To be sure, I Googled Zarma and Djerma -- turns out they're the same language (alternate spellings). More than just Wikipedia thinks so.
Nice thorough review, Kristine. I'm always interested in the backstage goings on. Thanks.
07/17 - 07/21/07 Costa Mesa, CA Orange County Fair
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weirdalisthephantomoftheopera
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algonacchick
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Wow, Kristine! Another awesome review. I'm so jealous. You've been on the bus, and more than once! That's cool. It's nice that you got to talk to Jim so much. Of course, he's the reason you got backstage, and on the bus, so it stands to reason. I hope to be able to talk to him someday. Only 61 more days til my next show.
Ahhh, it's sheer agony!
Ahhh, it's sheer agony!
4 words that Al said to me that blew me away:
"How's Problem Child doing?" - 7/12/11
So awesome!
Al Team #325
"How's Problem Child doing?" - 7/12/11
So awesome!
Al Team #325
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Kristine
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Yeah, I really wanted the aftershow passes to see him, frankly... not Al. I said hi to Al each night (usually just a wave), but my main reason for being there was to spend time hanging with Kimo.
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Driew_La_27
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It must've been weird though that you were seeing the band behind the scenes and being all relaxed. Did they talk to each other at all? Or did Al just run to his room?Kristine @ Jul 23 2007, 05:06 PM wrote: Yeah, I really wanted the aftershow passes to see him, frankly... not Al. I said hi to Al each night (usually just a wave), but my main reason for being there was to spend time hanging with Kimo.
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Kristine
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They spent most of their time talking to their guests or fans. I didn't think it was weird seeing them relaxed- you guys have to keep in mind that they're still regular people like you and me. There was even a glimmer of what seemed like "star-struck" in Kimo looking at the storm trooper guys. They've been on TV a lot and that guy's car... he was just drooling over it. Have you guys ever seen that Conan O'Brian episode where Triumph talks to the Star Wars fans waiting in line? Some of those guys were there. Remember when he dared the one storm trooper to reveal himself and remove his mask? And then Triumph said "Put it back on!! Put it back on!"? I met that guy. He was there on Wednesday night. I was talking to Kimo, telling him that I coulda sworn that was him... so I asked him, and I was right! There's a picture of him in that night's folder on my myspace. Also, there's parts in that episode that have a Yoda puppet hanging around... that belongs to the guy who owns the star wars car.
Triumph meets Star Wars Fans
The "reveal yourself" part
Al spent most of the time meeting and greeting the small group that had aftershow passes. Then he would just hang around and chat with people.
Triumph meets Star Wars Fans
The "reveal yourself" part
Al spent most of the time meeting and greeting the small group that had aftershow passes. Then he would just hang around and chat with people.
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Cinnamon
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weird_el Posted: Jul 23 2007, 02:55 PM
...So, after four concerts that progressively got better and better, Saturday was still good, but kind of a letdown. As soon as the Polka started the idiot in front of us lit up a joint. GAH, ACK. As soon as I saw security, I let them know and he was ejected YAY.
El ! I was going to tell you after the concert, but I forgot until later...
You, Rachael, Ja..um...I mean Bob and his helpers are my heroes!
It drifted down to me. After locating the source, I was going to go get security, but you beat me to it. I was thrilled they were removed. Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
And Al sang at Bob later in the concert *laughs* YAY! 
(I don't know why, but I love it when he sings at/to security and the interpreters--hehehe)(After the concert, I think it was Bob that said there were four or five "incidents" they had to deal with *shakes head*)
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Kristine
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Now all the photos are up! (Note: you have to be my friend to see the folders).
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TMBJon
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Sorry for the delay. I think we may have finally found an apartment, so I now have a few minutes of downtime to give my full review of Saturday's show.
I arrived in Los Angeles for good late on Friday night and not 24 hours later I headed down the 5 Freeway toward Costa Mesa. With traffic, it took me over two hours to arrive at a parking lot where they shuttled me over to the fairgrounds. I was, of course, traveling alone due to the fact that I know no one in Los Angeles besides my roommates, none of whom would be interested in an Al concert.
I waited for Kristine at the front entrance, the Blue Gate, if you will. A few minutes turned into over an hour and I started getting nervous as the clock turned to 7:50... less than a half hour before the show would start. Luckily Kristine and I met up in her car on the outside perimeter. The line to get into the parking lot was outrageous, but I grabbed my ticket and met her inside (she arrived during Canadian Idiot).
I ran, literally, from Kristine's car to the Green Gate and when I got inside I was starving so I got a chicken fingers basket and rudely pushed my way through the group of people as it was already 8:12 and I did not want to be late. Don't worry, I figured there weren't any Al fans in the crowd so it was OK. ;-) Finally, as I entered the Auditorium just as I was approaching my seat, Fun Zone came on. I found an empty bunch of seats in the second row and sat down just in time to see Steve get on stage followed by the other bandmates during the opening AL-TV bit. I liked seeing those new random bits of video, especially the Aqua Teen clip.
