Beginning Reviews

Hello, my name is David, and this is my first entry in my new blog; Nightlife in Lawrence.

I'm a very socially active individual, who spends most, if not all of my spending money at shows, in bars, and anywhere out on the town. I thought I might as well share what I experience, for anyone interested in what's going on in my neck of the woods. Nothing is set in stone here, but my idea is to write reviews of the concerts I go to, the bars I visit, and the other fun stuff I see, including previews of upcoming events. Hopefully I don't say anything to offend anyone, and someone out there finds this interesting.

I've just created this blog, so I don't know if there's some other place in it for me to introduce myself more, so let me just give a brief introduction, and save more for later.

My name is David, I'm 22 years old. I graduated from the University of Kansas, in Lawrence, Kansas, this last Summer, '09, with a degree in Journalism. I hope to write for a newspaper or magazine someday, but for now, I am working as a delivery driver at Yello Sub, which pays the bills and gives me just enough money to enjoy myself at concerts, bars, and with my friends.
I love music.
I mean I really love it. I go to at least one concert a week, I cannot leave the house without my ipod, and I am trying to learn the bass guitar. My dream is to be in a band someday. Way up high on my bucket-list, I want to perform at least one show with a band, on stage, before I croak.
After that, I love socializing.
I may live by myself, but I can only just barely go one day without hanging out with friends, or checking out a bar, or show downtown.
I get texts and calls from friends most days of the week, asking me what's going on, where I'm going to be tonight, or where the party is at. If you're looking for things to do in the Lawrence, Kansas, area, this blog might just help.

I don't have a special ear for music, I'm not a really talented or experienced reviewer of music, or anything, I'm just an average guy with a journalism degree, looking for something that interests me to write about.

This last week has been a wild one. Last weekend, October 23rd-25th, I went with three of my friends to Spookstock, at Camp Zoe, outside of Salem, Missouri, to see the last music festival (at least in this region) of the season. We watched several bands we've seen before, as well as some that were new to us. We met dozens of nice people camping around us, and explored the almost-Ozark hills of the area. It was great!
If you have ever heard of Schwagstock, Spookstock is the Halloween edition. Schwagstock is a music festival at Camp Zoe, several times a year, starting in the Spring. Thousands of people gather to camp on the private land in the middle of the beautiful countryside, and listen to great performances from bands from around the country, featuring the Schwag, a Psychedelic / Rock / Jam band, also called a Grateful Dead tribute band, led by the bassist for the Grateful Dead, Jimmy Tebeau.
The Schwag are always amazing, and often play two of the nights of the festivals.
If you are interested in music festivals, look Schwagstock up, there are sure to be several great festivals this coming Spring and Summer, not to mention next year's Spookstock.

After a weekend of music and fun, I came back to Kansas, only to see one of my all-time favorite bands, The Raveonettes, playing at the Beaumont Club, in Kansas City, on October 28th. They came on the outdoor venue despite the chill, and played a great set, including my very favorite song, Lust, along with some of their songs from their newest album, my favorite off of that was Last Dance. I loved every minute of it, but I don't think the audience (a sea of North Face jackets, if that means anything to you) appreciated the fantastic art they were listening to.
Then A Flock of Seagulls came on, and once again, the crowd stared agape at them, only clapping and cheering every few minutes, when the bands' bassist would childishly wave at the audience for more applause. I found the band's desperate need for more applause both annoying and pathetic. Worse; I did not recognize a single song they played, and neither did the rest of the audience, it seemed. After their set, I saw the bassist walking through the audience, apparently disappointed to find not a single fan pleading for an autograph.
Finally, Jet came on. The Australians put on a good show, and they were definitely what the audience had been waiting for, but I was a little let down that they were only playing songs from their new album, and I was freezing, so I shrugged and left early, having been able to say that at least I've seen Jet.

Thursday, the Floozies, a local band in Lawrence played at the Jazzhaus. The crowd was small at first, but the 5 piece band, (which I heard had never been all together at one given show before, so this was like a musical alignment of the planets) got us dancing early and before long the bar was getting busy. As a friend of one of the band members, Mark, I sat up close with many of his other friends and relatives, showing the audience how to get down to the Floozies funky, jam-band, dance music. Whether it's only two of the band members playing, or five, the Floozies always put on a good show. Last week they opened for Lotus at The Granada, and there is talk that they will tour with them.

Finally Friday and Saturday, Yonder Mountain String Band played at Liberty Hall. Some of my friends went to the first night while the rest of us hung around sipping on a keg of Free State beer, (the best beer in Kansas). They told us it was a good show, but they didn't get all the songs they wanted.
The second night, Halloween night, many of my friends and I went to the show. The opening act was good, and Jeff Austin even played with Danny Barnes. Yonder was great, their first songs all kept a fun dancing beat, with epic solos and choruses that got the whole crowd screaming and cheering.
Having worked a busy day of Halloween deliveries, I was too tired to even dance through the whole show. Fortunately there was just enough room in the balcony to sit with some friends.
After the show my friends returned to their nearby house. From there I went on to Eoto, which I got into for free, because two friends had extra tickets. I love my friends.
Eoto threw down some sick bass lines that had everyone bouncing and hollering. The lights, fog machines, glowsticks and the general vibe of the already-pumped crowd (a lot of the people were coming from the Yonder show, or a Halloween party, dressed up and twisted) made the place feel like the hottest cross between a bar, club, rave and concert that I've seen in a while.
I can only assume I was entering just as the second set began, because the band did not stop until they had to at 2 a.m. I could not believe my good fortune. My friends at the show were all dancing around front and center, with the best view of the entire show. I saw at least a dozen other people I knew besides my close crew who I danced with. The whole show felt more like an epic party, full of cool friends, and cool friends of friends.
I'm expecting to feel the same on November 21st, when Bassnectar plays at Liberty Hall!

My friends and I returned to the house of our friends' near downtown, and heard about a kid having a seizure at some other party around 17th and Louisiana.

So, that's a quick review of my last week, and from now on, I hope to make entries every few days, when I have something worth writing about.
Hope someone enjoys this.