Real deal about Penn State show

[Dogstar]

Ok, I'm really tired, but I had to get this all down before I forgot everything!

It was amazing this show made it through at all with all the problems that beset it. Here goes:
I did not get my spot on the rail in front of Mark, but I did get on the catwalk, about 2/3 of the way down on Mark's side. A great view nonetheless. After waiting outside since 7:30 a.m. during intermittent snow, we FINALLY got our spots at about 6 p.m. The show, which was supposed to start at 7:15, did not get going until almost an hour later because the TBA band, whom no one would name, did not show. Stereo Fuse kicked things off between 8 and 8:15, did a decent job and got a nice hand from the crowd. The Bryce Jordan Center, which seats about 12,000 for a concert, was a little more than half full. Security types said they sold between 6,000 and 7,000 tickets. Kind of small for a Creed crowd, I thought.

Creed took a little longer than usual to come out, at least in comparison to the two previous shows I had attended. They finally ripped into a searing version of Bullets at about 9:30 and things seemed fine. Well, three chords into the next song, Freedom Fighter, one of Mark's amps blew. Scott Stapp kept things going as best he could, teasing us about anticipation and asking Flip to "show us what you got." Flip happily obliged for about three minutes and just pounded the hell out of the kit to the delight of many. Scott got pretty animated with the people on the rail, made lots of gestures and eye contact and kept everybody pumped. Freedom Fighter then went on without any problems. After the song and a raucous hand from the pit, Scott S. walked down the catwalk and yelled: "This place needs to wake the f*** up!) Get your asses out of the seat. You did come to a rock show, didn't you? These people sure did (at this point, he pointed around the rail and the catwalk and at all the people on the floor.) Stand up!"
So about half the people obliged and Creed then tore into What If (I might be wrong about the exact time he implored the crowd to wake the f*** up).

After What If, he still wasnt' satisfied that enough people were standing. The pit people were loving this and eating it up, cheering wildly. It was a more mellow pit as far as pushing and shoving goes. Not at all like Ft. Wayne. I actually had room to groove a little.
He then exited the stage and said through the mic that he wasn't going to come back until everybody got loud and got up.
So finally, the place goes nuts and he comes out and they do Torn and then Say I, I think. That's when the technical problems started. They started the video montage that precedes Who's Got My Back. Well, it finished but no Creed. We were like, WTF? After about 5 minutes, an annoucement is made that there has been a power failure and that there will be a 15 minute delay. During the power failure, the crew worked on Mark's amps again. Seems some fuses were blown or something. I thought on a couple of occasions Mark's guitar sounded out of tune as well.

They finally get that straightened out and the next few songs were WGMB, Hide, MOP, OLB, WAWO, and Weathered, I believe. But during these songs the technical glitches continued. Scott's mic failed a couple of times and he kicked the amps behind him on two occasions. Also, there seemed to be a problem with the bass volume, as he kept gesturing to someone backstage behind Brett to either turn it up or down.
Also, in between the songs, he thanked the crowd for its patience and said, "I don't care about computer problems, I don't care about electricity, I don't care about technology. What I do care about is each and every one of you who came out tonight."

On another occasion, he said there was something bigger than he and us that would let him talk to the crowd through the music and that nothing would stop the show as long as the mics were working. He complained about the mic again and said: "I'll sing by my goddam self if I have to." He clearly was not a happy man.

He did pour everything he had into his singing and stage presence , and I think his voice suffered for it on some of the songs. I just think he was so aggravated and disappointed that he tried to overcompensate. That effort wasn't lost on the finally pumped-up crowd. Everybody sang to every song, and he thanked us over and over again for *helping him out* on the singing. By that time the crowd was in its usual Creed frenzy, as he had played to the folks in the seats more than usual, once they were all standing.

Also, during the songs that came after the power failure, Scott mouthed thank you to folks in the pit on Mark's side twice, then mouthed: "We suck" as in the band sucks. He also mouthed "Not my best, Not my best" as he put his hand to his chest in a sort of apologetic fashion. This was on Brett's side of the pit. I felt really bad for the band. They were having a tough night, but they all soldiered on when I think most bands would have just packed it in.

I expected to hear One, WTLF and possibly DSD, as they had not played it, and instead, Scott whispered something into Mark's ear and they ripped into the usual encore songs: Higher, then My Sacrifice. No official encore, but those were the encore songs. I think they had had enough of the technical problems and didn't want to make us wait anymore as we had spent half the night waiting. Before they gave out the goodies (pics, set lists, etc), Scott said, "The next time we do a show here in State College, could you please tell them to change the fuses? They then gave out all the usual stuff, but Scott added a few: The mic, headset and power pack went into the pit on Mark's side. With that they left with the usual waves from Flip and Mark. I didn't see whether Scott waved. The crew immediately came out and started disassembling the set.
And security confiscated the mic, headset and power pack, much to the dismay of the folks who'd caught them.