Finally, Al came out for Polkarama. I was shocked at how good my seats ended up being. The performance was fun to watch. My favorite part during the polka is always seeing Jim playing banjo. After that, Canadian Idiot, which translated pretty well in a live setting. After that was Close But No Cigar, which would've been a pretty boring song to watch live if it weren't for the funny instrument Al was playing (forgive me for forgetting the name).
At this show, Al performed Why Does This Always Happen To Me instead of Bob, which I was glad to see because I am a big Ben Folds fan and I was curious as to how Ruben would be able to handle Ben's part. Overall I thought he did a commendable job though no one can touch the Folds. The harmonizing was spot-on however, though to get a more authentic Ben Folds feel, Al could've asked the audience to participate in the ba-ba-bas. This brings up an overall criticism I had of the show which is I think Al should have spent a little more time on each original artist trying to emulate their live performance styles, especially in the style parodies. More on this later...
Pentiums did not feel outdated, so I'm glad it survived one more tour. A great song with a well-established performance, though I'd like to think it will find its way out of the setlist come the next tour. You're Pitiful was one of the show highlights. I loved the different costumes including the recycled golden gump shirt. Seeing Al in that final attire was so completely ridiculous my brain couldn't even handle it. Wanna B Ur Lovr was another highlight. Al definitely ramped up this performance and the red suit really aided that. The facial expressions and mannerisms that went along with this performance were really stellar and added a great deal to the song.
The Medley - an interesting blend of songs, not all of which flowed well into one another. I liked the opening numbers and how the Eminem costume became the Hicks costume. I LOVED the new parody of T.Pain. Al had mentioned to me at the record signing that he had written this parody and it was great to see how it came out. Very funny and the video clips supporting it were well edited. The new verse for Headline News regarding Paris Hilton was a clever way to revive an old favorite without it feeling dated. I was surprised that Al chose to include every parody from Poodle Hat in this setlist in addition to every SOL parody. I thought the lowlight of the medley was Trapped as it went on for way too long. It should've ended right after the Zep section. I know the joke is how banal the song is and such, but that doesn't mean I want to sit through it twice as long as necessary. I would've loved to hear an additional song in the medley instead.
I'll Sue Ya was the song where Al really should've examined the stage mannerisms of the original artist. Zach de la Rocha is much more imitable than pacing around in circles and bobbing up and down. Quickly watching their live DVD would probably have given Al a handful of ideas to incorporate into his act.
The Star Wars set was pretty entertaining and I like its new place in the overall set. The stormtroopers going from standing completely still to all out dancing was hilarious. Al was standing right in front of Vader for most of the songs so I didn't get to see how he was reacting, but it was pretty entertaining. I liked the new addition to the Yoda Chant as well.
SLN, AP, and Fat were all up to their normal par, though I'm glad Al finally made that other joke regarding the word "ho" in the Fat bridge. White & Nerdy has improved dramatically since the last time I saw it performed at Jay Leno. I liked the usage of the Segway and the new dance moves.
After Fat, everyone got up out of their seats and chanted the usual WE WANT AL until he came out and performed a great rendition of We All Have Cell Phones. Then... oh my god... Albuquerque??? Are you kidding me???? Wow, what a huge change-up in the setlist. I was so happy to see that added to the set and I really liked the improvs that he added to give each performance an individual touch. Great way to end the show out and an awesome overall performance.
Overall, there were a lot of technical problems, especially revolving around the video projections and a few sound glitches. I tried to not let those things bother me as I was there to see Al and the band perform and they came through on that end of the bargain.
After the show, I went with Kristine to the waiting area where a bunch of people were being let in. Bermuda came by, then Ruben, then finally Jim after a while who let the two of us in. I was fortunate enough to meet Al again and we talked about his show and what was new with me. It was the first time I met Al where my mind wasn't all crazy and I was really able to enjoy the moment. Dave snapped a nice picture of us which I can't wait to see. And I was able to talk to Dave whom I had not seen in about six years. It was great to see all of the other WOWAYers who attended.
I had a great time at this show despite all its flaws. I am very glad I got to see Al this tour as I was afraid for a while that I would be out of luck. What a great welcome to Los Angeles and I hope I get to see him again the next time around, hopefully in a theater setting...
I arrived in Los Angeles for good late on Friday night and not 24 hours later I headed down the 5 Freeway toward Costa Mesa. With traffic, it took me over two hours to arrive at a parking lot where they shuttled me over to the fairgrounds. I was, of course, traveling alone due to the fact that I know no one in Los Angeles besides my roommates, none of whom would be interested in an Al concert.
I waited for Kristine at the front entrance, the Blue Gate, if you will. A few minutes turned into over an hour and I started getting nervous as the clock turned to 7:50... less than a half hour before the show would start. Luckily Kristine and I met up in her car on the outside perimeter. The line to get into the parking lot was outrageous, but I grabbed my ticket and met her inside (she arrived during Canadian Idiot).
