Author Topic: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst  (Read 2266 times)

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Online lonestar

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Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« on: April 02, 2020, 03:57:51 PM »
Stolen idea from the GD sports venue thread...


First- Concord Pavillion, The Tubes with Joan Jett opening

Last- Oakland Metro Operahouse, Allegaeon

Best- Tough to answer....from a pure experience standpoint, it'd go with the August Hall. Clean af, great acoustics, and still very intimate. But emotionally I'm really connected to the Oakland Operahouse, it's dingy, dirty, bathrooms fucking stink, and I have yet to not be in the front row for a string of insane shows there (Allegaeon, Orphaned Land 2x, Anathema, Firewind, Alestorm, Gloryhammer, Intervals, Mindmaze and more)

Worst- Shoreline Amphitheater, Huge sprawled out venue built on a former dump so it always has a stinky edge to it. Hate that place even though I've seen some pretty sweet shows there (Sabbath, Grateful Dead, Yes_)

Offline DTA

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #1 on: April 02, 2020, 04:08:09 PM »
First: Electric Factory (Philly) - '98, Megadeth

Last: Tower Theatre (Philly) - '19, Dream Theater

Best: The Fillmore (Philly) - Great view, great balcony, and excellent sound. The little stage upstairs is even awesome

Worst: Tower Theatre - The venue is okay but the area is devoid of anything interesting and in a trashy part of the city...I wish DT would go back to the Merriam Theater in Center City Philly

Offline Anguyen92

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #2 on: April 02, 2020, 04:36:16 PM »
First: To my recollection, the Grandstand at the LA County Fair to see Shinedown in 2013.  Was a free show since I had a free ticket to the county fair on that day.

Last: The Knitting Factory in Spokane, WA to see Alter Bridge (was the final of four shows that I saw them in the West Coast, last February)

Best: The Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles.  Looks very classy inside.  Parking is reasonable if you know where to look for a spot.  The sound is solid.  View is good in the four sections of GA as long as they don't put seats in the GA sections.  Been there for six concerts and all of them ranges from great to amazing and the best shows I have seen ever.  Other solid venues to me is the FivePoint Amphitheater in Irvine, the Anaheim House of Blues, and the Fox Performing Arts Center in Riverside.

Worst: The Orpheum Theater in LA.  I got ripped off on parking when seeing Teduschi Trucks Band. There was no metal detectors in the venue when you get in, and a guy was smoking in the row in front of me and was being a dick when a lady asked him to put it out and that there was no security to give him the warning.  That was the only time at a concert I didn't feel safe and secure at a venue.  I've been to Belasco Theater where there was pits, crowdsurfers, and a lot of pushers everywhere at a show and I can say that I felt a lot safer there than at the Orpheum. 
« Last Edit: April 04, 2020, 09:06:55 AM by Anguyen92 »

Offline max_security

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #3 on: April 02, 2020, 05:08:34 PM »
First : ZZ Top w Sammy Hagar 1983 Capital Center Largo , MD. My folks dropped me and my friend off and we exited on the opposite side , lol. Set us back about an hour.

Last : Iron Maiden Jiffy Lube Live Bristow , VA 2019.  Even as a shadow of their former selves they are still one of the best !!!

Best : Iron Maiden w Accept Merriweather Post Pavilion Columbia , MD 1985 . I was a casual Accept fan until I saw this show. I also became a fan of Adrian Smith that night.
Honorable Mention to Blue Murder , Hammerjacks Baltimore , MD 1987 ( or maybe 88 ). Hell of a Power Trio , John Sykes had the perfect guitar tone ( or sound engineer ). The sound was everywhere but did not bury the rhythm section at all. Tony Franklin was fantastic on bass. The room was inherently bad for sound as well but not for these guys.

Worst : I'm having trouble with this one. I have never paid to see a professional act that didn't deliver that I can recall. I never have liked George Lynch's guitar tone ( and live even less ). But Dokken still gave me my money's worth.



