Dave Matthews Band pleases a capacity crowd in Lucca, Italy.
I'm Back.
After a four day hiatus from blogging to just "enjoy" the championship (also known as continuous celebration), I've decide to retroactively post some of what happened before the EuroBowl... such as a great four days in Italy visiting the Cinque Terre, Pisa, and a Dave Matthews Band concert in Lucca, Italy.
What's better than being back in Italy? Lucca is AMAZING!
Anyone who knows Matt Epperson knows that DAVE MATTHEWS BAND is far and away his favorite. Every CD Matt makes has at least 8 DMB songs on it, producing an acoustic yet at times dangerously melancholy feeling. There is actually a running joke that listening to one of Matt's playlists is similar to staring out a Seattle window in January for three days straight. However, it must be noted that Dave gives just about as good of live show as anyone on the planet... so when Matt informed us that he would be playing an obscure city in Tuscany during one of our off-weekends, we knew we had to make the trip!
An amazing facade of a Lucca church named after my sister-in-law, San Michele.
The town of Lucca itself dates back to 180 BC and is famous for its Renaissance-era city walls that form a barrier around the old town. As you can tell from these few photos, it has retained its old feel and reminded me a lot of Sienna. It seems you can't turn a corner without seeing a tower, and on this hot summer night it hosted a lively stream of interesting people to watch.
Italy in a nutshell
After grabbing a pizza on the street and washing it down with some local Chianti, we headed towards the concert venue, which was actually just a large tree-lined piazza, the Piazza Napoleone. The adjacent streets were blocked off, allowing just the ticket holders inside the square. Local cafes acted as the concession stands, and historical buildings served as the backdrop to the stage. It was perhaps the most unique concert venue I had ever seen!
CONCERT TIME!
"OH" Face! It's showtime!
Video time
Our neighbors.
DAVE MATTHEWS CONCERT
Not a bad view from our standing room only seats...
The last time I saw Dave it was Vegas, 1999. I was a college sophomore, and the experience stuck with me. Never before had I seen such improvisation between instruments, as their concerts quickly turn into jam sessions with 20 minute renditions of their most popular hits. Dave would be a "players coach" in football, allowing his fellow musicians the freedom to experiment and have fun in front of the crowd. It mixes for a great show - especially when the "Dolce Vita" has the band inspired! They rocked for 3 hours, 2 encores, and an eternity of solos. It was awesome!!!
Panoramic of the Venue
Dave is the man
One happy sucka...
Time to get a little artsy
JJ & CC
MASH!
~ J. Twice
1 comment:
Awesome dude :)
Post a Comment