Vancouver BC, Queen Elizabeth Theatre 1/18/06

[FlyIntoOblivion]

Posted by RayneDove:

With only 3 hours sleep and still syked from last night I couldn't wait to fill you all in. I arrived at the theatre at 6:15 and there already was a line-up (at the door and ticket window). About 10 people in front of me (with tickets) and 25 hoping for last minute tickets. I had a great time in the line-up chatting with people (I just love concert vibes). They announced to the crowd outside that they had a few pairs of tickets available and they would go on sale at 7:00pm, then the people with tickets would have to go right into the theatre (no scalping). By the way there were a few scalpers outside looking shady, I hope they lost their money. Releasing last minute tickets is a good way to put the scalpers out of business, they should do that more often.

7:00pm door open, ticket scanned. A quick warning from security cameras would be confiscated if anyone was caught taking photos. I ran to see Lovehammers souvineirs but to my surprise only one table was set up, mostly INXS stuff. So I went to the bathroom and saw a girl with a nice Lovehammers t-shirt and I asked "where do you get that", at the table she replys. Nice shirt I say and head back to the table. A huge crowd was gathered so I stopped for a drink on the way (vodka and cranberry mmm). Drank my drink while waiting in line with perfect timing I was at the table. Got my t-shirt which I'll take a photo of and send to Cindy. Went out for a last smoke, met more people including Lovehammer fans. Everybody was really nice and out for a good time, it was great. Of course I was very noticeable wearing my pink Lovehammers t-shirt from their website. Lots of people came up to me and asked where I got mine and I told them Lovehammer.com.

Went to my seat (right centre row 10) and in a few minutes the show started. I really hope someone wrote down the set list because I can't remember which songs came first (excitement and old age sorry).

For sure they played:
Straight As An Arrow
Call of distress
The Tunnel
Trees
"A Johnny Cash song ? With an audience sing-along"
Casualty
Ultrasound
Rain On The Brain

And a couple of songs I haven't heard yet so either they're from the new album or one of their older albums that I don't have yet. What a performance, Marty did his classic walk out into the audience on the arms of the seats (that drew a big wow). He was so natural talking and joking with us and after a couple of songs he got us on our feet and nobody sat down after that. All the guys were in top form and playing their hearts out. 45 minutes went by way too fast and before I knew it it was over. When they walked off stage and the theatre lights came on I stood up and shouted "encore, encore" but to no avail. It was over and I wanted so much more. I can't wait for Lovehammers to headline their own tour because I could have sat there for 2 hours listening and rocking with them. What a rush and then the big crash. I tryed to take a photo and a video with my cell but the camera police were everywhere and at one point they came up to me and told me to put my cell away. I didn't want to get kicked out so I obliged.

After Lovehammers, I went out for a smoke and another drink. Ran into Gail and her twin and more Lovehammer fans. While out on the smoking deck some poor man was looking at his cell to see what pictures he got and the camera police kicked him out. Thats right folks they escorted him to the gate and he was gone "how rude", I really don't like security guards. Then I got a whiff of some herb and thought they kicked a poor guy out because he was looking at his cell, how did they not smell the herb. Actually it smelled good but I couldn't follow the scent.

Went back in to see INXS (took my time though and missed the opening song). Please forgive me all you JD fans if you happen to be reading this but in spite of the review the Vancouver Province newspaper gave INXS I have to say JD was his usual obnoxious self. He was contantly grabbing his crotch and even used the microphone to simulate masterbation (throughly disgusting). You see if you have talent like Lovehammers you don't have to resort to prostituting yourself to the audience. Plus hearing the old INXS just hurt my heart because I loved Michael so much and JD can't hold a candle to him. Sure they were loud and had special effects plus video behind them but it just felt disrespectful to Michael Hutchence' memory. I walked out about half way through, I just couldn't take it anymore.

