam that morning in my college Lit class that I couldn't miss. I went and took my exam (which I got graded a D on by the way, I blame pre-concert excitement... Or more so the fact that I was starting to not care about school in general) and then we were off to First Ave by 9:30am. 

We were numbers 28 and 27 in line, which to us was the best thing in the world. The MN street team had made official name tags with our official numbers on them. Beth brought homework and did an entire book report while sitting in the sidewalk outside of first ave. We brought pillows and blankets and a whole grocery store worth of junk food. I even dressed in camp out clothes to "look like a Hanson fan" and try to blend in. (Which apparently worked because a few girls in Starbucks started talking to me about the show while I was in there to use the restroom. They even said "is she a fan... she looks like a fan!" before they started up a conversation with me) The truth was we were still what we self titled ourselves- "fraud fans." We still didn't know every song, barely knew any aspects of their personal lives and didn't even own more than 1 or 2 of their CDs. But we were exited to be there early to try and get a closer look at the whole experience of a Hanson concert. 

Hanson eventually came out in the early afternoon to do this thing called a walk. We still had no idea what that meant or what it was for but we knew one thing. We were not going to leave our spots in line so we volunteered to be the ones that watched everyones stuff while they were out on some walk with Hanson. 


A few hours before doors, we ran back to the car to change out of our "camp out" clothes and into our concert outfits. On the way back from our car we had to pass the back door to the venue. I heard the door open and close but I didn't think anything of it until I heard a person clap their hands at the back of our heads. Both beth and I whipped our heads around at the same time then looked back at each other like "is that?... Yep." we slowed our walking and he was smiling at us as he walked toward the tour bus. Our faces immediately lit up and I started giggling and grabbing on to Beths arm. Apparently Zac Hanson thought this was amusing because he stuck his head back around the corner of the bus to watch our reactions again. This time I couldn't help it I let out a small girly squeal which immediately was covered by my own hand covering my mouth in embarrassment. We had just had our first up close and personal encounter with a Hanson brother. 


It came time for doors and we rushed in to the venue (after being flagged with underage black Xs on the back of our hands of course) we opted for the closest spot to the stage, which was 2nd row directly in front of Isaac. Taylor's side was already up to 3 or 4 people deep. 


The concert was awesome. It's hard to explain to anyone who has never experience it, but all the waiting all day paid off and it makes the concert experience better than normal just by being that close to the band in action. Being so close to Isaac in particular was great. If he catches your eye, he will lock a gaze with you for what seems like forever. It made the concert that much more personal and meaningful. I remember the song "Get Up And Go" was a real bonding moment for Isaac and Beth and myself. 

From where we were standing and the height of the stage we couldn't see Zac at all up on his drum set. I made a mental note to not let that happen again next time we were choosing our spots to stand. Zac came down to where we could see him during the acoustic set and I remember him looking quite primate- like which is not my favorite look on him. (Let it be known, the less hair on Zac Hanson, the better. In my book anyway.) For the past 9 months, it had been my goal in life to get a picture with Zac... So while he was over on the piano (btw when did that happen?!) belting out a song we didn't recognize ("On the Rocks") beth and I turned around and took our picture with Zac in the background on the piano. It was my favorite photograph for a long time. 

My favorite memory from this concert came during the encore- "Ugly Truth" while Taylor was bouncing around on stage and getting into the song. He decided to plop down onto the edge of the stage in front of me. I was freaking out, beth was freaking out and then Taylor Hanson reached past the girls head in front of me and grabbed onto my hand. The second he let go I started high pitch screaming like a 12 year old girl. Hanson seems to have that effect on people... Well maybe its just me. Also, as Taylor and Isaac were both exiting the stage, they both stopped and looked directly at us and waved goodbye.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vNLl065x75U


It wasn't until we got home and we were watching our video clips of the concert back that we decided that we had liked a certain song but we couldn't figure out exactly who was singing it or what the song was called. Thanks to google and YouTube we found out the song was a Beatles cover called "Oh Darling!" and Zac sang lead on it. Now that we knew who sang it an what it was called, we learned the song better in hopes that we would hear it again the next time we were to see them. We were suddenly hooked and couldn't wait to see them again. I looked up their tour schedule and calculated road trip times- Chicago (6 hour drive), Des Moines (3.5 hour drive) and Wichita (5 hours drive) were our next closest options. We had done a couple of road trips to see a music group before we liked Hanson, but somehow this felt different. This other music group we traveled a bit to see knew us by name and were always surprised and happy to see us. Apart from the few eye contact moments with Isaac and the clapping incident with Zac, Hanson barely knew we existed. Taking a road trip for Hanson was different. It was more about the love of the music. We didn't want to miss too much school so we opted for the closest drive, the Des Moines, Iowa show. We immediately started counting down- exactly 40 days until our next Hanson concert!

12/9/07 Little Did I Know...

Of all the Blogs that will be posted here, this one might be the most important. It was the beginning of... well everything. This day changed my life more than I could have ever contemplated even now. 