My guess is there is more than one person from the crew who is out of job because some of the problems were definitely crew-related.

I still had a great time nonetheless because the boys really did try to play through the difficulties and they did finish the show with gusto. I made eye contact three times with the man, but not as much as in Ft. Wayne. Being closer to the corner of the rail and the catwalk is the best place for that. It was a great spot, though, because I got to see more of Brett. He is tons of fun to watch.
Well, I'm bushed and off to bed. I probably left stuff out, but it's the best I could do as I am about ready to drop.

[JenRN]

Holy Smokes!!!!!! Sounds like quite a show!!! They have had a hell of a time with their equipment in some shows haven't they? Seems our boy Scott has quite the little temper on him!:embarass: I love to see the "human" side of him, makes me feel good to know someone else has a temper like me! How did the crowd around you react? WOW!!!! I know Scott got a little "hot headed" at 1 show I went to due to sound failure!!! I give the band a hell of a lot of credit to keep pushing on! That is a true sign of dedication and character, when the going gets tough, keep on going!!!! Love them NO MATTER WHAT!!!!!!!!

[Dogstar]

Yeah, no kidding. I actually liked bad-a** Scott I was glad he yelled at all the people sitting. I've never seen that at a Creed show, people sitting. The people in the pit still loved the show. Nobody got mad, nobody booed, except for when they announced the power failure and delay. Everybody was pretty much joking that some crew people were in big trouble and possibly out of jobs. People around me were still into the show and as hyped up as every on the rail. Lots of arm pumping, yelling, singing, the usual Creed fan behavior. Creed fans are the best. They always try to give the band the benefit of the doubt, I think, because of the true effort they give their fans. They genuinely care about their fans.

[Tantraess]

I don't think I could have said it any better. I think you have covered all that happened, plus some things I didn’t even see. I must say, I was really surprised at Scott, but then suddenly it was like magic had come over him and then he snapped out of it. Once the sound problems were fixed they kicked a** like usual. It was definitely out of the 5 concerts that I have been to in the last 1½ yrs, the strangest and most shocking. We definitely saw a different side to Scott that he has never shown at any other concert we have ever attended. I am not sure I really liked that side much either, even though his anger was understandable, but only to a certain degree. The way I look at it is, if we can drive for 3½ hrs and stand there for 3 hours for them to finally come on and then still be patient with all the really bad sound problems they were having, then he really should have more patience with the fans in the audience. The “Stand the fu*k up” could have been said or impressed upon the people who were in seats, a little differently. I think they just got a little overly comfortable after waiting so long. I am sure that the fact that they didn't sell any thing but sodas at that place had something to do with the crowds lack of being in the party mode. A lot of people need just a little something to help get more relaxed and into it, especially after sitting thru the first group that played. Luckily for my sister and I, we were ready no matter what! But of course we were in the pit! Besides that, there were quite a few people there as families and I am sure that is not what they expected their kids to hear. Just because I adore Creed doesn’t mean I have to agree with everything about them though. I keep forgetting they are not perfect. It’s just so hard to accept. Hopefully this didn’t ruin it for the people who have never seen their concerts before. It didn’t make for a good first impression. I still love them as much as ever and can’t wait till the tickets for New Years Eve go on sale. I am sure they won’t have the problems they had last night.

[TeriB19]

Nah, the Spectrum is a good place for concerts. I'm fairly certain they won't face the same technical glitches. I disagree with the fact that just because they sold only sodas the crowd wasn't into party mode though. If people need alcohol to help them loosen up to enjoy a show, they need to loosen up period. Besides, the last thing Creed would've needed in addition to all their technical problems would be a room full of drunken students.
As for his choice of words, I can see your point. Considering age range for their shows, he may have been a little over the top there. Hopefully they won't have those problems again in the future and he won't have to get that angry!

Lastly, welcome to the bb, Tantraess. Thanks for posting your thoughts and hang out with us awhile! It's a great bb!

[Dogstar]

Thanks, Tantraess. It will go down as one of the most memorable of the shows I've been to as well. It was my third...

Yes, I think we have to remember they are human and not perfect. With regard to the families, personally, I don't think kids under 11 or 12 should be at a concert especially that late and on a school night. I saw several youngsters there who couldn't have been more than 8.

