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Old 05-04-2006, 10:57 PM   #22
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Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: Nor Cal
Posts: 2
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Re: 2006/05/04 - Oakland, CA - Paramount Theatre

Alright... long time lurker... first time poster.... here goes.........
10th or 11th t Tool show, and first time seeing Tool in a small venue since Roseland Ballroom in NY way back in '95 i think.
Performance was flawless and the setlist was the same as Seattle with a couple of rearranged tracks. Everyone brought their 'A' game and I was very impressed. "Still crazy after all these years" I thought. I kinda wished the sound was a bit better however... I was in the 9th row and thought the highs were really tinny and at times Maynard was barely audible...
But all in all it was a great set, but not the religious experience of seeing them for the first time in '92, but then again better than Lateralus tour.

Some funny quotes:

"So... Oakland, huh?... Kinda like San Francisco, only better.... (crowd silence)... Okay that was our pathetic attempt to win you over..."

"Thank you very much. Thoses were some songs.... and coming up next... some more songs".

Classic.

Here's why I'm glad I'm a scumbag Tool fan who made a small fortune on Ebay selling the 5 extra tickets I got through Ticketmaster:

On the right of me was a kid in his early twenties (paid $450 for his seat, TYVM) who showed up late, sometime into Stinkfist. He pulled out his derring mid song and sniffed enough crystal meth to give a horse cardiac arrest. After some random air drum and guitar solo performances, he excused himself from his seat only moments later, tapping me going "dude.... I gotta get the f#ck outta here...". Okay. Cool. Knock yourself out.
He returned halfway through the set only to do an encore snort/air drum/guitar diddy and then tapped me again "bro... let me outta here, please... i gotta go..." .
So much for feeling guilty about making a few bucks on that ticket.

And to my left was a short, fat, late thirties to forty something metal/pseudo hippy chick... just the type of girl you'd expect to see swimming around in the sausage fiesta that is a small venue Tool show. We made some small talk before the band went on, and laughed a bit about my being escorted to the coat check by security for taking photos not once, but twice (that's another story all together) with my cell phone.
When she lit up a thumb sized bone during 'Lost Keys" I thought, "cool" maybe she'll smoke me out if I ask her nicely. I politely told her that I'd be happy to pay for her parking or buy her a drink for just a couple of pulls on her doobie, and gave her the sad puppy dog eyes and all. She blew me off like I was a vagrant on Market street begging for change. I couldn't believe it... it's not even like she was toking exotics or anything, it smelled like low grade commercial mexican swag to me... in the Bay Area no less. Pathetic, but whatever....
She paid $375 for her seat, so I shrugged it off with a smile.

To make a long story short... the above nonsense notwithstanding - the crowd had great time, Maynard and the boys rocked out and played a killer set, and I got to see a great show plus made some great coin in the process... who could ask for anything more?
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