Simply put, last night was the best night I've had in Albuquerque thus far. Which was good because it came after a pretty horrible day at work.

I'll spare the details of my frustrating work day, I'm just glad to have today off to recover.

I met up with a group of 7 others from counterculture at 5:30 to make our way to see the Counting Crows and Goo Goo Dolls. We were headed to the Journal Pavilion, literally in the middle of nowhere south of the city. The venue was spectacular. I'm always a fan of outdoor shows, but this venue is really set up so you can see almost anything from just about anywhere, even the lawn seats. We had lawn seats, which gave us the opportunity to spread out, enjoy each others company and not be confined to the tight spaces that come with having a seat. The sky was looking like it was going to open up at any moment, which always makes for an interesting concert experience.

I had no idea that there was a third band opening for these two headliners, but as Augustana took the stage I was overwhelmed with delight. A band that I had found randomly through the internet in late 2005 was opening for these two incredible bands. I couldn't be any happier. For awhile early this year, their hit Boston has really captured how I felt when I came to Albuquerque. I was enthralled by them the entire time, and I knew at that point that the night could only get better.

As Augustana finished up, we felt a few sprinkles. The sprinkles turned into a downpour that lasted quite some time, but thanks to Paul and Mandy, we were shielded from the rain by their tarp. It gave us an opportunity to laugh with each other, talk, and really just enjoy each others presence. Sure, we were all in close proximity, but there was a point during the storm where I realized there was nowhere else that I would rather be than laughing almost to the point of tears with these people.

Shortly after the rain stopped, the Goo Goo Dolls took the stage. I've always been a fan of theirs, even before they hopped onto the scene with Name, and way before Iris came and flooded the airwaves in the mid-nineties. This was my second time seeing them, and I have to say it was definitely the better of the two experiences even though I was pretty much first row at the last concert. Johnny Rzeznik is just an incredible performer no matter where you are, and though I have to put up with the vocal stylings of their other frontman Robby Takac, it is all worth it in the end.

When the Counting Crows took the stage, I simply watched in awe. I've always heard they put on a great show, but Duritz was absolutely amazing. He is a poet, a storyteller, a singer, and he just captures this essence that I can't even begin to describe. It made me remember my summer in Tennessee fondly, the summer that Hard Candy, their last album came out. I'm pretty sure we wore out a couple of copies of that CD by the end of the summer.

We ended our night together at IHOP, I made it back out to my housesitting by 1:45 am, but I wouldn't have had it any other way. Thank you Kelly for letting us have that awesome experience, and I'm so thankful I got to share it with great people like Billy and Tara, Paul and Mandy, Fawn, Kelly and Nikki. Another blessing to hold onto and be thankful for here in Albuquerque.

I've got more pictures up here. I hope to really start photo documenting my time here a little bit better and figured an online photo album would help. I'm headed off to a 4th of July BBQ, and though it won't be like home hanging out at KCC, playing frisbee and watching a great small town fireworks display, it will be a day shared with friends, and I couldn't ask for anything better than that. Have a safe and happy holiday!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 04, 2006 at 1:45 PM. You can skip to the end and leave a response.