Offline pg1067

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #4 on: April 02, 2020, 05:40:53 PM »
First:  Probably the Hollywood Bowl for a concert that my grade school band went to.  First rock show was at the Long Beach Arena (Ratt opening for Ozzy in April 1984).

Last:  The Alvas Showroom in San Pedro, CA  (YYNOT in Nov. 2019).

Best:  Best is tough because it's difficult to separate the venue from the show.  There's also a big range between small clubs and places like the LA Coliseum.  It might be nostalgia more than anything else, but I think I have to give it up to the Long Beach Arena.  It's been nearly 30 years since I went to a concert there, but I remember every concert I ever attended having great sound.  There's also a lot to be said for smaller venues like the Avalon (formerly the Palace) in Hollywood (Fates Warning Parallels anniversary show in 2010!) and the House of Blues, but that's probably more of a function of the size of the venue than the venue itself.

Worst:  Probably the LA Coliseum (The Who and the Stones, both in 1989).  Shitty neighborhood.  Virtually no official parking (we parked in someone's backyard).  Run down venue with outdated bathrooms and lousy concessions.  I also generally don't like outdoor venues.


Worst: The Orpheum Theater in LA.  I got ripped off on parking when seeing Teduschi Trucks Band. There was no metal detectors in the venue when you get in, and a guy was smoking in the row in front of me and was being a dick when a lady asked him to put it out and that there was no security to give him the warning.  That was the only time at a concert I didn't feel safe and secure at a venue.  I've been to Belasco Theater where there was pits, crowdsurfers, and a lot of pushers everywhere at a show and I can say that I felt a lot safer there than at the Orpheum. 

Interesting.  I've only been to one show there (DT on the DT12 tour in 2014).  It's a little off of the financial district downtown, but it's not really a bad area, and it's only half a mile from the 7th Street Metro Center, where you can catch either the Blue or Red Line.  There's also a good bar right next door where you can grab some pre-show drinks.
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Offline El Barto

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #5 on: April 02, 2020, 06:09:16 PM »
First--Reunion Arena--ACDC 1983
Last--The Granada--Haken/Townsend 2020--Old art decco movie theater from the 40s. I've probably seen more movies there than concerts.
Favorite*-- The Bronco Bowl--A bowling alley with a 3500 seat arena in the back. Dallas's premier midsize venue for a very long time. DT's venue of choice before it was knocked down. Pretty much beloved by all down here.
Worst--Probably whatever they're calling that shed in San Bernadino this week. I kind of like the sense of lawlessness it fosters from being so huge, but it's honestly too big. Parking blows. They hire bums to work security in the front.


*I've been to some great venues, but I have no idea how I'd call one of them the best. Going with my favorite.
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Offline TAC

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #6 on: April 02, 2020, 07:56:34 PM »
First- Cape Cod Coliseum June 25, 1983  Def Leppard, Krokus, Gary Moore

Last- Mohegan Sun's Wolf's Den November 2, 2019  UFO

Best-
Arena-Worcester Centrum
Club- The Strand-Providence

Worst-
Arena-TD Garden
Club- Axis-Boston
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline Lonk

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #7 on: April 02, 2020, 08:14:40 PM »
First: IZOD Center in New Jersey.

Last: Brooklyn Steel (Plini and Repiphery, Feb 16, 2020)

Best: so many venues! Radio City Music Hall and Beacon Theater might be tied for best.

Worst: Irving Plaza  :tdwn

Worst: Tower Theatre - The venue is okay but the area is devoid of anything interesting and in a trashy part of the city...I wish DT would go back to the Merriam Theater in Center City Philly

Agree. Not to mention how bad the sound is. They need to upgrade their speakers.
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Offline TAC

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #8 on: April 02, 2020, 08:18:36 PM »
First: IZOD Center in New Jersey.

I saw a few concerts at the Brendan Byrne Arena back in the day.
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
Winger Theater Forums........or WTF.  ;D
TAC got a higher score than me in the electronic round? Honestly, can I just drop out now? :lol

Offline El Barto

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #9 on: April 03, 2020, 12:36:46 AM »
Best: so many venues! Radio City Music Hall and Beacon Theater might be tied for best.