I could see Lovehammers green bus out back so I went out there to hang around and wait for them to come out. There were 2 girls 19/20 ish who had been waiting at the backstage door since 3:00pm to see JD. I felt really bad for them because after 45 minutes or so security announced INXS had left out of a different door. Not so much as a thank you from them.

Meanwhile Marty came out and started autographing right away, sweet as ever. When he came near me I asked him to sign my t-shirt (which I was wearing) and he did and then said "you have nice tits". While Marty was signing my shirt I went on a blabber jag, "Marty I was so excited last night when I met you at the airport I didn't know what to say, I just love you so much, you rock and on and on". What that man does to me even surprises me. I lost all of my composure and wasn't drunk either. OMG nobody has ever told me that! To think I had to wait until I was 54 to get that compliment and from the best guy in the world. "Well I was flying high by then". Then Billy came out and signed my t-shirt too and chatted with me. Billy thanked me again for coming to the airport. I told him I pre-ordered their cd and he said "oh thank you, we signed 3,000 of those for pre-orders". As I was leaving I ran into Bobby and Dino and said "there you are, I've been looking all over for you". Bobby looks confused, I pull up my sweat shirt, Bobby says "whats going on", I say sign my t-shirt please Marty signed it. He says ok and chuckles a bit, then I turn around and Dino is standing there and I asked him to sign it (oooo he was shit faced). Anyway he signed it then gave me a big hug. I watched them cross the street to get on their bus, took one last picture of the bus and it was over.

Memorys to last a lifetime, what a thrill. They made me feel like I was 20 again. I have to see them again thats all there is to it, get ready Seattle for one rockin show. Whew, if I remember anymore I'll post it later. Thats all for now.
Keep the Love alive

[FlyIntoOblivion]

Posted by takemeout:

Hi Everyone,

I am finally home and able to post. It was an awesome night. Absolutely fabulous from start to finish. I can hardly type, I am so excited after seeing Deli's photos of us on the site already (literally hands shaking, brain all over the place!). Even though my seat was at the back, it is true that all seats are good. I had binoculars and saw everything clearly.

Part I - Lovehammers

They were great. It started out with Bobby on drums and then Dino and Billy coming out, with Marty making a grand entrance last. He was wearing tight black jeans/pants, a red shirt and a black leather blazer. Marty started out with a long, drawn out "scary conductor" move that was killer. A few songs in he went into the crowd and walked on the backs of people's chairs. I can't remember the playlist, but the last two songs were "Trees" and "Yes It Do". I think that was a great song to end with because I find it even catchier than "Trees" and think it could be a big radio hit. Their set was 40 minutes long (I wanted more ). No encore, of course, because they are the back-up. Warning: as we are all Lovehammers fans, I think I should prepare you for the fact that 99% of the people are there to see INXS. It's true that most were there for the Lovehammers and the fans were great - but alot of people were still making their way to their seats etc. while LH were playing, and I just wanted to keep yelling "sit down and shut up". The crowd was good though and Marty became chattier as the set progressed. Everyone went nuts on "Trees".

Part II: JD/INXS

Now, I was not a JD fan, but I have to give props where they are due. JD is definitely "roit" for INXS. Their show was fabulous and they did alot of the back catalogue and only a few of the Switch songs. I thought he did an awesome job, and I think fans of Michael Hutchence will probably be (somewhat) satisfied with JD. He had on a smoking outfit and I thought he was really sexy and moved well. He also gave props to Marty Casey and the Lovehammers numerous times throughout the concert (at least four times), which I thought was really cool. All the INXS guys looked like they were having fun and Gary Beers looked particularly hot IMO. I definitely recommend that you all stay for the INXS show too.

