I love my hometown of Ctown! Of course there are things that are totally lamers about it, but I think that is true in any city. I love Cleveland and being from Cleveland. I wear that LOUD AND PROUD. I will never, ever cheer for any football team but the Cleveland Browns. Never. Ever. Got it?! There are some really sweet things going on in the city formally known as the "mistake by the lake". The restaurant scene for one. Um, hello, I'm overwhelmed by all of my choices when I go home in September. I can't freaking wait!!!!
Anyways, I digress - though some claim The Rock And Roll Hall of Fame sucks - Cleveland's concert scene rocks. Seriously.....
I've been in Seattle for 7 months.......I've seen a handful of shows..... and they've all be dud's. Don't get me wrong, they weren't bad...the acts have been good for the most part....but the crowds are duds. They don't dance, they barely move, they don't yell or cheer or scream........ There have been a few times that I actually felt bad for the band. Not to mention if you are a legal adult that wants to knock back a few brewski's - you are corralled off - usually away from the stage. What. The. Hell. So if I want to have a beer while enjoying my concert, I'm not getting a prime view. And if I want a good view, I have to be sans drink?!??!
2 prime examples of how Cleveland has way cooler, crazier, better, wilder, louder fans:
Sleigh Bells at the Grog Shop vs. Sleigh Bells at the WaMu Theater. SB at the Grog is in my top 10 of all shows - for sure. As soon as the Slayer intro started, it was mayhem.... awesome mayhem... it was so crazy that I was seriously paranoid that Chel Belle (REALLY?!?! FLIP FLOPS TO A CONCERT) was going to sustain a broken toe - no joke. But there was dancing and singing and cheering and it was a sweaty, sweaty, awesome mess. So when they showed up on the Deck the Hall Ball line up, I was so excited. Yes, there were 5+ bands, yes, it was at a bigger venue, yes the show started at 4PM, but still, I thought for sure everyone would go crazy when they took the stage. So not the case. So disappointing. It was like no one in Seattle (or at that show at least) has HEARD Sleigh Bells... which is ok... but I don't know how they can hear the music and not move. I felt bad for the band. Really bad. Embarrassed for them actually. If that happened in Cleveland, I would seriously never expect them to come back......
Deftones at Cleveland's House of Blues vs. Paramount Theatre. I love me some Deftones. And we are all getting up there in age. The band and the fans. Chino can't scream the way he used you. I've probably seen them 6 times since the 90's. The last 2 shows in Cleveland were at the House of Blues. But I can tell you this...if you were on the floor in Cleveland, it was a mosh pit. No doubt about it. You would have been swept up in a sweaty crowd that was jumping, moshing, thrashing, crowd surfing, etc. Not here.... I mean, it worked out, because I had a decent view without having to get my ass kicked. The venue itself is really sweet. But it was pretty mellow compared to um, ALL the shows I've ever been to before. And when they walked off before the encore... I'm surprised they came back out. The crowd wasn't (in my opinion) really telling the band they wanted them back out. Maybe the band is used to this coming out of Seattle. In Cleveland, the crowd would have been louder and there would have been more energy for sure.
I have to say I'm SHOCKED that the grunge scene was born here. What happened to all those people?!?!? In general I'm disappointed with Seattle's concert vibe. I'm coming to terms with it, but it has NOTHING on Cleveland.
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