Worst: Irving Plaza  :tdwn
The Beacon is exceptional, and Irving Plaza was pretty weak. I considered both for those spots. RCMH has it's good and bad points.
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Offline frogprog

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #10 on: April 03, 2020, 09:34:07 AM »
First- The Spectrum Philadelphia for Rush Grace Under Pressure

Last- Keswick Theater for Flying Colors

Worst- probably Electric Factory or Theater Of Living Arts (TLA) in Philly. Standing on concrete all night sucks. ( shut up, old man!)Especially since it used to be a seated theater with a sloped floor towards stage but now just SRO. Not good on the lower back!

Favorite- probably Keswick. Even though seats are old and shitty, the staff is so nice and I have seen so many Prog shows there. Plus it's about 2 miles from my house!! Makes for doable work night shows.

Offline Stadler

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #11 on: April 03, 2020, 09:50:33 AM »
I'm stealing from both TAC (arena/club) and Bart (favorite as opposed to best) here.

First:  Judas Priest/Iron Maiden, New Haven Coliseum, 01-09-1982
Last: Squeeze/Look Park, Ridgefield Playhouse, 02-21-2020

Best:  Club: Toad's Place or the TLA in Philly
          Theater:  Ridgefield Playhouse (theater with club capacity)
          Arena: Madison Square Garden (unbelievable sound; I saw Temple of the Dog there and it was amazing); New Haven Coliseum had shitty sound, but man, did it have character.  I miss that old dump.
          Stadium:  HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH.  It's like saying "who's your best dictator" or "what's the best infectious disease"
Worst: Club: The old Tuxedo Junction in Danbury; great acts (Fish, Ace Frehley) but shitty logistics
            Theater:  I'm cool with the Tower Theater here.  Electric Factory isn't that great either, though I've seen some good shows there.
            Arena: Springfield Coliseum: an old hockey arena that just sounds like a steel box with a boom box playing in it.  I saw Pearl Jam there early on and it was just an hour and 45 minutes of noise.  Hartford Civic Center; big echo-y box.
           Stadium: All of them.  Stadium shows blow.
           

Offline Nick

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #12 on: April 03, 2020, 10:43:45 AM »
First: Pink Floyd, Philadelphia, 1994.
Last: Haken, New Orleans, 2020
Best: Ayreon, Tilburg, 2017
Worst: Probably some awful opener I've long since forgotten about or a decent performance ruined by absolute shit sound at some shit venue.
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Offline pg1067

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #13 on: April 03, 2020, 10:44:41 AM »
First: Pink Floyd, Philadelphia, 1994.
Last: Haken, New Orleans, 2020
Best: Ayreon, Tilburg, 2017
Worst: Probably some awful opener I've long since forgotten about or a decent performance ruined by absolute shit sound at some shit venue.

The discussion is of venues more so than concerts.
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Offline Stadler

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #14 on: April 03, 2020, 10:48:44 AM »
First: Pink Floyd, Philadelphia, 1994.
Last: Haken, New Orleans, 2020
Best: Ayreon, Tilburg, 2017
Worst: Probably some awful opener I've long since forgotten about or a decent performance ruined by absolute shit sound at some shit venue.

The discussion is of venues more so than concerts.

Yeah, we're interested in that shit venue, not the awful opener.  :) :) :)

Offline Nick

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #15 on: April 03, 2020, 10:56:22 AM »
First: Pink Floyd, Philadelphia, 1994.
Last: Haken, New Orleans, 2020
Best: Ayreon, Tilburg, 2017
Worst: Probably some awful opener I've long since forgotten about or a decent performance ruined by absolute shit sound at some shit venue.

The discussion is of venues more so than concerts.

Indeed it is, which is why I should read fully next time! :lol

First: Spectrum, Philadelphia, 1994.
Last: Southport Hall, New Orleans, 2020.