Part III (the best part) After the Show

After the concert I hung around the merchandising table looking for Marty and the guys. They were not to be seen. So I asked a security guard where the meet and greet was, and she said there wasn't one. I said that at the airport they told fans they would be doing one, so she called her supervisor. He came and led me to a place to wait. Deli saw me showing my wristband (thank you MC.org for that!) and she and her friend came with me too to wait. He came back and said that they were getting on their bus on Cambie St. We ran out of there and around the block to where the buses were. Deli recognized the green bus as the LH one so we went up to it, but nobody home. Then we saw Dino across the street and we ran over. Marty was there surrounded by people signing autographs etc. (BTW - Marty is definitely thin!) I went up and showed him my wristband and he called us "hardcore Lovehammers fans" and he did our signing and photos ahead of everyone else out back. I had taken the MOMM CD cover and he wrote on it to me "You are more important than anyone else here." Then we did the photo with us looking at each other (thanks Deli) and he said take one more, so she did. Then I got the other guys to sign the CD cover too and we watched Marty with everyone. Marty definitely has a stage persona and is much more subdued in person. He was really nice and friendly, but quiet. Dino and Bobby are alot chattier. I then realized that I did not see Marty's eyes!!!! OH NO! So, I went back up to him and told him that I didn't get to see his eyes, and he took my face in his hands and stared into my eyes from about 4 inches away. He probably thought I was insane! and I was! It was dark outside at midnight though, so it was hard to see the blueness (sigh), but did I mention that he held my face in his hands? Marty left to get on the bus and Dino and Bobby stayed out to talk to us for awhile. They said that they are tightly controlled by INXS, they wanted to be out by the merchandising etc. but are not allowed to be. So, wherever your concert is - I would recommend doing the groupie thing out by the back door. LH will come out and chat and sign and do pics.Then they had to go as they were heading to Seattle at midnight for tonight's concert.

I said goodnight to deli and caught a cab. Whew, it was a fabulous night and I still can't believe that I met the LH. I didn't really think I would get to and Vancouver is fairly small so it was easy to do the meet and greet as it wasn't a huge crowd. I am so happy that I ran into Deli also. If it wasn't for the wristbands....

Anyway, I hope all of you have as great an experience as I did. I really envy the Viper Room people because you are going to see them in a venue that is just people there to see the Lovehammers. That will make it really amazing and you will get a full set.

Have a great time in Seattle tonight!

[FlyIntoOblivion]

Posted by deli:

Okay, so here's my report. Sorry it took me so long but we went out after and feeling a little rough today! IT WAS AMAZING!!!! I have been to lots of concerts but never so excited as last night! 40 minutes was NOT long enough. I can't wait until they tour on their own. Marty started with the scary conductor moves which was great! The walking on the back of chairs got everyone screaming. I have to agree with takemeout that (at least in Vancouver) 99% of the people were there for INXS. I was surprised at how many people stayed sitting throughout Lovehammers. Not me!!! I am having problems finding the words to express how great it was! I don't even remember all the songs they played and I have no voice today from all the screaming! I personally though JD rocked with INXS. I love all their old music and he is perfect for it. Marty would have been miserable singing that all the time. I was not a JD fan during RSINXS but man he looked HOT! The only thing that stopped me from thoroughly enjoying INXS was that I might be missing Marty in the lobby! I looked out a couple times to make sure that they weren't there. JD's Don't change (their final song) was not even close to as good as Martys' version. I think INXS should give him that song because I can't listen to them sing it anymore. My four year old son saw them performing that on Muchmusic and he said 'who is that guy and why is he singing Marty's song?!! He sucks!'. I'm training him well! Anyways thank goodness I saw takemeout flashing her wristband because we were hanging in the lobby after the show and I had about given up hope of meeting the guys. Over to the tourbus we went (Future show goers note that their bus is the only one pulling a trailer) we saw Dino across the street and then the best part of the night started! Marty saw our wristbands and came straight to us - hugs, talk, pictures ... the one where I'm leaning back was right after he licked my cheek! HELLO!! I was so excited that I dropped my camera after which is why there isn't more pictures. I got him to sign my Lovehammer shirt, then all the other guys signed it as well. Now the dilemma - if I wear it I'll have to wash it. Hmmmmm... I also bought a Lovehammer toque as I'm a skiier and will wear it on the hill. Anyways, spent alot of time talking to Bobby and Dino (did not think they were drunk) - they were extremely hot in person. And nice (which is important too!). Billy disappeared after only a little while. I went up to him and asked if he'd sign my shirt and he said "sure, I'm not doing anything else!" So future concert goers make sure you share the love with Billy! I spent every second I could staring at Marty and then ... time was up. They had to get on the bus to Seattle. Asked Dino if I could go with them. He said I'd be the only girl with 12 guys. Thought that would be okay, then remembered my husband. Oh well! It was an amazing night and I'm now jealous of everyone who's concert is coming up because our night is over. Until next time....

