Radiohead Day

Got up pretty early on Radiohead Day, around 8 a.m. I think it was. In spite of getting in fairly late the night before. More than a little liquored up, as well!

Did my usual, made coffee, fed dog and cats, and put some chicken breasts on to bake in tarragon and white wine. Internetted. Dressed to go meet a friend to exchange dollars for Radiohead tickets. Waited in vain for half an hour…stopped at bank to get cash to pay friend figuring that at worst I could sell at the venue. Emailed non-showing-up friend and said um, do you still want tickets? he called and said yes, and that he’d be back in East Van early afternoon; I said OK, well I’m at home till about 1:00, can you come by then, and he said yes. So I baked this really nice little Chocolate Bundt Cake out of my America’s Test Kitchen cookbook (really nice texture, will totally make it again, wish the recipe weren’t across two pages though), made some tarragon mayo, made us darling little chicken sandwiches, boiled up some edamame, cubed much of a gorgeous cantaloupe, and blanched some snow peas, to make up a chicken breast and snow pea plate for my dad, and packed up sandwiches, edamame, melon and sliced and wrapped cake for the lineup. Ticket guy showed up shortly after 2:00…So an hour later than planned, headed out to UBC.

After paying some heinous parking fees of late ($17.50 for less than four hours beneath Pacific Centre! THIS AIN’T NEW YORK, PEOPLE!) it was nice to score a $5 parking slot for the entire afternoon and evening.

We headed to the lineup and the misery began. There was a holding area, post-search, where people had been lined up. Just as we arrived, there was one of those spontaneous herd instinct things, and everyone rushed up to the entry. Gates weren’t open yet, but people needed to feel closer to them, I guess. Couldn’t see my peeps, talked to Mike who was at the drinks thing the night before, and tracked him down. Eventually caught sight of Sean, although didn’t speak to him.

The Main Distractor and I chatted with Mike and this other guy, ate our picnic standing up amongst the faithful, and melted in the sun. For two and a half hours, as the doors were late opening. While those peculiar people who hire on as security, screaming, berated people who actually dared to–wait for it–SIT DOWN while waiting. Whoa. I mean, the nerve! “ON YOUR FEET!! MAKE A PATH!! GET UP NOW!!” Listen, bitch, nobody’s paying ME to be here, and you can stop screaming like a little puling fascist right fucking now.

When they did finally let us through, their scanners were malfunctioning and they had to hand-rip stubs. People overwhelmed them and just went right on through.

Thanks to Mike’s excellent recommendations, we slud through to the field PDQ. The stage had this barrier thing running between it and the sound/light booth, though, so there was this empty wasted swath of prime center stage, 5 or 6 feet wide, running all the way through. Nothing useful in there but cables. Normally, cables are run under a shield of some kind or under the plywood…I don’t know why this is no longer an option for UBC, but after even half an hour or so against one side I calculated my view as basically the back of the heads of the tall boys in front of me, and my likelihood of being squished against the fence as high, so we escaped to the stands, where many Radiohead friends had already scoped out sweet spots, and were kind enough to share with us. I shared cake with them

The set list was:

01. 15 Step
02. There There
03. Morning Bell
04. All I Need
05. Where I End And You Begin
06. Talk Show Host
07. Nude
08. Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
09. The National Anthem
10. Bangers And Mash
11. Faust Arp
12. Videotape
13. Karma Police
14. Jigsaw Falling Into Place
15. Just
16. Exit Music [For A Film]
17. Bodysnatchers

Encore 1
18. House of Cards
19. Optimistic
20. You And Whose Army?
21. Planet Telex
22. Everything In Its Right Place

Encore 2
23. Reckoner
24. 2+2=5
25. Paranoid Android

And I had my best view yet of the light show. the seating in the covered bleachers was an excellent idea, as it poured with rain. So we were spared a thorough soaking (our trash bag ponchos wouldn’t have stood up to all that!!).

And that closed out my 2008 Radiohead shows. Holding hands with my Main Distractor. He had a good time, too.

My intention afterward was to hang around and chat with some friends I hadn’t caught up with, but it was cold and wet, and we were well-positioned to make a speedy exit, so we did. Due to the lucky parking, we were able to get off campus with little delay, and a fortuitous choice of route got us from our parking lot at UBC to the heart of East Van in less than 30 minutes, in spite of pretty bad weather. Much easier than some of my other concerts this year!