4th row in 15 minutes
I just got an sms from my friend Rian. He’s in Perth Australia and he’s seeing something he’s been dreaming of for a long time. As I type this he’s singing along to Even Flow, Not for you or Jeremy at a Pearl Jam concert.
I can’t remember how Rian became a fan, but I first heard Pearl Jam in 1995, when my brother brought home Ten and Vs. I copied both albums on tape and I’ve been listening to Pearl Jam ever since. Back in high school me and Rian and our other friends listened to a lot of rock music, but Pearl Jam was definitely one of our favourites. It’s probably the one band that we’ve all been dreaming of seeing live some day… if only someone would tell Eddie Vedder about the cool surf spots in South Africa, then we might see them soon!
Rian wrote on November 27th, 2006 at 6:12 am
It was in 1993, Ettienne D. came to school with Vs. I was pretty shocked by the cover but he said it’s cool, I could take it home to copy to tape… it was awesome! The minute I heard it, I knew…
Check out PJ’s setlists at pearljam.com/tour and get a few bootlegs at bootlegs.pearljam.com – I think it’s well worth it.
As for touring SA the problem I think is primarily the reserved seating system and how to enforce it. Even here in Perth fools jumped gates into the front reserved seats. Also, at the front of the venue you have large Pearl Jam Production posters with warnings: “No moshing allowed. Offenders will be ejected from the venue.” It’s all ironic for PJ but understandable. And at the end of it, the crowd was pretty calm and that made it even more enjoyable. I’m not one for being bashed and thrown around anymore.
Oh yeah I think Eddie would love some surfing in SA. During the show he said he’ll be surfing the south-west coast of WA after the shows with some of his aussie surf mates. He dedicated Elderly Woman… Small Town to a little town down there. I’ve never been but apparently it’s great…