My first Hanson concert: December 9th, 2007

"You owe me" I griped at my blond best friend shivering next to me.
It was six degrees outside. Yes, six. We had left our winter coats in the car because we decided against spending an outrageous $8 each on coat check fees. After exhausting all her other options (including trying to find a way to get her 16 year old sister into an 18+ venue) my best friend Beth had finally asked me to go see Hanson with her. I reluctantly agreed to go as long as she paid for my ticket. 
My face was numb. I could not move my toes. 
"I don't even like Hanson!" I made sure to whine just loud enough to collect a few glares from the girls in front of us in line. 
The doors finally opened. I looked at the time on my phone... I had just spend an agonizing 45 minutes freezing my butt off to go see a band that I had liked when I was nine. My only hope was that they'd cut their hair since 1997 and that they would play "I Will Come To You" and "MmmBop" two songs I had remembered loving when I was a pre-teen. 
The line slowly inched it's way through the doors and the girls directly behind us in line kept talking about how this concert was going to be such a big deal. Why? It was the last concert stop for the tour and they always do something 'special' for the last night of a tour. What tour? The Walk Tour. That was a strangr name for a 'rock' tour. Were they against vehicles or something? Amish? No. It had something to do with charity and Africa. Hmm. 
We finally made our way through the doors and I was thankful to find out that I had not permanentally lost all feeling in my body. The main floor was about half way filled with a bunch of running, pushing, frantic looking mid- 20 year old women cramming themselves like sardines to try to get a couple centimeters closer to the front. I laughed at them. Psychos!
Beth and I found a sopt towards the middle- right side of the stage, directly under the stairs that led to the 2nd floor of the venue. It was and elevates section of the floor with a raling so we had a perfect view over everyone's heads and no one could walk in front of us. People kept coming and cramming into the main floor. Did Hanson really have this many fans still? Someone said something about it being sold out. Strange. A couple feet belows us in the pit were a group of already buzzed women who kept the beers coming. The show hadn't even started yet. Next to them was a couple who seriously needed to get a room. 
The opening band started. They were a local group of three siblings and called themselves The Abdomen. they were actually pretty decent, musically. As their set came to a close, you could hear the excitement in the room pick up. The screen between the front row and the stage wnet down, though from where I was standing we could still see most of what was going on. The roadies were switching up the stage, the drunk girls were ordering more beer, I could finally start to move my toes and security was escorting a girl down the stairs. Wait a second... I knew that girl. We'll just call her Lady... Lady and her scantilly clad self was being escorted out of the venue, a security guard on each arm. (We later found out she had been caught drinking and trying to scrub her black X's off her underaged hands in the bathroom. We had met Lady through another band we used to like a few years ago and she hadn't changed much since then.) Great. These were the kinds of people that liked Hanson. 
I looked to my left and recognized two girls from high school. Twins named Madelyn and Jaclyn. They were sweet girls. I remembered from old conversations with jaclyn at our high school lunch table that she liked Hanson. I didn't think much of it at the time, never expecting to find myself at a Hanson concert. Jaclyn held a sign that read "My twin's name is Madelyn!" I didn't understand it at the that point in time. Did they want a shout out? ("Madeline" is now own of my favorite Hanson songs and I wished they had sung it for them that night. :( They did not.) The twins noticed me and smiled and waved in my direction. I returned the gesture.
The lights went down. 
Screams.
I saw some silouttes walk onto the stage, the screen was still in the way. The screen slowly inched its way up and the screems escalated. 
I noticed Taylor first. Honestly, he hadn't changed much from what I remembered of him. Same blond hair, same baby face, same energy. Beth was already gushing about how attractive he was and I think I heard the title "number one!" more than enough times form her that night. 
Then I saw Isaac with his buzzed hair. Nice, the Hanson boys HAD cut their hair! 
Then I saw the youngest one, Zac, strut straight to his drumset. When I was nine, Zac had been my favorite because he was closest to my age and of course my logical nine year old self had to pick the one closest to my age because it would be weird to marry an older man like Taylor or Isaac. Zac didn't look anything at all what I remember him looking like. He was actually... was I going to let that thought pass through my head? No, not yet. It was hard to see him way back at his drums, the lighting in First Ave, the venue, was awful and the spotlights seemed to be on Taylor and Isaac.
I was bummed I couldn't see him but I didn't have much time to be bummed before the music started. The first song wasn't "MmmBop" or "I Will Come To You" or anything else I would have recognized, but whatever it was, i liked it. I was watching Taylor Hanson pound on the piano and belt out lyrics with an undeniable passion for his music. At the end of the song he looked at the cheering crowd and just smiled. I realized I was smiling too. Oh no. A few songs into the the set Beth prompted me with "OH! It's the roundy-round song!" she yelled in my ear while doing a circular motion with her hand. I stared at her blankly. "You' know it!" As soon as the song hit the chorus, something clicked and I all of a sudden found the lyrics to "Where's The Love" buried deep in my brain. I remember how awesome it was to watch all 1,000+ people in the venue, including Taylor himself, simultaneously whip their hands around their head in that "roundy-round" motion Beth had shown me. I joined in. Wait... I was having fun... at a Hanson concert.
Before I knew it, Taylor was announcing that they'd be right back. The lights went out. What? Already?
"What's going on?"
The roadies were moving stuff around on the stage.
"Acoustic set" I heard a girl behind me say.
I didn't know what that meant, but I'm glad her explanation did not include the word "encore" or "end" like I had immediately assumed when the lights went out. The lights went up. The first thing I noticed: a smaller, African looking drum on the front center of the stage. All three of them waked onto stage again, but this time Zac walked straight to the center front drum. Finally with the help of sufficient lighting and Taylor not blocking my view, I noticed something and was ready to admit it to myself: wow, Zac had gotten much cuter since 1997. His hair had gotten darker and it was puled back into a tiny pony tail, with a perfect amount of sweeping bangs and flyaways to frame his face. I was busy studying the features of his face when something life-altering happened with no warning: the boy smiled. I'm pretty sure I had some sort of mouth-gaping reaction to that. He had the most beautiful smile I had ever seen in my life. I could not hold it in any longer: "He's gorgeous"
"Who Tayor!!?"
"NO! Zac."
Then the next thing that came out of my mouth, I do not understand, but is none the less relevant to reasons why I decided that Zac Hanson was one of the most gorgeous men I had ever seen: "see HE doesn't have any facial hair" I must have been creeped out by Taylor's pedophile looking goatee he had going on.
The acoustic set was by far my favorite part of the whole concert. I was finally able to see who was singing which parts, and began to admire their three distinct voices... yet when they sang together or harmonized, it was the most beautiful sound I had heard. A couple songs into the acoustic set, Beth leaned over "You'll like this one, it's their new single... it's a Zac solo." My reaction: I whipped out my phone and activated the audio record setting. I wanted to have something to remember this moment. It was the first time I heard his voice so clearly by itself. He hit every note perfectly and his voice had a tone unlike anyone's I had ever heard before. It was unique but a good kind of unique. I did not understand how someone so beautiful could have such a beautiful voice too... did this boy have any flaws? The song "Go" is the song I attribute to my becoming a "Zac fan" again after nine years. The song that I attribute to me becoming a full-blown Hanson fan came towards the end of the concert.
After Beth freaking out about her favorite song "Crazy Beautiful," after jumping up and down to "If Only," and after Zac danced around on stage with a shiny string of red garland (see video at the bottom), after hearing a creepy sounding song that I later found out was a rare song called "Yearbook" it was prank time. There was suddenly a giant stuffed ape on stage and the boys had changed clothes. The beginning notes of the ballad started and cheers erupted everywhere. I didn't know why yet, but from the crowd's reaction I knew this song was special. 