[FlyIntoOblivion]

Posted by Gail:

Finally getting a chance to report in!! Sorry for the long wait but raynedove, Deli and takemeout have done a fabulous job highlighting this wonderful night. I am so so disappointed that I did not know who you were Deli and takemeout. We would have loved to meet you. My sister's husband got some great pics of you with Marty which Cindy has now posted on the site.

First before I start with the good stuff I want everyone to know that I am the worst person in the world for watching the time - I get carried away with the moment. When I went to the airport with my sister Glory to meet the LH on Tuesday night I think I said they spent an hour with us. Thinking about it, it was more likely 30 to 40 minutes. I do know that Marty, Billy & Bobby were not in any hurry, acted like they had known us all for years. The only reason we were so lucky to get the time was Dino & one of their crew were held up at customs. So , everybody, I might be wrong with the timing during the night!!

Arrived at our seats at about 7:45 and we thought it would be late starting as most concerts are....but lights suddenly went out and by my clock (which I did check!!) it was exactly 8:00. We all said WOW!!! They opened with Ultrasound, sounded fabulous!! The scary conductor was probably the best I have ever seen him do. He looked gorgeous!! (wearing his sunglasses). As far as the set list I will put down what I think they did but the order I am not sure of...... at least 9 songs if not a couple more! Here it goes.

1. Ultrasound - opening song
2. Straight as an Arrow
3. Call of Distress
4. The Tunnel
5. Rain on the Brain
6. Ring of Fire (crowd went crazy - all stood until end of night. Marty spoke to the audience before the song and said "You'll all recognize this next one, the crowd close to the stage yelled Trees and he stopped and laughed and said oh thank you for remembering but not that one, we will get to it". We all stood and sang along with him.)
7. Trees - I am sure this was next. Crowd went crazy - sang along. We were in the balcony first few seats left of stage (see our photos about 50 ft from stage) and our section which I thought were INXS fans only, all knew the words and sang loudly.
8. Yes It Do - I think this was the last song but at this point after Trees I think I was in shock!!

9. CASUALTY - BEST SONG OF THE NIGHT (IMO). Somewhere before Ring of Fire. Should be their next hit.

Now in NO PARTICULAR ORDER (as Brooke would say on RS: INXS) comments from Marty during the show.

One of the 1st things Marty said to the crowd...."I heard that this show sold out in 14 seconds...I guess we are all lucky to be here"

Marty during the 1st song or 2nd lost his mic pak and it dropped in front of the drums, he kept going... crew member grabbed off floor. Then when next song was starting with Dino doing slow drums they reattached to Marty on the side of stage. While they were doing this, Billy talked to the audience...to fill in by saying ..... something about how thankful they were and surprised by their welcome from fans at the airport.....you are true fans! (we felt like they were personally talking to us...what a thrill).

The stage for MC&LH was cut off with a black curtain behind. During their show I could see crew working behind with spotlights. MC&LH had quite a narrow area and the monitors had been set up quite close to the edge of the stage so not much room to move for Marty in front of them. When he came off the stage and walked on the seats below I think he balanced through about 5 or 6 rows on the top. The crowd was great helping him... spotlight on him...felt I could touch him from above. It was so exciting...made me sick, I thought he was going to kill himself. He then turned to go back and it looked like he just made a fast run for it and leaps on to stage...thought my heart would stop!