Tried doing best and worst for this and it's incredibly difficult given how many different ways to rate a venue. My likely least favorite (Croc Rock) in Allentown was shut down years ago. Favorites locally are Sellersville Theater and Penn's Peak in Jim Thorpe. 013 in Tilburg is amazing. Lots of great theaters around.
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Online SoundscapeMN

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #16 on: April 03, 2020, 11:41:08 AM »
unsure about some of my answers, but without question the most famous is First Ave in Minneapolis that likely most of the people on the forum have seen in Purple Rain.

I also did see Michael Nesmith at The Troubadour in LA a few years ago. Many live albums were recorded there including a Kevin Gilbert record of the same name and the aforementioned Nesmith show I was at.

Online King Postwhore

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #17 on: April 03, 2020, 12:17:54 PM »
First - Asia - Worcester, MA. Centrum 1983
Last - Cheap Trick - Capitol Center for the Arts, Concord, N.H.  Jan 2020
Best - Anderson Wakeman, Bruford & Howe at The Wang Center in Boston, MA. 1989 This beautiful theater was made for acoustics.
Worst - Dream Theater - The Palladium, Worcester, MA 2010.  It's refurbished now but it was a pit back in the day and it was a hundred degree day. 
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Offline Lonk

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #18 on: April 03, 2020, 12:34:25 PM »
First: IZOD Center in New Jersey.

I saw a few concerts at the Brendan Byrne Arena back in the day.
It was my one and only show at the venue, from what I remember it was good. This was after the name change of course.

Worst - Dream Theater - The Palladium, Worcester, MA 2010.  It's refurbished now but it was a pit back in the day and it was a hundred degree day.

That reminded me of a pretty bad experience at Irving Plaza (my choice for worse venue).

In 2012 (?) I went to see Animals as Leaders there with Chon and After the Burial. I usually don't get in mosh pits, but the venue was so hot, being in the mosh-pit felt better than the rest of the floor. For the first hour of the show I felt like I was going to pass out.
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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #19 on: April 03, 2020, 12:36:54 PM »
There was no ventilation.  Paint was falling off the walls from the 1920's.  They finally have AC and painted it all and bigger seats in the balcony.  There were many from DTF that were at this show.  They can concur how bad it was.  My wife almost passed out.
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Offline JayOctavarium

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #20 on: April 03, 2020, 01:12:16 PM »
First-REO Speedwagon at the Ventura County Fairgrounds arena. The VC fairgrounds are... Meh. Free shows during the fair make up for the mehness

Last- Flying Colors at the Majestic Ventura Theater.  The Ventura Theater sucks. It's 10 minutes away from me without traffic, and I've seen more shows there than I can remember, but the sound there... Horrible. Not the best acoustics, but also their in house sound guy is a dick who keeps his levels way higher than they need to be.

Best- judging by venue? That's a hard one. Top 3 would be The Wiltern or ahreek (LA), or Santa Barbara bowl (Santa Barbara). I'd probably go with The Wiltern.   I do have to say, The Canyon Club in Agoura is a favorite of Mine, but I'm slightly biased, as I've seen so a metric shitton of shows there, but it's also not the "best".

Worst-  oof. Ventura Theater for reasons I mentioned above. So many memories good and bad (breaking my toe in the Pit at a misfits show in 2007...hanging out with my buddy's super hot goth friend and moshing with her to some Russian Band opening for Yngwie (also 2007?).... Seeing FLYING FUCKING COLORS!)... But the place needs a remodel and new crew.
I just don't understand what they were trying to achieve with any part of the song, either individually or as a whole. You know what? It's the Platypus of Dream Theater songs. That bill doesn't go with that tail, or that strange little furry body, or those webbed feet, and oh god why does it have venomous spurs!? And then you find out it lays eggs too. The difference is that the Platypus is somehow functional despite being a crazy mishmash or leftover animal pieces

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Offline cramx3

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #21 on: April 03, 2020, 01:23:23 PM »
First:  Hunka Bunka Ballroom (now Starland Ballroom) - Less Than Jake, Harvey Danger, Local H 12/3/98
Last:  Starland Ballroom (formerly Hunka Bunka  :biggrin: ) - Skillet 3/10/20

Best: RED ROCKS!!! What an amazing venue and such a cool vibe there. 
Worst:  Hmmm, I'm really not a fan of the Stone Pony Summer Stage venue they set up outside the Stone Pony (haven't seen a concert in the actual inside venue in ages) but the outside stage has terrible sound, it's in a parking lot, and their security team is the worst making sure no one is having any fun by constantly pushing people to walk through the pit all concert long.