I do agree that people might have been more mellow because of the long wait and lack of *incentives*, but I really couldn't blame him. The place was only half full, and he feeds so much off the crowd, that I'm sure he was trying to be *up* as possible for the fans. I've been to a lot of concerts in my day, and swearing is usually a staple. Creed are one of the more tame bands in that respect. The swearing really didn' t bother me. And really, most bands would have packed it in, I think. I'm glad they played through it. It still was a great performance because of the amazing effort on all their parts. Mark was ripping those solos up! I was loving it.

[Dogstar]

And welcome to the BB, Tantraess. Didn't notice at first that that was your first post! It's a fun place. Do stay!

[jahowe6]

I thought the show at PSU was great!!! It was my first one!! People just need to deal with the technical problems that went on. Scott S. was AWESOME!!!!

[Dogstar]

Yep, it was kick-a**. I'm glad you had such a great time. I know I did. I was with two people who were going for the first time and they are totally addicted now. They thought it was awesome, despite all the problems. They are already thinking about going to the Philly show on New Year's Eve.

And welcome to the board, jahowe...You'll love it here. It's a fun place. Do stick around for a while!

[franrn]

I've read that the one thing that Scott would change in himself would be his temper. This show is just comfirmation that he needs anger management and I'm sure he's working on it. When your devoted to your fans and want to perform really well I could see how this would really piss him off. I still really like CREED.

Rock On

[Ruby]

Hey Dogstrar, so interesting to hear your concert story. Everyone is unique. You got there at 7:15am and didn't get in front of Mark? How many ppl were there that early? And it wasnt even sold out. The earliest I ever got to a show was 1pm and probably could have got on the rail if I arrived later.
Dont know if I would wait that long. Anyway thanks for the review.

[Dogstar]

Hey, thanks Ruby...the pit thing was bizarre. They let in people at four gates simultaneously and it was very disorganized. We had to go one way for the wristbands and then run half way around the arena for the one entrance onto the floor. We must have had to go down three flights of stairs. It was nutty. Plus, I wasn't the first one in my line...I was eighth. We didn't know about the other gates until much later on. We had been at one gate, and some security person told us we had to go to another gate to get the wristbands, as that was the only one where the wristbands would be distributed. Turned out she was wrong. Another person finally came out and told us four gates would open simultaneously for the floor. They claimed our gate was closest to the wristband area, but I doubt it after having seen where we had to run. By the time I got down there, the catwalk was the only place left for getting up close. Mark's side was three deep and Brett's was already lined up. The wristband guy I got was really slow putting it on my wrist and I just wanted to put it on myself but he wouldn't let me! Insane. I have to say the security people sucked. They wouldn't talk to us very much and they weren't very helpful. I don't think I'd ever go to another concert there again.

[Tantraess]

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone. I have been watching this board for month’s now, and just felt after last night if I were to speak up about my opinion on what happened last night, this would be the place to do it. I know what happened last night could have easily happened to any human in their situation. I guess that since I have never witnessed the super human Scott lose it, it was just a shock. At first I thought he was sick or something and I thought something was wrong with him. He was just always so at peace and loving towards everyone every other time. Cursing just wasn’t the norm for him personally. It was real easy to put him up on an unrealistic pedestal that was beyond human. I have a bad habit of doing that with the people I love on a personal level also.

As far as needing to drink to loosen up a bit, I totally agree that it is not something that people should need. I believe that any true Creed Fan needs nothing but their clear mind to become hypnotized by their music. Usually the ones that go to the concerts and get trashed or arrive that way don’t even know what the words to their songs are, they just like the sound.

The fact that he had to go to court this morning in Florida to be sentenced for a fight, I am sure just added to the pressure of last night. I also found out that he has a restraining order against an out of control fan and just recently had to have her arrested. There are so many other things that we don’t even know about, I am sure that just magnifies it all. I don’t think I could have even handled it as well as they did. The whole thing just seemed so strange because I had never experienced a Creed concert like it. It could never affect my love and loyalty towards them. I still can’t get enough of them!

[souldancer]

Thanks DS for that ace reporter review , and to everyone else trying to flill in a frustrating picture of the story! Whew - I could almost feel the heat as I read it, Sounds like Scott really tried to keep the energy and connection up and was totally Real. (whoo hoo for passion!) I believe that this concert was scheduled late, maybe the management has some responsibility to bear too. I feel worried too about the strain on Scott's voice/health. So sorry for the band, and those attending. Expect the friggin media to run with this in a bad way. What a weathered year Creed has had.
As fans let's keep STANDING STRONG by our band, try to understand the truth and not let our apathy keep us sitting on our seats. Let's get up, raise our hands high and show support for these artists and our band! Yeahhhh Say I.

[Tantraess]

That's another strange thing about the night. I have never witnessed a Creed concert where people sat. It was just a different crowd all together.