The whole experience from beginning to end marks an event that I am unlikely to forget anytime in the near future. The performance was very similar to the one we saw in Greenville but the mood shifts and the energy levels were on a different plane of existence altogether.

The arena reminded me of when we used to go see general admission concerts at the Old Charlotte Coliseum. We were right up front, center stage and we had an amazing amount of personal space until about mid-performance and then it was pretty much assholes and elbows. The place was a lot nicer than I thought it would be as compared to the surrounding locations. Entry was fairly docile and the staff was in good spirits.

As far as the crowd goes, There was a lot going on around us but we only had one real point of contention the whole show. A crowd of people who looked like they could have been linebackers for the Chicago bears barreled through the crowd. Not realizing they had actually hurt someone in pursuit of their journey to the front they became disagreeable when they were told to get back and were therefore dealt with disagreeably but it didn't amount to much but a few hurt feelings in the end which is less than I expected. Although the crowd was a lot more aggressive than a lot of GA crowds I've seen for this style of music, it wasn't as bad as it was described at the previous WV show by a long shot. There was a lot of aggressive pushing behind us but we had a lot of really chilled people right around us that were just rocking out and having an awesome time.

The opening act, Big Business, was quite impressive. These guys played their asses off! There was so much energy and charisma floating around that stage it just set the evening off to a great start. I swear the drummer had so much energy that he had to be floating at least a foot off of his seat the entire show. Unfortunately I pretty much missed his performance during Lateralus because we had the aforementioned contention going on at that time but I believe everyone when they say it was amazing. I really wouldn't mind seeing these guys again just because they were so fun to jam out to.

As mentioned before, the main act was very similar to the show we saw in Greenville only we were right up front instead of eleven rows back. I can't say either show was better because the experiences in themselves were in no way the same. Standing that close to the stage you could physically feel the music hit your body like someone had just dropped an EMP bomb right in the middle of the stage. The vocals were pretty indistinguishable but the chorus of fans belting out the lyrics throughout the show bridged that gap amazingly well. I don't think I have ever heard a crowd sing that loud and in such good time in my life. I've heard Maynard sing a million times if I have heard him sing once and his voice is just as integral to the composition of the music but I don't think I would trade the human connectivity I felt during the outbursts of singing for better sound at this show. We heard the vocals well in Greenville and I am positive we will see a show in the future that will yield the same so I am happy to have been a part of the whole tool karaoke experience.

In conclusion, I have to agree with the previously posted reviews. Everything just fell right into place to create a mind blowing experience that rivals that of any other band I have seen live. I can't imagine it getting much better than this!!

-Tina