The End's Deck the Hall Ball with The Cure, Everclear, Sneaker Pimps and Green Apple Quick Step, Mercer Arena, Seattle, last night.

When the in-front security guys at a sold-out rock concert have to encourage the crowd to surf, pogo or even wave and are getting no response, well, perhaps that audience is just a little underwhelmed.

That happened - or rather didn't happen - during Sneaker Pimps' second-up set. The band was dreamily proficient and lead singer Kelli Dayton was conservatively sultry. But it was a staid performance. It really didn't deserve any more attention than it received.

The audience was there for the two headlining bands, The Cure and Everclear. The younger members were much more excited about Everclear, even though the Portland band played RKCNDY just two weeks ago. The Cure drew the older fans, many of whom have followed the gloomy Goth group since the late '70s.

Neither faction went away disappointed. Everclear played a chunky, jet-fueled set drawn mostly from its hit albums "Sparkle and Fade" and "So Much For The Afterglow." Perhaps because he's been playing these parts so much as of late, lead singer and writer Art Alexakis started with "Sometimes I Feel Like A Whore." He quickly blew through "Normal Like You," "Electra Made Me Blind," "Strawberry" and more, summing up the set with the sing-a-long "Santa Monica" and "Heroin Girl." His voice was raw and a little tired, but at least the stage afforded them room to move, unlike RKNCDY. The Everclear fans also moved, with plenty of them surfing the crunched crowd like Flipper. The security boys appeared once again happy in their work.

The Cure was greeted with enthusiastic screams and ran through career- spanning fan favorites like "Shake Dog Shake," "Push" and "Disintegration" with well-played professional punch. Frontman Robert Smith didn't look as deathly pale as usual, although he still wore his signature eye and lip makeup and the eternally black garb.
 
 

I'm utterly speechless. I'm not going to say much about the show in general, except that it was excellent, offered a lot of suprises and Robert honoured my request for A Strange Day.

It would be an understatement to say that Faith was the highlight of the show, it made the show, and i'd trade every cure show i've been to, to hear just this one song as it was performed tonight. He came out for the encore and said that he wanted to do this once in America, and said "this is called Faith."

It was with different lyrics, i'd never heard this version before, not even on a bootleg, i don't think it's ever been performed before in this way. I'll try as best i can to recall some of the words and lyrics, but i was too much in awe and amazement that i can't really repeat it now that it's over. catch me if i fall i'm losing hold, i can't just carry on this way, everytime i turn away, lose another blind game, the idea of perfection holds me suddenly i see you change....then from here it's completely new words, he never said 'faith' or sang anything from the original song after this point. A few lines i remember...'turn your face away, just walk away, you'll never understand me, of how i used to be, never understand how i feel, these are just things.'

Now i have to say, this is what i got from it, but i can't say that this is exactly as it was sung. What i got from this song was his frustration and sadness with a number of things, maybe getting older, and the fact that he will never be completely understood, and also about his past and the insignificance of 'things' in his life, that have no meaning.

Before this show i talked to Robert and told him how much it means to hear these older songs, and that it's really very special to hear them live; i have to wonder if he really did listen to me. During this show he mentioned that he'll be doing older songs, and those are the ones that really stood out above the rest, they were sung passionately...i don't know, but i like to think that i had something to do with that, i sincerly doubt it, but it's a nice thought. I taped this show but if you can believe this, it stopped right before Faith. I could have cried when i discovered that, but i felt a sense of peace too, that maybe it just wasn't meant to be... It's a once in a lifetime event i think, and very sacred to me. This song moved me like nothing else could, i will never forget...
 
 

Over all a pretty good show. Strong setlist. The band didn't seem to really have their concentration. RS screwed up a lot of lyrics (he started the chorus of Torture early). The mix was also kind of muddy on the low end. They kept the audience in the building though.

Robert and co. started at 10:15 and played till 12. His greeting was "at last." He left saying "see you next year." Robert didn't chat much and seemed very focused on the task at hand. The music sounded really good from 10 rows back.

It was amazing. Lot's of old stuff and some of the new. Robert completely rocked on Wrong Number. I never liked that song as much as when I heard it live last night!