One thing I should note: Marty took off his black leather jacket.. I thought keep going... the red shirt (one from the Aargon(sp) came off next but he had a black underwear shirt under the red....unfortunately he did not get naked...darn, next time!!

I think they were held back a little from their usual style but a theatre setting like the QE is not as good a venue as what they do best like at the Metro.

We went out for the break. On the stage the black curtain had the time counting down for INXS. When we came back I think it said 17:00 minutes. The lights were on in the theatre and you could see the crowd. All of a sudden people started to clap and yell and in the middle section in the pit there was Mark Burnett with possibly his wife and quite a few young children. He turned and waved to the crowd. They stood up and clapped and cheered for him. For the next 15 minutes or so he kept giving autographs to the crowd coming up to him.

The lights went out, the count down clock was on 10 seconds .....noises from JD started....sounds of having an orgasm for the remaining 10 seconds ( way too much information IMO but for others maybe not....on the other hand if it had been Marty, 10 seconds would have been far too short) the black curtains went back and ...... magically I can't remember anything else ....haha. Honestly I can't judge this ...I hear there are some very good JD & INXS boards that can fill you in. I will say just this....they opened with Suicide Blonde, JD was wearing a great looking jacket, in fact I thought ..."What the heck, did he borrow that from MIG??" He had on his sunglasses and I hate to admit this... the whole image and sound was professional. From then on I kept daydreaming and thinking about the LH set. About half way through spotted Marty & all the LH in the pit area about the 2nd row I believe in front of the stage. They had a female minder with them (I would guess from Sony Promotions/Management) holding the seats but everyone was standing so they did. They stayed for I think two songs. I could see Marty nodding his head to the music. JD then sang Pretty Vegas and within the first few notes Marty had vanished....ahh where is he, then I saw 2 of the guys also leaving behind with security helping them. They walked up the aisle which goes out to the lobby. I don't know if there was another door or they were way in the back in the dark.

The last song JD did I think was Don't Change and as Deli reported, she immediately thought...That's Marty's song. So funny. My sister leaned over and said...That's Marty's song, why's he doing it?? So funny. (She told Marty after the show...and he really laughed).

After the show we ended up outside at the back stage door where fans were. Can't believe Deli and takemeout were right there! They have filled you in with details so I will just tell you our experience. First we were really lucky because we had spent time with them at the airport the night before and my sister had taken all those photographs. I didn't think they would even remember who we were. Marty recognized that we were twins at the airport and it is our birthday so he had said he would try to say 'Happy Birthday Twins' during their set. I was disappointed because he didn't. Finally Marty was right in front of me signing for two girls. He had his hand stuck to the side and I thought I am going to grab it so he can't get away! He looked up and said ...YOU ARE HERE!! He held on to my hand really tight, pulled me in, kissed me on the forehead, grabbed my sister in the other arm and said... 'these are my twins'. He said right away... I am so so sorry I couldn't say Happy Birthday to you. I couldn't figure out when to say it and the timing of it." (God I didn't think he would remember...we forgave him). Got him to autograph pics taken from the airport and talked about the show from his point of view. He said they felt it had gone really well, a few things to work out but felt really really good about it. We did the usual your wonderful etc. He then turned and said...When will I see you again and I said never... he said you are not going to get to any of our other shows. I said no..... not unless you come back to Canada.

NOTE: Gary/INXS said at the end of their show.... We are arranging right now a tour across all cities of Canada in April May and will be announcing soon. I hope they will take LH with them.

We left a little bit of Marty for the other fans (not that we really wanted to share!!!) Saw Billy, very very nice, knew who we were. He thought the show had gone really well. Seemed very happy with the night. Such a nice guy.

