Okay, do I even need to say that this concert rocked my face off? Maybe I didn't need to say that at all. So here's the set list, in no particular order:
Feel, Disease, Bright Lights, Unwell, Cold, All I Need, Hand Me Down, Could I Be You, Downfall, Soul, You're So Real, So Sad So Lonely, If You're Gone, Mad Season, Bent, Real World, Long Day, 3 A.M., Push (they saved the best for last!), Back 2 Good, and a U2 cover - Where The Streets Have No Name.
Sorry those aren't in order, but I didn't want to be the nerd writing down the name of each song as they did 'em. Not that anyone who does that is a nerd...moving on...
I'mma hafta say Downfall was my favorite performance, just because of the cool things they had on the screen behind 'em. All sorts of little sayings, and the only one I can remember right now being "Are you more than you think you are?" and other thought-provoking quips.
During most of the performance, they followed a "script" because the cameras were rolling for the DVD. Apparently (according to Rob in the after-show concert- more on this later) they had a lot of problems, but I couldn't tell. This was a GREAT show, but let's get to the exciting part.
So we all know Atlanta is where they chose to film the DVD. Everyone who bought tickets through the fan club got the opportunity to bring 2 friends for FREE (yes, FREE). I'm thinking it's because they wanted the arena to be full so there weren't any shots of empty seats. So, I brought 2 friends for free (seats weren't together, but they had good side-stage seats). Also, fan clubbers got these way-cool neon green and orange bracelets to wear, which meant we got to stay after the concert for "the filming of additional footage for the DVD." I didn't know what they'd be filming, but you can bet we were stayin' for whatever it was. Seems matchbox twenty was comin' back out!!
All the fan club members went to these 2 sections of the arena and waited. Then Jason, body-guard person extraordinaire, came out and sent us all back down to the floor. We had to take off our cool neon bracelets, so that in the video it wouldn't look odd that everyone had on matching jewelry.
Matchbox twenty came back out to re-film some songs they had trouble with the first time around, which ended up being about 6 or so more songs. Rob said that he and the band felt bad because so much had gone wrong and they felt like they didn't give us the show we deserved. Everyone screamed like mad, and I think this helped them feel a little better.
It came time for them to sing Bright Lights again. Not only was this footage for the DVD, but the video for the single is going to be a "live concert video." They needed to make sure that everything that was being re-shot was EXACTLY the way it was during the actual concert. Rob starts singing Bright Lights (his voice is already starting to crack) and some tech guy comes out to stop him and they fix his make-up or something. Rob turns to the crowd and says "You see him too, right? It's not just me?" Then Rob starts again, but stops himself because the piano needs to be moved a few feet. Starts again and gets a little over halfway through it, and the tech guy comes out again to stop him. During this stop, everyone is yelling that the piano is dirty and Adam's like "Hey, Rob, the kids say the piano looks crappy." They bring someone out to clean that, and Adam speaks again: "Hey, Kyle, got any good piano cleaning music?" And they play a little ditty. Once again, Rob starts to sing and gets a line in and that stupid tech guy reappears. By this time, we're all getting sick of hearing "She got out of town on a railway New York bound" and Rob's getting sick of singing it. He complains that this is a tough song to sing and tells us that we sing even if he doesn't. FINALLY, they get through Bright Lights with Rob not being able to sing the chorus because his voice is SHOT. He says he doesn't "want to cheat the good people of Charlotte out of the show they deserve" and someone yells "FUCK CHARLOTTE!!" and wild screaming ensues. During a quiet moment, someone shouts out "FREE BIRD!!" and that was funny.
Other random things that happened in the aftershow:
Adam took questions from the audience. Someone asked Paul for a drumstick and got one. And someone else asked something. Oh, and here's something new: Paul got to speak. During one of the Bright Lights breaks, he came out from behind the drums and got Rob's mic and said how he never got to speak, so tonight he was speaking. I've NEVER heard Brian talk at a show. Anyway...
They performed Back 2 Good and Rob had to go change his shirt. He said that by that point in the concert, he was sweating like a pig and wondered if anyone else was concerned that during the DVD, he would be "wet, dry, wet, dry" in the shots. No one cared, but Paul suggested that they should "wet you down" and there were lots of girly (and some manly) screams from the crowd. They did "So Sad So Lonely" again for us and then exited the stage. By this time, it was 2:30 a.m.
On the way out, we got the Sessions book as a parting gift. I live 2 hours away from Atlanta and it was almost 5 when I got home, but I wouldn't have traded ANYTHING for that after-show experience. It was so intimate and personal- MUCH better than a concert.
One more thing- this concert may have been the reason Rob has been having laryngitis lately. He really gave it 200% that night for us and it sucks that some shows have been cancelled/postponed. So on behalf of everyone who attended the Atlanta show, I apologize to all of you who didn't get the matchbox experience. =)