"Lovin' you..." after the first line of the song I had already decided that I gave in. I was officially a Hanson fan. The lyrics, the notes, their voices... I was undeniably in love with the music and the band.
For some reason we had decided to leave a few songs early because we wanted to beat the traffic out of there. After all, it was late, I had been up since 4am because of work, and Beth and I both had classes the next morning. The entire way home to my college dorm I could not stop taking about Hanson. I asked question after question. Then came the information I was freading: "I think they're all married..." But this night wasn't about that. It was about the music and the band and me admitting to myself that liking Hanson wasn't just something from my past, it would become something very prominent to my future.


I remember this like it was yesterday and re-watching it today got me a lil teary- eyed.

This video isn't mine but it's all the evidence I have as to why I fell in love with Zac Hanson.

Confessions of a perpetual teenybopper...

So I've been thinking about starting this kind of blog for awhile now, and I finally made myself an inspirational background to hopefully motivate me to keep up with it. 

Concerts, music, and tour life. 

That's pretty much what this blog is going to be filled with. I know some of my relatives and people who grew up with me do not exactly approve of how dedicated I am to this life but lets be honest... I've been this way since I was 12 years old. I've lived my life this way for a decade and I'm not hurting anyone by doing it. I it's the part of my life that makes me truly happy. I got my love for music from my parents... mostly my love for attractive men who make music from my mother. She was and still is the biggest Beatles fan that I know. My sense of adventure comes from my dad. Put that all together and now you get me. 

I'm writing this blog mostly for my own memory's sake. What's the point of going to so many concerts and having such amazing things happen in my life if I can't remember them? So here it is, I'll write something about every meaningful concert or event that I've attended... probably just in the past 3 years because that's when things started getting intense. It'll be a long process to go back and kind of re-live each separate concert but it'll be fun for me. 

Disclaimers:

Whoever decides to read this, like I said it's mostly for my memory's sake but I know some of my friends will also love to read them, just know I am never ever trying to brag. There might be a few posts on here where I get a little excited and fan-girly and turn into a teeniebopper but I'm just trying to capture my emotions about certain events. I'll be the first to admit that I have exceptional luck. I can't control it, I have no idea where it comes from, I never asked for it, things just happen to me. So please don't ever think I'm bragging, I'm just stating what happened to me.

Yes, Hanson is my favorite band and I mostly travel for them, so 90% of this blog will be Hanson... however I have attended and traveled to a few Jonas Brothers concerts and I will explain how that came to be when we get to that point in the timeline. Like I said before this blog is about me and my adventures so I apologize if you don't always agree with my views or music tastes. 

I think that's about good enough for my first post...