I've got to say Fuck Everclear though. At one point during their set the singer said to the crowd something to the manner of: "You've got to calm down and be gentle to those makeup boys up front, they didn't come to see Everclear, they came to see The Cure." Later several fans yell out we want the Cure and he tells them to shut the fuck up. I think all the cure fans there,and there were a lot, got a good laugh at Everclear's guitarist who tried to act cool but fell off of the stage.

Basically everything at the Seattle show sucked except for The Cure who were amazing.
 

It was INCREDIBLE to have my very very first concert to be to see The Cure, but please bear with me if I sound like a "concert newbie." Less Than Jake, who was supposed to open the show, cancelled because they got into some stupid fight amongst themselves and they flew all the way back to Florida, so KNDD quickly got Green Apple Quickstep to replace them. Their music was okay, but the lead singer was a bit annoying and nobody really knew any of their songs, so nobody was getting into their music at all. Next on stage was Sneakerpimps...they performed really well and I really enjoyed it. Next came Everclear, which almost ruined the whole thing for me. Most of the fans at The Deck the Hall Ball wanted to see Everclear, so even before they got on stage, there was moshing going on. Almost all the TRUE Cure fans were getting really pissed off at little Middle Schoolers bumping into us and it really wore us all out. Everclear's lead singer couldn't count, 'cause he said that they were going to play two more songs, but they ended up playing four, but they FINALLY left the stage and a small number of people left too. However, people pushed toward the front even more and by the time everything was set up for The Cure to play, I could barely breathe and I couldnt' move. Now, enough of the non-Cure stuff...

The setlist is as follows...I think. I was so out of it after Everclear and I felt like I was about to puke, so if I missed a song or if it's out of order, please let everyone else know.

Shake Dog Shake was awesome live...it was really loud and really raw...a lot of the non-Cure fans were yelling, "What song is this?!"

Torture was a true gem...I never REALLY got into the album version but the live version just completely kicked ass.

Fascination Street was like the single mix, which I was kinda happy about, but it was pretty basic and you couldn't really hear Roger's keyboards very well.

Push was simply awesome...it was definitely one of the best songs of the night.

The Holy Hour...need I say anything? Just hearing this live kicked all ass.

A Strange Day was really good as well, even though it isn't one of my favorites...this also seemed really raw too and I think was better than the version on the Play Out video.

100 Years was fabulous...it didn't drag on at all and was even better than the "Paris" version.

Piggy In the Mirror...it was actually only the second version of it I ever heard, since I don't have the album. The more and more I hear it, the more I'm starting to love it :)

The Same Deep Water as You can only be described as "WOW." I could tell that the non-Cure fans really didn't want to be there for such a long song, but the thunder and lightning was done really well and it all meshed perfectly.

Just Like Heaven was great...the crowd really got into this one. EVERYBODY was dancing. Robert did the triple you's again for both verses, but he did it in a way that sounded better than when he did it on The Tonight Show, so it really wasn't all that bad.

Inbetween Days was good, although Jason didn't seem to have the same power with the drums as Boris did and you couldn't hear Roger's keyboards very well again.

From the Edge of the Deep Green Sea lacked some intensity...it wasn't as fast as it usually was, but it was still a very good performance, especially since Perry is gradually getting the solo much better.

Wrong Number sounds 50 million times better live...although Perry had some problems with the sound at the beginning. Even my friend Anna, who's totally sick of it liked it live, so that's gotta tell you something. :) Robert even added a little solo to the end of it.

Cut was REALLY loud...it was awesome!! Robert was really getting into this one...he really stood out against the rest of the band.

Disintegration was great...it wasn't faster like most of their other performances, but instead it was at the same tempo as on the album. Jason didn't seem to put much into the bass, so it really really sounded like the album version...Robert took the mic off the stand and really put a lot of emotion into the performance.

Faith was the big surprise of the night. I from reading all the other reviews of the past shows that The Holy Hour and other older songs would be performed, but FAITH? Wow...Robert was VERY emotional in this one, which I think lasted around 10 minutes or so. I believe there were added lyrics, but they might have easily whizzed over my head since I was already out of it.

10:15 Saturday Night and Killing an Arab were really loud and got everyone moving, even the non-Cure fans.

