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Welcome to my music blog about all things rock. I'm just an average fan who LOVES rock music and will bore you to death with the details to prove it. I'll bring you my thoughts on the latest rock news and trends. Plus, you'll hear all about my escapades from the road as I travel to great live shows across the country. So read up and rock on!

Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Uproar Music Festival Hits "Hot-lanta"... Part II

Saturday, September 4, 2010
Aaron’s Lakewood Amphitheater – Atlanta, GA
Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival
Part 2… The Main Stage Opening Acts


(From Part I…)  About the time I started making the walk over to the main, I worked myself into a slight panic. Both of the headliners are known for their cult following, devout fans who spend mucho on merch and camp out for hours for decent seats. Did I wait too long to stake my spot? It’d be a crying shame to drop that much cash on tickets just to stare at the back of some sweaty guy’s Ozzfest 1999 event shirt…

Luckily, my fears were eased when I approached to find the gates to the mainstage just opening. There were a lot of people filing in, but it was a big stage with plenty of room to spread out. I ended up behind some cool chicks that were actually a tad shorter than me, so I had a pretty decent view at stage right. 

I’ll give the Uproar Festival major props for their schedule. All of the bands were set to go on just 20 minutes after the close of the prior act. I’ve NEVER been to a concert with more than one act, much less nine bands, that could flip a stage in under 30 minutes. But Uproar did it with precision and kept the entire day’s schedule on track. It made the fan experience all the better.

Tuesday, October 12, 2010

Uproar Music Festival hits "Hot-lanta"... Part I

Saturday, September 4, 2010
Aaron’s Lakewood Amphitheater – Atlanta, GA
Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival
Part 1… The Jagermeister Stage

This, folks, is the one I’ve been waiting for all year. The Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival was announced in early 2010 and, along with a stellar mix of lesser known acts and seasoned vets, brought along with it the highly anticipated return of underground metal’s favorite sons, Avenged Sevenfold. The closest this tour was hitting to my home base was Atlanta, Georgia, so we packed up the car and made the six hour trek further into the “Dirty South.”

I’ve been to my fair share of concerts and various venues in Hot-lanta, but never to Aaron’s Lakewood Amphitheater. I’ll admit, summertime is not my ideal setting for music events. Let’s face it: red-headed, fair skinned chicks just ain’t made to be out in the sun. Add to that the humidity of the South and the sheer number of overheated, inebriated bodies surging forward in a giant crowd, and a memorable experience does not it make. But I was proven wrong this time and quite frankly, I‘m ok with that.

The venue was nice enough, though food and beverage were overpriced, as to be expected these days. We purchased the VIP package with Pit tickets and access to the Rockstar Lounge. But we never actually made it into the lounge, opting to hold our ground at the stage instead. Early entry helped with that, another perk to the VIP package. When you’re a shorty like me, paying a little extra for this perk is worth its weight in gold. The first act went on just 30 minutes after doors opened, so not much waiting involved. We spent what little time we did have taking turns to grab water and check out the merch booths (which leads to a little side story I’m writing… stay tuned.)