Bobby was behind him. I had talked to Bobby at the airport, nice but very shy, not a lot to say but polite. Last night....seemed very excited to see someone familiar, grabbed my hand through the line. Very excited to see us, wanted to know what we thought of the show. He said he could not see the crowd at all and because of the sound cannot really hear the audience reaction. We told him they loved him! He said they were leaving soon and going straight to Seattle on the bus. I called it the green machine and he said that's a great name for it. He said this would be the first night they slept on the bus. Dino had a large group of females around him and he was holding court telling them funny stories about being held up at customs... something about dog food left in his coat pocket and they didn't know what it was!! Sounded very funny. We did not get close enough to talk with him but he seemed to be very up and happy !

So there it is everyone. I would say to anyone going to one of their shows. .. Enjoy it, do not spend too much time worrying about what to report because I know it is really hard to do both . Most important find the GREEN MACHINE (tour bus) and hang out. That is their car & hotel.... they have to come back to it!! Good Luck

[FlyIntoOblivion]

Posted by canadafan:

Well we just got back in town today and I've been reading everyone's posts. The concert was excellent!! A lot of stuff has already been covered so I'll just confirm the set list and give a blow by blow of our meeting (it's detailed for those who are interested, for the rest, sorry). I've also included some info on the INXS portion for those fans too.

Set list: Ultrasound(Marty looked so good in his leather jacket and shades) , Hold On, Straight as an Arrow (this is when he walked across the seats in the crowd), Call of Distress, The Tunnel, Rain On My Brain, Casualty, Ring of Fire, Trees, The Riddle (I had to write them down so I wouldn't forget).

The set was 40 minutes but felt like it was over in 5. The Lovehammers were great but it's all such a blur! I slipped my camera into my coat pocket as I went in because I heard security yelling for everyone to open their bags, they didn't check mine though. I couldn't take many pictures at all during the show because the security was constantly up and down our aisle and I couldn't believe the number of people coming in late during the LH performance, I was really getting ticked off. (Will post pictures later)

There was no old merchandise (no pink tees, etc.) They had two t-shirts both black the guys had the LH logo on it I think and the ladies had the picture from the new CD I guess on it (these fit VERY small by the way). They also had a toque with LH logo on it. Rest of the stuff was INXS.

No meet and greet but I dragged my hubby outside after the show and we saw a semi in a loading area and saw a few people hanging around and then sure enough I spotted Marty coming outside! I waited because he was patiently working his way through the crowd, then Bobby and Dino pop out and walk across the street to their bus virtually unnotcied. They dropped off their stuff and came back. Dino starts hollering "MARTY CASEY,MARTY CASEY I love this guy!!". He's really funny - I brought my MOMM cover and got him to sign it, told him they should come to Alberta and he said they'd love to see all of Canada and were disappointed they were so rushed in Vancouver. I asked if they were going out after the concert and he said they couldn't, they had to leave right away for Seattle and they were just doing what they were told and didn't have any say in it. He was so nice and easy to talk to.

Next I saw Bobby, I asked him to sign my cover as well and told him it was a great show - he looked at me and said thanks and I had to take a breathe - he's really cute!! Very quiet but nice.

I went up to Billy and asked him to sign the cover. He looked so surprised I knew his name and was really pleased (I think Marty's getting so much of the attention, as much as I love Marty, they all deserve a fuss). Again, told him I enjoyed the show and told him I heard his interview the other night. He said "oh the Internet interview, we're getting a lot of flack over that" He also said he felt he said too much, it was his first uncensored interview and he thought he got carried away. I told him he didn't, it was that type of interview and it was very funny. Also told him I couldn't tell who was saying half the stuff anyway because the web-cam wasn't working. Really sweet guy.

