Last night HopAlong and I headed out to Oakland. Yes, Oakland ranks 5th among the country's crime rate and one of the highest murder rates in California. Yes, this is gangland. Yes, sometimes riots breakout here. But this didn't stop us from exploring Oaktown's hidden gems like the Paramount Theatre, the finest remaining examples of Art Deco design in the United States. It is a beautiful venue to watch extraordinary musical talent such as The Swell Season. I surprised HopAlong with this nice gift since he is a big fan of Glen Hansard and the movie Once, one of the best Irish films ever. Hands down he said this Swell Season concert beat U2 when he saw them at the Botanic Gardens. I agree, it was an amazing and religious experience! I was stunned the whole time.
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2 comments:
*Long, exaggerated gasp* Better than an U2 concert???? BLASPHEMY! I won't hear it!
Oh Don't get me wrong. U2 are and have been the biggest band on the planet for at least 20 years. But standing in a crowd of god knows how many thousands barely able to see the stage let alone those on it is hardly what you would call intimate and personal. When the guy on stage actually address individuals in the audience and stops for 5 minutes to let some people ask him questions and shares quite a few jokes and funny moments with the audience as well as over 2 hours of raw quality electrifying music. That's a concert. I could easily recreate my U2 experience by watching their DVD on tv since all i was really watching at their concert was a screen. The Glen Hansard experience can't be recreated by simply watching a DVD of him.
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