All in all, I think the real gems of the night were definitely Faith, The Same Deep Water as You, and Push. Jason is REALLY improving on his drumming, although you could tell he was lacking in a few songs, and Perry was actually moving while he played!! Robert was smiling for most of the night and although I couldn't make out a damn word he was saying to the audience execpt for "This song's from Pornography..." he seemed like he was having a good time. Roger was all smiles as well and Simon was just jumping all over the place. The Cure completely made up for the mayhem of Everclear's performance and I'm happy to say that my very first concert could not have gone any better :)

what can i say - it freaking rocked :) i went to the portland concert last year (worked on the gorge date) and that was cool - my first cure concert ya see - portland had prayers for rain, bare, and lullabye... but this one had pornography :) portland - more cure fans and "adults" seattle - more 12 year old everclear fans crowd surfing

portland - more hits and singalongs seattle - more rarities and spiritual

im just curious if anybody saw anyone there - what did you all look like? i sat in GA with 4 friends. 3 guys, 1 girl, all early 20's. i was bald in black :) rest were non-standoutish :P wondering if maybe i saw some of you, and didnt realize it :) btw - wtf was robert saying about "faith" and what was that "that didnt fucking rhyme" bit about? anyone notice perry was smiling a helluva lot at robert - nice to see the happiness... and how about that song - sht forgot which - when roger and robert were hunched over together playing in one corner, and perry and simon doing the same on the other side - they just started at each other - like competing duets :P they all had such the evil/mischievous grins. god it was awesome - id keep rambling about it, but those of you who were there know ;) who was that girl who stopped robert at the hotel and requested a strange day? you got your wish :P and i got mine hearing some of pornogrpahy and wrong number live :)

Seattle was the best show I have ever seen. My roomate is high up in the entertainment industry, and she pulled a few strings and got some backstage passes. So, when the Cure was about to come on she handed me a pass, and said try to look professional, and good luck. I couldn't believe it! My roomate is so rad. Anyway, so I went backstage and stood about 10 feet or so from Rodger and watched the show. It was so amazing. When the beginning riff of Faith started I almost lost it, that is my favorite Cure song, and album. When the show was over I walked behind the stage and by their dressing room. I stood there for a while, hoping to get to meet them, but I didn't have some kind of symbol on my pass so I couldn't get in. So, I found my roommate and one of my friends, I handed her the pass, so she could try, but it didn't work. I would just like to say, that if you ever get the chance to watch a major show from backstage, do it! I've been backstage for several and I know that the sound quality is bad, but, but it's an experience you'll remember for the rest of your life.

Well, last night for Seattle was my first Cure show ever and i dont think ill forget it for the rest of my life. It seemed almost too real as I saw the band come on stage and start "Shake Dog Shake" Forget bootlegs, forget the Cure in Orange....this was, in my opinion, the best version ever done. Id like to give a big HI to all the Seattle Babblers who bothered to show up ahead of time (all four of us :)) Like others before me have said, Faith was just incredible. My biggest laugh of the night is when they announced that Less than Jake cancelled, everyone cheered and applauded. I would kill for a copy of the bootleg or live broadcast for Seattle, as i feel it was one of their best shows ever (but then again im biased) Well, you now know what you have to look forward to Chicago.

I felt that what you needed was yet another concert review. Well then: starting from the beginning, with the pre-show activities, a.k.a. How I Chickened Out.

After work I walked over to the Seattle Center, found my way around the Space Needle and Key Arena and the fountain, and finally got to Mercer. What I was doing there so early could only be described as hanging onto a measly and unrealistic hope that I would encounter Robert wandering around back there somewhere, all by himself of course, and that I could get him to stop and talk to me, let me tell him how much I was looking forward to the show. Shake his hand maybe. Mind you, in this scenario I was totally alone; there were no other fans around. How wrong this dream was.

Behind Mercer Arena, at the door marked "Players Entrance" were several large trucks and an entire block of RS look-alike fans, leaning against the wall, apparently waiting in line. For what? I don't know. It's not like they were letting them backstage two at a time or something, right? But there they were, nonetheless, all hoping for a private moment with Rob, just as pathetically as I had been. At least they had the willpower and stamina to stand out there and wait, though. Me, I just cast furtive glances at them all as I walked by, very aware of their suspicious looks back (we Cure fans all turn competitive with one another on the nights of concerts), and I just bowed my head and went home. It depressed me enough that I didn't even want to go down to Floyd's and meet the other Babblers. (Sorry, guys. I'll do better next time.) RS, if you're out there reading this, pray tell, how does a normal person meet you?? *sigh*

I genuinely envy those of you who have managed to meet him, especially in a relatively quiet moment, like the one who followed them to Seattle and met him off the bus. I hope you know how lucky you are. It shouldn't matter to me this much; in most frames of mind it doesn't. But right now, posting to this list, and knowing I've just missed my chance in the last 24 hours, it does matter, and it does sting. I'm not ambitious enough, what can I say. It's my own fault. Oh well, moving along...