I ran, literally, from Kristine's car to the Green Gate and when I got inside I was starving so I got a chicken fingers basket and rudely pushed my way through the group of people as it was already 8:12 and I did not want to be late. Don't worry, I figured there weren't any Al fans in the crowd so it was OK. ;-) Finally, as I entered the Auditorium just as I was approaching my seat, Fun Zone came on. I found an empty bunch of seats in the second row and sat down just in time to see Steve get on stage followed by the other bandmates during the opening AL-TV bit. I liked seeing those new random bits of video, especially the Aqua Teen clip.
Finally, Al came out for Polkarama. I was shocked at how good my seats ended up being. The performance was fun to watch. My favorite part during the polka is always seeing Jim playing banjo. After that, Canadian Idiot, which translated pretty well in a live setting. After that was Close But No Cigar, which would've been a pretty boring song to watch live if it weren't for the funny instrument Al was playing (forgive me for forgetting the name).
At this show, Al performed Why Does This Always Happen To Me instead of Bob, which I was glad to see because I am a big Ben Folds fan and I was curious as to how Ruben would be able to handle Ben's part. Overall I thought he did a commendable job though no one can touch the Folds. The harmonizing was spot-on however, though to get a more authentic Ben Folds feel, Al could've asked the audience to participate in the ba-ba-bas. This brings up an overall criticism I had of the show which is I think Al should have spent a little more time on each original artist trying to emulate their live performance styles, especially in the style parodies. More on this later...
Pentiums did not feel outdated, so I'm glad it survived one more tour. A great song with a well-established performance, though I'd like to think it will find its way out of the setlist come the next tour. You're Pitiful was one of the show highlights. I loved the different costumes including the recycled golden gump shirt. Seeing Al in that final attire was so completely ridiculous my brain couldn't even handle it. Wanna B Ur Lovr was another highlight. Al definitely ramped up this performance and the red suit really aided that. The facial expressions and mannerisms that went along with this performance were really stellar and added a great deal to the song.
The Medley - an interesting blend of songs, not all of which flowed well into one another. I liked the opening numbers and how the Eminem costume became the Hicks costume. I LOVED the new parody of T.Pain. Al had mentioned to me at the record signing that he had written this parody and it was great to see how it came out. Very funny and the video clips supporting it were well edited. The new verse for Headline News regarding Paris Hilton was a clever way to revive an old favorite without it feeling dated. I was surprised that Al chose to include every parody from Poodle Hat in this setlist in addition to every SOL parody. I thought the lowlight of the medley was Trapped as it went on for way too long. It should've ended right after the Zep section. I know the joke is how banal the song is and such, but that doesn't mean I want to sit through it twice as long as necessary. I would've loved to hear an additional song in the medley instead.
I'll Sue Ya was the song where Al really should've examined the stage mannerisms of the original artist. Zach de la Rocha is much more imitable than pacing around in circles and bobbing up and down. Quickly watching their live DVD would probably have given Al a handful of ideas to incorporate into his act.
The Star Wars set was pretty entertaining and I like its new place in the overall set. The stormtroopers going from standing completely still to all out dancing was hilarious. Al was standing right in front of Vader for most of the songs so I didn't get to see how he was reacting, but it was pretty entertaining. I liked the new addition to the Yoda Chant as well.
SLN, AP, and Fat were all up to their normal par, though I'm glad Al finally made that other joke regarding the word "ho" in the Fat bridge. White & Nerdy has improved dramatically since the last time I saw it performed at Jay Leno. I liked the usage of the Segway and the new dance moves.
After Fat, everyone got up out of their seats and chanted the usual WE WANT AL until he came out and performed a great rendition of We All Have Cell Phones. Then... oh my god... Albuquerque??? Are you kidding me???? Wow, what a huge change-up in the setlist. I was so happy to see that added to the set and I really liked the improvs that he added to give each performance an individual touch. Great way to end the show out and an awesome overall performance.
Overall, there were a lot of technical problems, especially revolving around the video projections and a few sound glitches. I tried to not let those things bother me as I was there to see Al and the band perform and they came through on that end of the bargain.
After the show, I went with Kristine to the waiting area where a bunch of people were being let in. Bermuda came by, then Ruben, then finally Jim after a while who let the two of us in. I was fortunate enough to meet Al again and we talked about his show and what was new with me. It was the first time I met Al where my mind wasn't all crazy and I was really able to enjoy the moment. Dave snapped a nice picture of us which I can't wait to see. And I was able to talk to Dave whom I had not seen in about six years. It was great to see all of the other WOWAYers who attended.
I had a great time at this show despite all its flaws. I am very glad I got to see Al this tour as I was afraid for a while that I would be out of luck. What a great welcome to Los Angeles and I hope I get to see him again the next time around, hopefully in a theater setting...
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jerAL
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Nice review, TMBJon! I agree about Close But No Cigar, it's a bit static. At the performance in Stockton he threw in a little rubber dance, I don't know if he has done that at other places, but it helped to break it up. That performance is on youtube...
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