 - - - - - - - - - - - - - THURSDAY, JUNE 3RD, 1999, SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY'S OPEN-AIR THEATER, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA By Fadestarz@aol.com I have to get this out of my system: I was extremely lucky to be able to see hole for the second time this year. I saw them earlier in San Francisco and was impressed, but not so much since i wasn’t really into them at that time. But after that show, I was converted into a die hard fan. So, on June 3rd I flew down from San Francisco to catch their show at the San Diego State open-air theatre. I basically ignored the opening band, because i was so anxious to see one of the best bands take the stage. After the opening band finished, it started to rain. My two friends and I were sitting in rain, getting drenched ( but it was all worth it). Well, an hour later, the "Old Age" intro began, and the crowd began to cheer in excitement as they took stage. We were pretty far back but we could still make out the faces. Courtney, in pure rock n’ roll fashion, came on with a cigarette in her mouth and blasted into a raging version of Violet. After this song, I was simply enthralled because I had been anticipating this moment for over three months! After Violet, she began cursing out Coca-Cola for buying up half of the theatre’s seats, which were empty (It was assigned seating). So, she told the entire crowd to move as close to the stage as possible. She kept on saying "Don’t worry about the security, i’ll protect you. They work for me." So, my friends and I ran down to stage and advanced from the third tier seats to fifth row seats right in front of Eric. The group played an awesome version of "Awful" which was less "poppish" and much harsher as Courtney sang her heart out. Afterwards, she kept telling people in the back to move up. She even threatened not to play until everyone moved up. Throughout the concert, she brought on stage at least twenty girls and a couple of guys. One guy bum-rushed the stage and knocked over Courtney’s mike stand as she was singing the intro to Miss World which got her really pissed off. She said, "You’re one of those jocks that beats up one people. Actually, you’re a freak! Why don’t you go make a pipe bomb and blow something up! Actually, don’t blow anything up. I bet you don’t even know how to have sex!" Earlier, Courtney kept going on about jocks and freaks and how they should get along. At one point she said, "If me and Ben Affleck can be friends, you freaks and jocks should be able to get along." In terms of appearance, everyone looked awesome. Courtney had a quasi-Doll Parts outfit consisting of a tutu over red hot pants over black fish net stocking and a tight red top. Melissa wore a full-scarlet dress, which made her look like she was from the 17th century and was stunning. Sam wore brown pants and a blue tank top, and i forgot what eric wore. In the encore, Courtney changed into a small, white tank top and had a pair of fairy wings. Throughout the performance, Courtney brought more people onto stage. At one point, she complained that there were too many white people and she needed some non-whites. So, she brought a black girl on stage and asked her if it sucked to live in San Diego since it had so conservative which I thought was hilarious since I’m from Bezerkely. The girl responded, which I couldn’t hear, and Courtney suddenly kissed the girl smack on the lips! In terms of performance, the band sounded tight. Of course , there were a few times where Courtney forgot the lines, or just did not sing into the mike. At one point, during Boys on the Radio, she went towards the backstage area and emerged towards the side of us. Chaos ensued, as a whole bunch of us chased after her and security scrambled to protect her. I must have been at least three feet away from her and was simply mesmerized. I kept shouting trying to get here attention and actually did when she looked directly at me, as she was being pulled by the security guards. The band kept on playing during this whole time Courtney was not singing because she was being mobbed by fans and security. But it was still so awesome, to actually see her close up. (she ‘s shorter than i thought) Well , after the song, Melissa said something to the extent of "how do we put up with her?" Mellissa conversed a bit during the concert, and said stuff like "the rain is here to cleanse us, and to sit through this, you must really like us". As they walked off the stage, Courtney criticized San Diego again, and said "stop being so fucking right-wing." As for the encore, Courtney came out with fairy wings, a small white tank top, and the same hot pants. She and Eric performed Northern Star, which is probably my favorite track, and she wailed her heart out towards the end of the song. Then, they decided to play 20 Years in the Dakota, which was a pleasant surprise. Before the song, courtney asked the roadie to take the guitar away because she probably didn’t remember the music or the lyrics. She then made a facicous remark that Cameron Diaz wrote the song and Matt Dillon stole it. During a powerful rendition of celebrity skin, where courtney repeated the first bridge, she shouted "let’s riot!" Of course, that was difficult with the security guards in the way. When the show was over, Courtney wanted to hand her mic off, and asked, "whose a leader?" The twenty some odd people who were on the stage mobbed her which I thought was pretty funny. As she walked off, to the male audience’s pleasure, she lifted up her shirt and exposed her breasts. The entire crowd seemed like it wanted a second encore. The music, coupled with courtney’s comical and incessant interaction with the crowd helped fuel the audience’s reaction of wanting more. - - - - - - - - - - - - - |