Waiting at home whilst the other three bands played was a very weird feeling. Like something I was supposed to be at was going on without me. But logging on to IRC fixed that problem, for I found that KNDD, the radio station sponsoring this festival, had their own chat room on webmaster, where all of the bands were taking turns chatting, and therefore at 9:00 I and several other grateful Seattleites got to chat with the Cure before their set. Ironically, I don't think the actual #thecure on webmaster knew that they were there. Oh well...this was a much more civilized chat anyway. It was moderated for one thing, so pointless all-caps-bandits and I-love-Cure!!-color-scripters were devoiced on the spot (well, sort of on the spot). The Cure was being very alert and friendly; apparently all of them collaborating in typing at once. I asked about the meaning of the name "mint car" and they answered: "Simon: I asked a little boy once what kind of car I should get, and he said 'a mint car.'" So there we go. :)

So we logged off and drove down to Mercer Arena, where, after being sent back to the car to leave my keychain pocket knife behind (I was really hoping to do someone some harm with the manicure scissors, too), we got in and joined the general admission floor crowd.

I might not actually say as much about the concert itself, since the setlist speaks for itself as to how excellent their choices of songs were, for the most part. I do wish to add that the audience kind of sucked; they seemed tired and several of them were cringing at the strobe lights and sighing and looking at their watches--but to the band's extreme credit, the show was energetic and upbeat and it looked like our boys were having a good time nonetheless. I couldn't help but feel that when Robert called out, "Hello? Are you still there?" with a cheeky grin during "Wrong Number", it was directed at the listless audience. But everyone waved their arms around and cheered a bit at that, so he seemed gratified.

Btw, if anyone has any idea what he was doing with the "Faith" lyrics--i.e. making them up, or using an alternate version of some sort--do tell, please. Also, if anyone taped the show, kindly let me know...it'd be a good one to have. KNDD broadcasted the entire thing, so it would've been even easier to tape if you *didn't* go.

Anyway--he ended with "See you next year." None of this "and we'll never see you again!" stuff...hehe...so does that mean he actually *won't* see us next year, since he's so fond of telling untruths? Well--I doubt it--they did a great job and were much appreciated by the end, even if the fans were overly tired.

I was so happy to see the sun shining in Seattle; it really is a beautiful city - even in winter - when the weather is nice. Even though I had only had about 2 hours of sleep (we left very early from Portland), I felt wonderful and excited about the show that night. Eric and I arrived at Floyd's, the designated meeting place, shortly after 4:00 and found Peter and Josh Van Winkle waiting outside. We went in, ordered some food (I was so wound up though, all I could eat was a salad) and chatted for a bit. Josh said that a line was already forming outside the arena (in fact, people had begun queueing up at 2 pm) and he was anxious to head over there. As he was leaving, Scott - another Babbler - arrived. I was a bit concerned about the line (I had GA tickets once again, and hoped to get a good position in front of the stage), but I needed to wait for my brother, Bill, to arrive (I had his ticket) and I wanted to see if any more Babblers would show up (none did). Bill got there at about 5:30 and after he had downed a beer, we all walked to the arena. There was indeed a long line, but our late arrival didn't prevent us from getting fairly close to the stage (we were probably about 30 feet back). This time, the wait wasn't as unbearable; they were playing techno, which I like, and the deejay was quite good.

The first band to perform was a some no-name local outfit (Green Apple Quick Step) who had been called in at the last minute to replace Less Than Jake. This band was terrible and the lead singer was an arrogant little prick; he kept trying to stir up the audience, going so far as to spray beer on the people down in front. Thankfully, their set was short.

