I was the first person at the venue, but after awhile the other folks began to arrive and we formed a proper queue. The afternoon passed in a flurry of conversations and making new friends, and trying to keep warm in the cold wind! It should NOT be this cold in May! Luckily there was a public toilet nearby with hand dryers, and some little cafés to get tea at.... It rained a bit every now and then, but aside from that the weather was fine. We were kept entertained by the local beggars and boozers offering unsolicited advice about life, along with cops, people walking their dogs, and guys selling mascara and light-up keychains. The highlight of the afternoon was seeing the big double-decker tour bus pull up, and the Goos walk into the venue.
Passers-by kept asking who was playing, and only about three or four had ever heard of the Goo Goo Dolls. Goo Goo What?
I was fretting because I’d gotten a meet & greet pass, but I also wanted a spot on the rail. Luckily, Shona, Jenni, Kevin, and Alex grabbed a spot for me just in front of John’s mic while I went to collect my pass at the box office. I wiggled my way through the crowd to find them, and apologized profusely to all the people around who I’d have to shove through on my way back. Everyone was really nice, though, saying that it was Glasgow, I’d have to be tough, but they didn’t mind because I’d been queuing so long. So I went to join the 15 other meet & greet folks, a very friendly bunch of people, and all very excited to be meeting the Goos.
Decaf Mike herded us all into a stairwell (very atmospheric) and stopped to introduce himself and tell us what was happening. Then he turned to me and said, “have I seen you before?” I nodded and said “Fans For Peace – I live in Scotland now.” The lightbulb went on over his head and he went to fetch the band. I took my place at the end of the queue and pulled out my presents for the guys (gift bags with books, chocolate, Irn-Bru -– the only soft drink in the world that outsells Coke or Pepsi in its country of origin -– thank-you cards, and some custom Pez for Robby). Nobody else had presents, which surprised me. I guess that’s an American thing.
Robby and John came in and started taking pictures with people, three at a time. About halfway through this process, Robby saw me on the stairs and started waving, saying it was great to see me! When it got to be my turn, he gave me a big hug and asked how I was doing. It was great to be able to welcome him to my new home! I gave him and John their presents (the tour manager took Mike’s bag) and took two photos with them. After about three more hugs from Robby, we were being ushered out, and I said hello to John, but he didn’t remember me. I guess that’s understandable, considering that every meet & greet I’ve been to, I spend most of my 30 seconds talking to Robby! Still, he gave me a nice hug and thanked me for the bag.
As expected, I had to shove my way through the crowd to get to the front again, but it wasn’t too bad -– only got shoved back by one person. I wiggled in between Shona and Alex, draped the Big Pink Banner over the rail and was ready to go! With a mercifully short turnaround after the opening band, the Goos came on without any preamble and started to play.... It was mostly stuff from the new album, but we were treated to a few Gutterflower and Dizzy era tunes as well. It was amazing to hear SO many people singing along, especially for the songs that have only been out for a month! It was also great to see many of my new friends seeing the Goos for the first time, really a magical feeling to witness their happiness and excitement.
I could tell the band was having as much fun as we were -– they didn’t talk much, but they had huge grins on their faces for the whole performance. Robby was dancing around like a maniac, and the new dreads just amplify the theatrical effect of his headbanging. Every show I am freshly amazed at how much energy he has! John and Mike seemed thrilled to see everyone singing along and having a great time.... I imagine the view from up there must be pretty amazing!
As for the songs, the overwhelming sense I had was that they were testing out the setlist. Now that the buzz has worn off from the show, I can see there’s still room for a bit of tweaking.... The show started out with Stay With You, Slide, and Feel the Silence -- definitely an explosive beginning! The chorus of Feel the Silence is surprisingly good to dance to.... But it was followed by Can’t Let it Go and Smash, which are both awesome songs with a strange rhythm for dancing, similar to We’ll Be Here, which was sandwiched between two ballads (Black Balloon and Iris). So in total there were five songs in a row that had strange rhythms, and it was difficult to keep the energy up. And of course, there was still a LOT of energy in the room, the crowd was amazing -– I can imagine it being even better, though, once they get the new setlist perfected.
Putting January Friend next was ideal for me, since I always go nuts with Robby’s songs, but I could tell the rest of the room wasn’t necessarily feelin’ it. But Broadway was after that, and everybody perked right up! Still, it was followed by another ballad (Better Days), so the energy was feeling a bit schizophrenic. I’ve been spoiled by the fine-tuned, intense buildup from shows on the Gutterflower tour! Still, Listen, Without You Here, and Let Love In made for a powerful closing. In the encore, Become would have been a good mellow song to close with, but they followed it up with Give a Little Bit, which is yet another medium-energy sort of song.
Still, it was a fantastic show, despite the funny setlist, and I had a wonderful time.... It was just what I needed! Afterwards, the techies were clearing up the stage and one of them took the setlist from by John’s mic, then grabbed my hand and gave it to me! But I’ve got enough GGD memorabilia, so I gave it to Alex (Shona had managed to get a guitar pick). A brief stop at the cloakroom and merch stand, then outside to wait by the bus. The crowd dispersed, and soon we were among only ten people waiting by the crew’s bus. Damage came out and rummaged around in his bag for a bit, and asked if anybody wanted a setlist. I was the only one who said yes, so I got another one! I said, “instant karma!” –- and Damage said, “you know, I really believe in that!” I thanked him for the setlist, and soon we discovered that the band had already left.
And so, we made our way to our various forms of transport (Jenni, Kevin, and Alex kindly walked me to the bus station and made sure I caught the last bus back to Edinburgh), and home to bed....