Finally move on to Marty tell him great show and he sees the cover in my hand and says "it means so much to me that you have our CD". That did it!! I was just fine up to that point and then I got a bad case of Marty Caseyitis - it wasn't the babbling kind though it was the ultra shy and shut up kind!! I was shocked at myself. He asked my name and wrote "you are the meaning of my life" he even made sure he spelled my name right before signing. I was just speechless (what a loser) so I told him to have a good tour hugged him and he gave me a kiss on the cheek while we hugged. What a sweetie! I couldn't say anything else I wanted to tell him how much we loved watching him on Rockstar and how we loved their music but I didn't (sigh)- I got a hug and a kiss so I guess I shouldn't complain? Don't think I'll ever have another opportunity like that again though. I hope they hit it big but the down side is they won't be able to be so in touch with the fans because it will be such a zoo.

When I ran back to my husband he harassed me about getting the autograph only for myself and not for the kids too (my 7 year old son loves Marty). I was lucky I was able to even spit out my name. Then I did feel bad. So my husband has the camera on Marty as he's walking through the crowd and Marty sees the camera on him. Marty posing for the pic, fakes like he's punching someone and says this is what the papparazzi likes - my husband says no its on video say hi to our kids - so Marty gets their names turns away and holds his head while he thinks of something to say and turns to the camera says our kids name and that he's disappointed they're not at the show etc. Next time they have to be in the front row or else. Goes on to say how all this credit should go to the band etc. Marty made it a nice long clip which was special, not just a quick hi. My son just about died when we played the clip for him - a grin from ear to ear.

Bonus points to my husband for thinking on his feet, and for being so patient with his groupie wife. It was his birthday while we were in Vancouver and much of the time was spent on Martymania and he was so good about it - don't know if I'd be so patient if he was going on about a female singer like that!

Lovehammers are such a good group of guys they deserve the best. It was so nice they came outside to meet us, disappointing it was so dark and couldn't get a good look at Marty's eyes. Mind you, if he put my head in his hands to look at me I probably would have needed CPR!

It turns out, I saw some of you other MC.org fans there but didn't know it was you, couldn't see wristbands since we had our coats on. Saw the tongue on the face photo being taken and laughed. Saw Raynedove (think that was the name, pink LH tee and dark lace shirt underneath) wave at the stage during the LH performance and Dino smile and nod.

Just remembered one more thing. Dino was chatting lots outside so we hung out listening to his stories for awhile. When Dino first came out to meet the fans he had a beer in his hand and this securtiy guy was reading him the riot act about "it doesn't matter who you are, it's not allowed." Dino looks at him with a WTF look on his face and tucks the beer in his coat. Then he jokes "is anyone else going to yell at me??" Some security took their jobs a little too seriously.

Now for anyone interested in INXS. The INXS concert was excellent as well. I couldn't stand JD on rockstar but once I bought Switch, I liked him more. He was very good in concert too (I could've done without him forcing the sexy though - I think he'll find that less is more but he's still learning the ropes). He made mention of Marty which I was surprised at (couldn't really understand what anyone on stage said when they spoke though, sound seemed garbled - perhaps I've been cranking too much LH).

Nobody will sing Don't Change better than Marty but for the rest I thought JD did alright, his voice held up all night and he seemed to really gel with the band. At the end of the concert he sang the Canadian anthem (in both official languages). My husband thought that was sappy but I actually thought it was intended as a nice gesture. No, I'm not a big JD fan but I hope INXS has a succesful comeback. Those guys have been through so much and they obviously love performing so I will support them and JD.

INXS set list was Suicide Blonde, New Sensation, Devils Party, Mystify, Disappear, By My Side, Afterglow, Taste It, Original Sin, Hungry, Never Let You Go, What You Need, Need You Tonight, Pretty Vegas (no megaphone), Kick, Devil Inside. Encore was The Stairs, Never Tear Us Apart and Don't Change.

Gary Beers came out at the end and said they'd be back in Canada - I only hope they come to Alberta with the Lovehammers and maybe this time I could actually speak to Marty!!