August 31, 2021 Summer of Seether, part 1: Boise Idaho, Boise State Fair.

 I went to my first Seether concert ever Friday, August 27, 2021.  My husband and I drove up to Idaho to the Western Idaho State Fair.  (Did you know there is an Eastern and a Northern Idaho State Fair?).  We arrived at the fair at 12:00, Friday's opening time and drove around until we found a parking spot close to the old race track which is where the concert was to be held.  We wandered around the fair.  I found out the wrist bands I got were for the rides, which we don't do, except for the sky ride which evidently was not part of the "wrist band" rides.  Oh, well.  We checked out the fair food which is varied and plentiful.  We walked through the barns and I got scolded (rightly so) for getting too close to the cows, missed the fancy chickens but did see the pigs.  The pigs made me think of Shaun talking about his dad raising pigs.  I find them quite lovely.  Though taking care of them, smelling them and hearing them on a daily basis may be not so lovely.  I watch Dr. Pol, the vet, and he says that the only natural defense pigs really have is their very loud squealing.  Yes indeed!  Watched some of the horse competition, seeing from small Shetland ponies to massive horses.  All gorgeous.  And the kicker was that one of the women showing the horses around the pen was asked to stay for a moment in the ring.  A man approached her and getting down on one knee, proposed right in the middle of the horse competition. She did say yes.

I think one of our favorite parts was the antique tractors and two stroke engines displayed next to old kerosene powered washing machines and irons.  About that time, I spotted a gentleman in a ball cap, sun glasses and a plaid flannel shirt walking around the fair.  Could it have been Dale Stewart?  The height was right, what I could see of the hair looked correct.  I just wasn't sure and wasn't going to yell across 10 feet of displays, "Hey, Dale, is that you?"  If it was, since he was wearing a long-sleeved flannel shirt in August, I could surmise that he was either one of those people that run cold all the time or was Dale Stewart trying to stretch his legs after a 4 1/2 hour drive from the Benton County Fair in Kennewick Washington without sacrificing his privacy.  Besides I wasn't sure.  And I'm a coward, I'll admit it.

By that time we were waiting to see what the line was like to get into the race track, i.e. concert venue.  At 4:30, and hour and a half before we could go into the venue, there was a modest line which grew as we watched so we joined the fans in the line down a little from the rock radio station van and across from Rocketman the human cannonball.  Now that is an awesome and horrifying act.  All I could think was, "Are you sure you want to do this?"  He's actually been doing this for over 20 years. 

The line continued to grow as everyone stood patiently in line in the sun with suppressed excitement.  Someone, from the fairgrounds staff I think, brought around cups and a cooler with ice water, which was very much appreciated.  The radio station was encouraging the front of the line to get more excited over seeing Seether.  I don't think most of us needed any help with that.  By the time they opened the gates at 5 to 6 the line went well past where we were following the serpentine dividers that wrapped around the parking lot behind us several times.  Here is the venue a half hour before showtime:

And the drum set up.  Look! Look! the drums have Seether on them!  That was me geeking out over the drums on an empty stage.  I geeked out a lot.

Almost showtime, just before 7:30.  There was the huge, grass, standing room section in the front, which was the inside green in the middle of the old race track.  We were in the metal bleachers behind that and there was more seating behind us.  Notice the four ginormous semis and the spiffy white RV on the right.  Don't know what kind of RV that is, but here are pictures of some fancy Hemphill Brothers coaches if you want a slight diversion.

The concert started with a thrilling and patriotic parachute jump by the United States Navy "Leap Frog".  My husband took some video, but was at a bad angle to film.  There are some very good (more professional) videos than ours by ManicBeast  but you have to listen through commercials to see them.

Then right at 7:30 Seether took the stage.  Dale brought out a multicolored beach ball which he tossed into the crowd.  We watched the ball dance around in the air above the heads of the crowd until the first song started and then lost track of it.

Here is the set list from the concert:

1. Gasoline
2. Truth
3. Fine Again
4. Broken
5. Country Song
6. Nobody Praying for Me
7. Rise Above This
8. Words as Weapons
9. Bruised and Bloodied
10. Wasteland
11. Let You Down
12. Breakdown
13. Dangerous
14. Fake It
15. Remedy

Now, I've heard all these songs multiple times, but from the CD.  There is no surprise as to what is coming next because I can look at the back of the CD.  I know what to expect when I play it after the first time and am guaranteed of what I will hear.  The live concert is such a different feel.  I don't know what's coming. The band doesn't stop playing between songs, but the riffs are not clearly identifiable, so it's like a Seether Edition of name that tune when they actually start.  The crowd gives a roar when they recognize it and we're off.  Shaun encourages us to sing parts with him, particularly on Nobody Praying for Me, Fake It and Remedy.  Honestly, most of us were singing through all the songs.  The music is amplified enough to hear it and feel it.  The bass and drums hum through my chest and bones.  I love that.

Broken is in a special place all by itself.  The audience could sing the whole thing all the way through as a choir concert of love back to the band.  I've seen several videos this year from fans at various venues and this holds true at every concert.  It really is a magical experience. 

The set list begins and ends with Gasoline and Remedy as bookends to a two hour music experience.  Exciting, joyful, being a part of a connected symbiotic relationship.  A thrilling ride, a sing-alone with good friends.  My daughter texted my husband during the concert and asked how it was going.  He replied, "Your mother is in heaven."  Well said.

Side info about set lists.  I was going to write down the set list, but forgot to bring pen and paper along with my binoculars and a hat.  I know, I could have "written down" the setlist on my phone, but as it was, I was so entranced with Seether, the music and singing that I couldn't even film a decent video on my phone.  I gave up all attempts to be anything but a part of the experience.  Oh, set lists.  Minor trivia, the set list when Seether plays as an opener for Three Doors Down is only 12 songs.  So about 1.5 hours rather than 2.  The three left off for time constraints are Truth, Words as Weapons and Breakdown.  My next concert is on Tuesday which is a Seether/Three Doors Down performance.  I will appreciate all the songs that Seether performs, but will miss those three greatly.

I have been attempting to post some videos, but the limit is 100 MB. I have a video of Remedy that runs to 975 MB.  I'm sorry, but I can't bear to hack that up into 10 short clips.  I leave you with the best stills my husband took on his (superior) phone camera.  And I didn't see the point when we upgraded our phones to get the fancy camera model.  He points out that I did the same thing when he chose a new stove with two ovens, one a convection oven and getting a fridge with water and ice dispensers in the door.  Yeah, I was wrong about all those.

PS.  My heartfelt thanks and apologies to the spouses and families of Seether and the Crew for having to share them.  It's difficult to have someone in your family work out of town for their job.  I send my love to you for all you have to do without them.  Em (Quail Lady).