USA, Irvine Meadows: KROQ Weenie Roast and Luau

USA, Irvine Meadows: KROQ Weenie Roast and Luau - June 14, 1997

First off, of course, they were great... but 1) the sound system
for almost every band was sub-par. RH has three guitars going, and
I have to strain to hear them at some points.
2) it was the afternoon, and the place was about half full (half empty? too
big?)... not many people were up for dancing around in the sun 3) But even
if they had been, RH's setlist was not very conducive to converting an
amphitheater full of people to RH fanship.

I'm fairly sure it went: MY IRON LUNG, TALK SHOW HOST, PARANOID ANDROID,
EXIT MUSIC?, THE BENDS, FAKE PLASTIC TREES... I'm not telling them what to
do, and I don't know if they care much about the audience response, but if
they HAD wanted an enthusiastic response, the first thing to do would be to
stick CREEP in there somewhere.

Also, some of the more ROCKING songs would have changed the whole tone. I
have so much trouble convincing non-RH fans who know only CREEP, HIGH AND
DRY, and FAKE PLASTIC TREES that RH can ROCK as good or better as anyone with
tunes like RIPCORD, JUST, and BONES... but when the mainstay of their short
set is dedicated to songs like EXIT MUSIC and FAKE PLASTIC TREES, they're
pretty much asking the audience to take a seat. That's just fine if they
don't care what people think, but if that's the case, then Thom shouldn't be
glaring at the audience and making comments about how bored they are.

This brings up an issue that I shall address in another e-mail soon... right
now let's leave it at this: I was on my feet, thrashing about the whole
time, and since I was right down in front, I earned myself a few fans who saw
me later and complimented my insanity.

I still plan to see every RH show that comes my way, as it is always a
rewarding and emotional experience, but for me, they've yet to top the energy
and nearly-perfect setlist of the Palace show in June of 95 (I've seen them
five times since... not even close).

-Ducky