AUGUST 18, 1998
BRESLIN CENTER
EAST LANSING, MICHIGANMain Set...
Release, Do the Evolution, Spin the Black Circle, Brain of J, Dissident, Given to Fly, Corduroy, MFC, Wishlist, Jeremy, Even Flow, Faithfull, Elderly Woman, Off He Goes, Rearviewmirror
Encore...
Hail, Hail, I Got Shit, Alive, Black, Soldier of Love
As early as the morning of August 18th, I could already tell that the day was going to be beautiful...in more ways than one. The weather and the mood...since this little band called "Pearl Jam" was playing East Lansing, Michigan that night. Of course, there was not a speck of doubt in my mind that the show would totally rule...since we are talking Pearl Jam.
My mom, sister (Jenny), and friend (Quinn), left for East Lansing around 11:00am. Armed with the PJ CDs in the disc changer (and Jenny w/my discman-new Korn CD was released that day) we were on our way to a Pearl Jam Fan's Heaven.
We arrived in the East Lansing-Okemos area around 12:30: perfect time for lunch. Mongolian BBQ baybee. Yummy. Feeling stuffed, at about 1:30, we made our way to the Jack Breslin Student Events Center (whew!). We pulled into the parking lot...the only bit of movement going on was the local radio station (92.1 'The Edge') was there setting up. I said we deserved a door prize for being there first (hell, I got a door prize for being the first person at the store when "Yield" was released...why should a concert be different...haha)
Jack Breslin Student Events CenterSo since nothing much was going on, we all just sat in the car, listened to the radio station ("A to Z Pearl Jam" on 92.1), read, slept, chatted...as more people arrived, I felt anxious and wanted to get out of the car and walk around. So we did. We laid on the hill/grassy area in front of 'Gate B" for the longest time...listened to the radio station and cat-napped. (There's another story that involves my sister and I during this time, but I'd rather not get into it now...I think I'll talk about it on my 'outtakes' page because it is perfect for it)
The equipment trucks and busesAfter a lot of waiting and after a lot of time had passed and after more people had arrived...the mighty P and J started their soundcheck. Since I was off concerning the story involving my sister and I, I didn't hear the entire soundcheck and was laying down recuperating during "Dissident" and "All Those Yesterdays"...when "No Way" was being played, though, Quinn called me over...it was soooooo neat to hear...it's too damn bad they didn't play it at the show...I've really been wanting to hear it live too...oh well..more concerts and a lot of hope on my part:-) After "No Way", the outdoor merchandise vender opened, so I headed that way along with some other people who were listening to the soundcheck. We all noticed two things...the first being they added a new pair of socks to the merchandise (instead of green and yellow trim, they had blue and red trim as well) and the second being there were no posters out for the show! We asked about it, and one of the ladies said that they were only selling them inside. After we whined ('We have poster tubes!' 'We want to put them in our cars!') the lady went inside and brought them out for us. I bought a poster and a the pair of socks I didn't have...then I went on my way again...
Now it was time to wait for the doors to open. Saw a few people I knew...chatted. Continued to be bored and sit...
Me (Jess), Jenny, and QuinnBefore they opened the doors, I passed out everyone's tickets. Gave Jenny and Mom their's...and decided what ticket I should give Quinn. I parted with 'seat 26' and I chose 'seat 25' :-)
In the hallways of Breslin, I scanned the merchandise booths. They had the jersey. Since I passed up on it in Chicago, I decided to bite the bullet and buy it. I get kind of sick of wearing t-shirts all the time anyway...shh...that's my justification for buying the jersey...who says it has to make sense? ;-) I needed to add some excitement to the wardrobe! :-)
Quinn and I walked my mom and sister to their seats. Their seats were awesome. First row in the upper bowl. They had such an excellent view. Looking out over the place, that PJ-excitement-feeling hit me. Pearl Jam concert! Woo hoo! My sister and mom then decided they were going to walk Quinn and I to our section....so we walked back to the floor entrance and said our good-byes.
As Quinn and I made it to our seats, we realized how dead center we were. Seats 25 and 26 in a row of 50 seats! Third row. It doesn't get any better than that! Thank you Ten Club--I love you!
Where Quinn and I sat (circled messily)I was really disappointed at the fact that all the seats around us remained generally empty until Iggy Pop was done. How could you not want to get to the show as early as you could do you can just enjoy your awesome seats?!?
After nervously playing with my camera for about thirty minutes, Mr. Iggy Pop decided to hit the stage. It was pretty
interesting...seeing Iggy Pop in third row...I mean the guy is a legend! He's totally in excellent shape for an old dude as well:-) Iggy came on with his band promptly at 7:30. Wearing tight patent leather pants and minus a shirt, Mr. Pop bopped around like a seven year old...taking the time to pose for the press photographers:-) I am not all that familiar with Iggy except for a) he's from Detroit and b) Lust for Life! Matt (Cameron) was clearly seen at the side of the stage during Iggy's set...as was Mike (as in McCready...hehe).
Now...onto...
SHOWTIME!!!
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