Next were The Sneaker Pimps; they were good. I liked the mood of their music: dark and yet danceable. Then - after an extremely long changeover period - came Everclear and all hell broke loose. The crowd, which had been fairly well behaved until then, erupted into madness. It was horrible...I was nearly knocked down more times than I can remember, bashed in the head repeatedly by crowd surfers (at one point, my head was wrenched sideways and I felt my neck snap...very frightening) and crushed so hard from all sides I was afraid my ribs would break (even now, my chest hurts when I take a deep breath). It was worse for poor Eric, who had never been in a mosh pit before. My husband is the most easygoing person I know, so I was quite surprised later when he told me he had punched a crowd surfer as the guy was passing over him. Eric said he was furious because the guy "must've weighed at least 200 pounds" and was crushing people, especially the girls. There was no place to take refuge from the onslaught, no escape other than climbing up and being tossed to the front and herded away by security. Still, like the night before, I ended up being shoved right to the front, this time a little left of center and four deep from the rail. Fortunately, Eric had managed to stay with me by maintaining a death grip on my arm with one hand; Bill and Peter were lost somewhere in the fray. By the time The Cure came on, I was exhausted, dehydrated and feeling both faint and nauseous. I was so incapacitated, I don't even remember what song they started with. I do remember, though, that Robert came over and stood directly in front of me, playing his guitar and looking out at the audience. He was backlit, so I couldn't see his face, but I tried to smile in case he looked at me. As in Portland, their performance was excellent, though their demeanor was a bit subdued; they didn't look as happy as the night before. Roger, who was in front of me, didn't smile at all. It may have been the heat, which was nearly unbearable...Robert was drenched with sweat by the second song. Many of the songs were the same ones they did in Portland (they played SDWAY again, and again I sobbed), though they added FTEOTDGS (for which I was grateful; its Eric's favorite Cure song and he said it was the only good thing about the whole concert), Piggy In The Mirror and Faith. Robert changed the words to Faith, though, and it wasn't just a forgotten line here and there; the lyrics were entirely different. I understood most of what he was singing (though I can't really remember the words now); it was beautiful, even better than the old version, and made me cry. Has he sung this new version at any of the other shows?

They ended their performance at about midnight and I was ready for it to be over. Not because I wanted them to stop playing, but because I was was feeling so awful. I desperately needed a drink of water, and to lie down. Eric and I located Bill, then we staggered out into the lovely, cool air outside and headed straight for the friend's apartment where we were staying the night. Far from the delicious, dreamy way I felt after the Portland show, this time I felt only exhaustion, pain and disappointment. My disappointment had nothing to do with The Cure's performance; they did not let me down. Rather, it was the whole experience of the evening. The camraderie I enjoyed with the other Cure fans in Portland was absent in Seattle; no one spoke to anyone else, unless it was an expression of hostility. A girl (some platinum blond chick with raccoon eyes) actually spit at my face when I wouldn't let her shove her way in front of me; she was quite fortunate I was in such a weakened state. This behavior, combined with the moshing madness, ruined the show for me. I'm still glad I attended both shows, but in hindsight, I wish I would've stayed back out of the crowd in Seattle and just enjoyed the music, instead of trying to get close to the front and having to deal with all the mayhem up there. I just wanted to replicate the perfect experience I had in Portland.

And then there were the not-so-nice people (if you fit these descriptions, you'd be wise not to 'fess up to it): the bitch who spit at me in Seattle, and the girls behind me at both shows who were climbing up my back and cursing me in a most vicious manner for being tall. I can't help it and, in fact, if it were possible to change such things, I would choose to be 4 or 5 inches shorter. Does being a tall female somehow make it wrong for me to be near the front at a concert? I noticed that these same girls didn't say a word when a tall guy was in their way. If you really wanted to be in front, you should've taken your position at the beginning of the show and suffered through the other bands, like most of us did, instead of waiting out in the concourse for The Cure to come on. So there. And, finally, there was the girl who flashed her breasts during The Cure's set in Seattle (Roger got a chuckle out of it, but I didn't see any of the other band members' reactions). A word of advice, dear: if you really wish to make a lasting impression on your audience, I suggest implants (and I thought I was small-chested).

Well, that's my story. If you've read this far, thank you. I'm sorry I didn't get to meet more of you before the shows. To Kitty, Peter, Josh and Scott: it was very nice meeting all of you and I hope your concert experiences were at least as good as mine (hopefully, much better than mine was in Seattle... :P ).