So, like I was saying earlier, a lot has happened in the last year. I will try and hit some of the bigger points. They won't be chronological as much as they will be stream of thought so bear with me.
I was able to take Phillipa to her first concert. She had mentioned to me that she had never been to a concert before and I like giving special things for birthdays. I am not the greatest gift giver in terms of remembering, so I try and make sure that when I do give a gift it is a good one. She had previously mentioned to me how much she liked the band Maroon 5 and I found out that they were coming right around the time of her birthday. I decided I would try and surprise her by buying the tickets and then springing it on her but she would have none of it. It was hard enough to convince her to go to the concert.
The week of the concert finally approached (mid September) and we spent it preparing. Well, I did. I looked up setlists and listened to all their hits that I could remember and tried generally to prepare myself for the experience. It is always way more fun to go into a show knowing the songs and being able to sing along than it is to just sort of sit there like "Is this one new? No? Nevermind." I was fully prepared by the time we went to Seoul on Saturday.
The way a Korean show happens is vastly different to America. First of all it was outside near the Olympic stadium. In the distance we could see the stadium where the LG Twins and the Doosan Bears play. A game had just taken place earlier in the night, so the area was totally packed with people. We went to where the concert was supposed to be and after checking our tickets we were let into a holding area. It was a completely general admission concert, but you had to pick which area you wanted to stand in. There were four areas total. We were in the back area which turned out to be a fantastic idea because the tickets were cheaper and the view was still good. In the holding area though you were basically put into lines about four people wide and forty deep. There were easily twenty of those. When the time came ushers would come up to your line and ask you to move into the general admission seating. By the time we got settled in our area it was turning into dusk. The concert stage was a little unimpressive by my standards but still nice.
The opening group went on and were not so great. I can't even remember who they were. They claimed that they had some radio hit, but I didn't recognize it. The lead singer looked like Jesse from Breaking Bad, so that was entertaining enough to make jokes about. When we went over to get drinks the difference between American and Korean concerts became apparent. The beers were about four dollars and were the equivalent of 16oz cans. In America you would have paid more for less beer. Maybe about 8 or 9 dollars for a 16oz cup. Also the lines in Korea moved very fast, considering there was only one place I could see that was actually selling beer. We got our beers and went back for the end of the opening group and had time to just sort of sit around. It was funny taking Phillipa because she just sort of had no idea how concerts work. She expected Maroon 5 to go on stage right after the opening band got off. I told her that they had to switch instruments, make sure everything was tuned and working then prime the audience a bit. I also had to explain to her that when they finish, the band will walk offstage then come back to play the encore. She was so lucky to have such a handsome knowledgeable man accompany her to the show.
When Maroon 5 came out they did not disappoint. I had seen them play live on television and it was obvious they were well practiced. They were able to improvise and were very good showman as well as being very good musicians. Adam Levines first words to the crowd were the traditional Korean greeting of "Annyeong haseyo!" and the Koreans exploded when he said it. Even though it is only one word, I am glad he took the time to learn it. He made a point during the concert of complimenting them on being one of his favorite crowds because, as he said, "you sing along to every one of my songs" and it's true. They did. For a country whose first language is not English they sure did know a lot of English songs. They were very into it and just generally had a good energy. In Korea they like to do this thing where they bring colored sticks or ears or wands and wave them around or wear them. If you look at the video I post at the end you will be able to see. It really gives the crowd a personality of it's own. When Maroon 5 finished their set they said thank you and goodnight and went off stage. The audience started chanting "Encore! Encore! Encore" but the cute thing was that they were mispronouncing it. They were all saying "Incore! Incore! Incore!" Instead of lighters they were all waving their glowing sticks around. Maroon 5 came back out and played a couple of their best songs then just as quickly went away again. The concert was a good experience and I think Phillipa enjoyed it just as much as I did if not more. On a scale of 1-10 I would give it about a 7 or an 8.
Here is my favorite song from the Maroon 5 concert. This video was filmed from about right where I was and is much better quality than the one I have on my facebook page.
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