Upon arrival, the four of us stood in line for a few minutes giving me opportunity to post a Braingell sticker on an electrical box of some kind… (heh \m/ )
All of us, clad in our Down shirts and I in my BGR shirt, entered the hallowed halls of Cain's Ballroom where you are greeted by old pictures of Bob Wills, amongst other old-timey country-western stars. It's quite charming in it's own way.
The giant wooden dance floor, not yet filled, began to fill up after people were searched. The beer and liquor were flowing and we found our spot for the evening: stage left, about 8 rows deep.
I was reminded of the big "NO SMOKING" sign at the door and proceeded to the other half of the bar where merch was being sold and all the smokers were hanging out.
After purchasing 4 shirts for a mere $100, I returned to our spot and happily waited for the show to begin. Listening to good old pre-show music like: Deep Purple, Grand Funk, Lynyrd Skynyrd, etc. It set the mood for what was about to happen.
While at the bar, I had seen another sign that stated: "Sound Check @ 5pm, Movie @ 8, and Down @ 9pm. After conveying this to my family, we settled in.
After what seemed like an eternity, the lights went down and the screen in front of the stage was filled with the images of old 1970’s footage of the following bands:
Frank Marino, AC/DC, Deep Purple, Thin Lizzy, Ted Nugent, KISS, Robin Trower, Black Flag, Lynyrd Skynyrd, & Black Sabbath, clips of backstage type antics of Down in between each band were also included. Very funny and entertaining!
I took this as a loving tribute to the bands that have influenced them and many of us over the years. A lovely tribute that set the mood for the rest of the evening.
The Down candles were lit on the amps and the show began. A huge surge of people pushed the crowd closer to the stage and we were off and running!
Opening song: The Path, from their latest album Over The Under. This was followed by Lysergic Funeral Procession from Down II: A Bustle In Your Hedgerow. The pot smokers fired 'em up and the whole building was filled with the smell of weed. I had 2 joints at one time handed to me by strangers and happily accepted! Phil thanked the crowd for the buzz. The PIT opened up directly next to my party and we fended off drunken moshers from there the entire evening. Crowd surfers piss me off but I was lucky enough to avoid them this time!
Of course the standards were played: Lifer, Hail The Leaf, and Stone The Crow. They played many songs from the new album: 3 Suns And 1 Star, On March The Saints, Never Try, Mourn, Beneath The Tides & I Scream. In addition, all of the favorites from Down II: Ghosts Along The Mississippi, Learn From This Mistake, Lies, I Don't Know What They Say But…, were played with the ease and the brutal beauty that is DOWN.
Phil Anselmo spoke to the crowd like an old friend. I thoroughly enjoyed his rapport with all of us. He spoke to the PIT, telling them to please "if you see someone on the floor, help them up!" "No fighting! That's bullshit! That's not what this is about."
At another point in the evening, Kirk announced the current score of the New Orleans Saints - Seattle Seahawks game. Later in the set, Phil chatted with Kirk asking who’s phone to call for the latest info on the Saints game, commenting that Kirk had refused to play until he knew the score, and threatened to "beat his bald head" or something to that effect, "just kidding" of course and proceeded to rub Kirk's bald head.
Phil began to announce the next song, saying it wasn’t about "a stupid football game", this caused some confusion apparently, because Phil announced the song as "Beneath The Tides" which is, as well as On March The Saints, about overcoming adversity and the hard times the band has faced over the past few years. I think this was where he was supposed to sing On March The Saints. Later in the evening, someone handed Phil a piece of paper with the score to the Saints - Seahawks game: Saints - 28, Seahawks - 17, Phil proudly displayed the score.
Phil seemed thrilled that so many of us already knew the majority of the lyrics from the new album. Also commenting that "in about a month you will know the whole thing". In mine and Phil's supposed opinion, the Tulsa crowd was "legendary" in their singing with him. I think we sounded great!
Another interesting image and impression was Phil with the mic cord wrapped around his head, mimicking "Pepper Christ" while smoking a cigarette during a short break on stage, to the tune of "Jail" ...mesmerizing!
Yet another interesting note, there were a few women who showed TITS! I know this is of great interest to most bands and several fans! Thanks, ladies!
The final song of the evening was of course, Bury Me In Smoke. The stage filling with smoke as well as the house again!
I was impressed of course with the entire band but individually by each member as well. Thank you Phil, Pepper, Kirk, Rex, and Jimmy!! You fucking RAWK!
As the cheering began to fade, most of the band had left the stage and Phil stepped up to the mic and sang "And she's buying a stairway…" "TO HEAVEN!" replied the crowd. Phil applauded and left the stage.
All in all, a phenomenal show!! I had seen Pepper 10 years ago with Corrosion Of Conformity but this was my first time to see Down; definitely NOT my last!
We all know the confusion of being in a strange town and trying to find the road home. On our own trek, we encountered detours and blocked roads trying to find the highway in the rain. All of sudden there was a "DOWNED" (heh) traffic cone, one of the bigger ones about 4 feet tall. I asked mrzig, "Should I just run over it or go around?" he said, "Run over it, it'll be fine." So after dragging the cone for about a block and crying with laughter, my sons got out and attempted to remove it from underneath the car! There seemed no way to remove it, so in a stroke of brilliance on my part, I decided to run over the curb to dislodge it, and it worked! My oldest son, Chris, had said half-joking and soaking wet, "I‘m keeping this if I ever get it out from underneath here!", so upon their return to the car, they threw it in the backseat! (see pics, heh) Yet another memorable souvenir to add to all of our memories! Thank you Down!
