Concert a Go-Go

(UPDATED)
So this week we headed to Omaha and back for the Flogging Molly show, just managing to beat the snow storm that shut down I-80 for 48 hours. Then last night here in town we headed to the Red Hot Chili Peppers show.

Both were absolutely fabulous shows and I would be hard pressed to pass up an opportunity to see either band again. But it occurred to me this morning, and your average concert goer would consider me mad for thinking this, but the multi-million dollar stage show set up by the multi-platinum Chili Peppers was not nearly as entertaining as the "low budget" Flogging Molly show (pictured right). For effects they just hung up a large drape behind the stage and a few basic lights. Three punk bands opened and it was in a small fairly run down venue with festival "seating". This compared to four moving projection screens, and five hundred foot long LED covered fingers over the crowd displaying animations of the show.

Sure it could be said that I just like Flogging Molly better than the Chili Peppers, and that is probably true but you would think the Peppers have everything going for them in this respect and should be able to stomp all smaller shows into smithereens. Especially one with a $17 ticket price for 4 bands. But in a venue perhaps fifteen times the size as the Flogging Molly show, I saw maybe the same amount of people dancing and really getting into the Peppers show. Most people were just standing there, myself included. Have the Peppers lost that rabid cult following they once had? Have they gotten old? I know Anthony Kiedis was sure showing his age.

As I was "people watching" at the Chili Peppers concert was everything from mid 40's yuppies to 15 year old kids and punks. Perhaps this band has been around for so long and reinvented itself so many times that it's fan base has been somewhat watered down. It seemed as though they were almost bored with having to play an hour and a half show for us Iowa hics. The Peppers certainly have the ability to come out and play honest to goodness hit songs for two and a half hours+ with a career like they have had. Whereas Flogging Molly is still fairly young and fresh as a group, and a high energy show with 30+ songs played seems like the norm. Not a single song of theirs has made radio play but everyone, and I mean every was singing (screaming) every, and I mean every song word for word. Looking down on a tightly packed thousand person dance floor/mosh pit during songs like Drunken Lullabies and Seven Deadly Sins was amazing.

During the Flogging Molly concert and the three bands prior, beers were $4 which included Guinness, with three bars to service the crowd. During the Peppers show the line for beer was stagnant before the show and after they started playing, beer and bottles of water were no longer being sold "by request of the band". Bleh!

What I do know is that as long as there are fresh faced bands with rabid fans out there to rock the small venues, I will usually prefer seeing them over the big budget arena concerts. Oh sure, I won't pass up the big name bands now that we finally have a decent arena in town to attract them. But I think sometimes there is a bit of a David and Goliath situation between bands.