Offline Stadler

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #22 on: April 03, 2020, 02:07:46 PM »
Anyone ever see a show at the Hollywood Bowl?  Is it special?   

Honorable mention for me for theater would be the Chastain Park Amphitheater.  Simply a little bowl cut into the hillside; about 6,000 people and exquisite sound. 

Offline cramx3

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #23 on: April 03, 2020, 02:16:41 PM »
Anyone ever see a show at the Hollywood Bowl?  Is it special?   

Honorable mention for me for theater would be the Chastain Park Amphitheater.  Simply a little bowl cut into the hillside; about 6,000 people and exquisite sound.

Anguyen definitely has being our local LA concert goer.

If we are to give some honorable mentions, my favorite indoor GA style venue was always Playstation Theater in times square although it did have stadium style seating in the back but that was only open for the biggest shows.  It just had a really nice layout plus location and staff there were always cool and friendly.  Sadly it closed at the end of 2019.  Last concert there was Sabaton who sold it out, the only show I ever saw there that sold out surprisingly (it's a good size)

Offline Anguyen92

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #24 on: April 03, 2020, 02:20:20 PM »
Anguyen definitely has being our local LA concert goer.

Yes I have.

Anyone ever see a show at the Hollywood Bowl?  Is it special?   

Honorable mention for me for theater would be the Chastain Park Amphitheater.  Simply a little bowl cut into the hillside; about 6,000 people and exquisite sound.

I saw The Who at Hollywood Bowl, last October.  It's a nice venue.  Pretty old, of course.  I did find that it was a pretty long walk to get to my nosebleed seat in comparison to walking around the Banc of California soccer stadium.  I heard parking really sucks there where you will be stuck there for an hour guarantee since it is a stacked parking structure meaning that you have to wait for the guy in front of you to get out before you can.  For me, I took a bus shuttle from a mall in Lakewood, CA to the Bowl and back and costed me $12.00.

I was so excited to come back there to watch Alice Cooper, this May, but it's not going to happen for obvious reasons.

Offline pg1067

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #25 on: April 03, 2020, 03:36:32 PM »
Anyone ever see a show at the Hollywood Bowl?  Is it special?   

I'm almost positive I went to some sort of performance there with my elementary school band, but I've never seen a show there as an adult.  Rush played there on the R30 and Snakes & Arrows tours (2004 and 2007), but they also played at a different Socal venue both times (Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre, formerly Irvine Meadows) a day or two earlier/later.  I went to the Verizon shows, in part because the Hollywood Bowl (a) is in Hollywood Hills (I generally avoid all Hollywood areas if at all possible), (b) has a reputation for AWFUL vehicle access and using stacked parking, and (to a much lesser extent) (c) has a reputation as a hot spot for the hipster crowd.  A friend of mine went to one of the Rush shows at the Bowl and said he didn't get out of the parking lot for more than two hours after the show was done.  That said, I've never heard anything bad about the venue itself or the sound.


For me, I took a bus shuttle from a mall in Lakewood, CA to the Bowl and back and costed me $12.00.

Hmmm...is that something that's regularly available?  If so, that's a really good deal (and the Lakewood Mail is very close to where I live).
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Offline Anguyen92

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #26 on: April 03, 2020, 03:44:09 PM »
It should be something that's regularly available for any shows at Hollywood Bowl.  You just have to check Ticketmaster.........  if it is available.  It should be titled "Hollywood Bowl Park and Ride: Lakewood Line" and you can check for the dates you want it on.

Offline pg1067

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #27 on: April 03, 2020, 03:48:47 PM »
It should be something that's regularly available for any shows at Hollywood Bowl.  You just have to check Ticketmaster.........  if it is available.  It should be titled "Hollywood Bowl Park and Ride: Lakewood Line" and you can check for the dates you want it on.

