This show review is going to be a bit different from my other ones. It took me all day to write it, because frankly, I couldn't decide how I wanted to go about this. I said a lot, and this one is very different simply because I went into this show as a fan first and foremost, and a journalist second. Hopefully you like the insight to the other side of things for Immortal Music.
I bought tickets for myself and my mom to go see Papa Roach and Seether at the Hard Rock Live in Orlando, Florida. We were both expecting this to be one of the best concerts either one of us had ever been to, because she had been dying to see Seether and I had been dying to see Papa Roach. Then I was granted an interview over email with Seether, as well as a photo pass for the night. That just made everything more exciting. However, part of the appeal was the fact that it was at such a legendary venue, and frankly, the Hard Rock we went to, was a total let down. Perhaps other Hard Rock locations would be better, but the one connected to Universal Studios in Orlando isn't quite up to par. It became obvious very quickly that a concert venue should just stay totally separate from an amusement park. Period. The two just don't mix much. One is just for sheer entertainment, and does bring in great money -one can bring in great money, but should fully be about the music. For some, music is just entertainment, but its so much more to most people. At a glance, it looked like the Hard Rock and their staff felt that way about music. From the framed photos of various band members, to the gold guitars on the door handles, to the staff uniforms that say "Music Is Life." Just makes you believe that they truly love music, musicians and fans, right? Apparently its all an act, because the first two bands got totally screwed over. The sound was so off that unless you were by the barricade, they sounded like noise, and you could tell it geniunely was not their not fault. Or at least, some people could. Sadly, between the poor sound, and awful red lights that simply just hate cameras, the Hard Rock basically cost Islander and Kyng tons of new fans. Had they been given a fair chance just like Seether or Papa Roach, and been treated like they should have, they wouldn't have been out anything. From what I could hear of both bands, I thought they were great. I wish more of my pictures had turned out for them, but a lot of them didn't. Be on the look out soon for reviews of albums from both bands, I want to give them a little shout out. They deserve some credit too. Annoyance with the sound quality, lighting and overly drunk people who were still being served alcohol long after they should have been cut off, it was a good show! Seether and Papa Roach made up for it all. Seether made myself and my mom very happy with their set actually. They made me happy because they only used the red light a very limited amount, and because of that, I got some of the best pictures I have ever taken that night. The way they made my mom very happy was just by performing. For the first time in probably four years, I actually put away my camera and just enjoyed the show. The thing about being a music journalist, concerts are never just for fun anymore. They're opportunities. Fun opportunities, none the less, I never just go to a show just as a fan anymore. This show was the first show I ever bought tickets for the day they went on sale, and this is the first show in just under two years that I had intended on going to just for fun. Yes, the pass changed that, but it didn't take away from all the fun. Was I frustrated? Absolutely. I'll be perfectly honest, I was in tears because of how frustrated I was. We drove four hours to a bad venue, that made two of the bands look horrible, and there was nothing the bands could do about it. It wasn't looking promising for Seether and Papa Roach, and at one point, I was debating on just asking if we could go home just because I was that fed up with everything. I didn't though, because we had driven all that way for two reasons -and those two reasons had not taken the stage yet. Now that I am looking back at it all, I'm glad I stayed. I won't go back to the Hard Rock Live in Orlando, and I wouldn't want to book the band I manage there either, but I can't say I regret going either. This show as a Christmas present to my mom, and she finally got to see Seether live, and I finally got to see Papa Roach. More specifically, I finally got to see my all time favorite song, "Scars" performed live in person by Papa Roach themselves. Despite all the drunk assholes that had far too much to drink, there were still a ton of great people. Several of them were close to the barricade, where my mom and I found ourselves when "Scars" started to be played. I was too focused on just trying to see right where I was, but my mom asked the guy I was standing next to if I could get in front of him and explained that the song means everything to me and motioned to my tattoo of some of the lyrics on my arm. He let me in front of him with no question, and actually let me stay up near him until I decided to leave the pit. Experiencing that song live though meant everything to me. The fact that I was able to see most of the band during the song as well, just made it all the more memorable. That was everything I could have asked for, and just as I expected, I did cry. Everyone deserves that moment, where they finally hear their favorite song live, and I finally got that. After missing changes to see them, sometimes narrowly missing even, several times, it finally happened. Thank you, Papa Roach and Seether for making it all worth it, and for reminding me that sometimes you just need to stop and enjoy the music. For everyone else, if you want more information on the show -let me know. I will tell all, if you want it. There's plenty more where that came from. You can also check out all the pictures over on the page -and I recommend checking them out, many of them turned out fabulously.
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January 2022
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