More Complete Review of the April Fool's Ball

Last night was very, very long. I suspect this entry will be, as well,

I got to Deep Ellum around 4:30 PM and took advantage of the beautiful weather to wander around the Deep Ellum Arts Festival. After much phone consultation with other fans, I decided to go over to 2556 around 6:00. When I got there, there were a few people in "line", but it was very low-key. Other LJ fans showed up in groups between 6:30 and 7:30, and we settled in for the wait. There was another concert going on at Gypsy Tea Room, around the corner from us, and their line crossed over ours, so we got to play traffic cop to lots of teenagers. When soundcheck started inside, we discovered that by leaning against the glass behind us, we could get a lovely thrill as every drumbeat and bass thrum vibrated the windows. Nice touch for the venue. ;)

The line started moving, and we got inside around 8:30. The venue itself was pretty rough, but very well suited for this sort of music-focused event. The acoustics in the room were pretty good, and the space was just the right size for the number of people who eventually showed up. I snagged a chair in the upstairs lounge, but relinquished it to wander once my feet had recovered from standing for two hours. On the Shoreline and Tripp Fontaine both played good sets, and Envoy rocked the house with some awesome tunes. The techno DJ outside on the patio was an inspired change of pace, too.

Finally, the time we were all waiting for was nigh. OHNO took the stage, and absolutely brought down the house with their energy and wicked tunes. By this time I was front-and-center at the foot of the stage, and it was like a carnival ride to be so close to their frenetic action.

They finished their set, and after a short re-setting break to add Chris's guitar player to the mix, Chris Kirkpatrick joined the other members of OHNO on stage, and the place went wild. He launched into his first song, a naughty number about a girl who wants to be a porn star, and we all rocked out between taking pictures. I know there is video out there of this number - I know because the guy with the camera muscled in on my spot on the dancefloor, and stayed there for almost the entire song to get close-ups of Chris. But I enjoyed the song anyway. ;)

For Chris's second song, all the musicians shifted gears and switched to acoustic instruments, setting a more intimate tone. Chris thanked us for coming out to support him and all the bands, and confessed that he really didn't know what he was doing. He immediately proved himself wrong with his next song, though, a heartbreaking ballad about...well, okay, I have to confess I don't really know what it was about. By this time, the realization that I was THISCLOSE to Chris Kirkpatrick, and that I was so privileged to be at such a historic event, set my brain to buzzing and blanked out most of the words of the song. I just remember his beautiful voice, and joy he created for and took from the audience by being up there, doing what he loves.

FKA Palms: In April of 2002, I saw NSYNC at the Pyramid in Memphis. A woman wrote "FKA" on my palms in Sharpie, and when I held them up for Chris, he saw them and smiled the most beautiful smile I've ever seen. Last night I had the bright idea to recreate that moment, so I Sharpied up my hands again (with the help of fellow LJer syldath, naturally) and raised them as he was giving his final thank yous and saying goodbye for the night. He spotted them, looked down at me, smirked a little, shook his head, said something like, "Oh, no," with a little grin on his face, and went on. My night was complete. =)

I stuck around a bit after the show, both to wind down with my friends and to hopefully show Chris my NSYNC chibi lunchbox - I had it on good authority that he would love to see it. :) It was not to be, however, as Chris was swamped with adoring fans and beautiful girls. I wanted to stay and listen to the last band, 1Up, but exhaustion got the better of me and sent me to Denny's for coffee and discussion of the evening with some of the LJ friends who had traveled to Dallas for the show. I got home around 4:00 AM - 5:00 AM, with the time change.

I missed church this morning because I was out so late last night, but it was totally worth it. To be there for Chris's solo debut, to get to share that experience with so many amazing people, to get to support this interesting new idea in Dallas's music scene...totally, absolutely worth it.