Cool!  That'd make a show there much more attractive to me.  Thanks.
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Offline utopiarun

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #28 on: April 04, 2020, 08:48:10 AM »
First: Madison Square Garden-NYC(Boston August 1978)
Last: Warsaw- Brooklyn, NY (Devin Townsend  February 2020)

Best: NJPAC or Bergen PAC- beautiful venues
Worst: Irving Plaza

Offline El Barto

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #29 on: April 04, 2020, 11:39:11 AM »
Best: RED ROCKS!!! What an amazing venue and such a cool vibe there. 
I certainly considered Red Rocks for best, but it's got a couple of knocks against it. One is that the acoustics are hit and miss. Wind can completely knock down specific frequencies. I heard Alex Lifeson guitar solos just die to the point that I thought his rig had shut down. Then they'd come right back as the wind shifted or died down. The other problem isn't really a fault, per se, but I've found that the scenery is so magical that it distracts you from the show. I spend as much time looking around as I do watching the band. It really is a wonderful vibe, though. Right down to pre-gaming in the parking lot. Great venue, but not perfect.


Anyone ever see a show at the Hollywood Bowl?  Is it special?   
I saw Roger Waters there during his DSotM tour. Yeah, I'd have to call it special. The weather's perfect. You're kind of nestled in the woods. You look around and the hills are all around you, and if you're high enough you've got the Hollywood sign out over the stage. Even the concourse areas feel like history. It's almost got a Frank Lloyd Wright, back to nature vibe. You just feel like you're someplace special. The downside is that it's a lot bigger than you think it is. As was mentioned, it's a hike to your seats in nosebleed (which is all most people can afford), and you're a long way from the stage. 

Google maps will give you a street view form inside. You can see just how big the whole thing is.

As for the show itself, this kind of sums it up, I think:

(not my picture, just one I love)
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Offline Stadler

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #30 on: April 04, 2020, 04:44:30 PM »
I saw the Bowl on an episode of This Is Us, and it looked like the "floor" was stalls, with tables or something.  Is that right? Chastain Park in Atlanta is sort of like that too. 

Offline TAC

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #31 on: April 04, 2020, 05:04:59 PM »
This Is Us?
would have thought the same thing but seeing the OP was TAC i immediately thought Maiden or DT related
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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #32 on: April 04, 2020, 05:39:34 PM »
This Is Us?

Come on now.  I don't watch that show but I know about it.
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Offline Anguyen92

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #33 on: April 04, 2020, 05:51:49 PM »
I saw the Bowl on an episode of This Is Us, and it looked like the "floor" was stalls, with tables or something.  Is that right? Chastain Park in Atlanta is sort of like that too.

I honestly can't vouch if the floor has tables or something of that kind since from my view in the nosebleeds is pretty bad at seeing the floor.  I can vouch that the Wiltern Theater has fancy VIP tables on the sides of the GA section though.

Offline cramx3

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Re: Concert Venues- First, Last, Best, Worst
« Reply #34 on: April 05, 2020, 05:46:21 PM »
Last: Warsaw- Brooklyn, NY (Devin Townsend  February 2020)

 :metal :metal great show

Best: RED ROCKS!!! What an amazing venue and such a cool vibe there. 
I certainly considered Red Rocks for best, but it's got a couple of knocks against it. One is that the acoustics are hit and miss. Wind can completely knock down specific frequencies. I heard Alex Lifeson guitar solos just die to the point that I thought his rig had shut down. Then they'd come right back as the wind shifted or died down. The other problem isn't really a fault, per se, but I've found that the scenery is so magical that it distracts you from the show. I spend as much time looking around as I do watching the band. It really is a wonderful vibe, though. Right down to pre-gaming in the parking lot. Great venue, but not perfect.

Sure, it doesn't have the best sound being outdoors on a mountain side, but for me, all of what you said makes up for that.  Also, I don't live in the area, so it's not a spot I regularly attend which still gives it that "mystique" I guess you can say.