Widespread Panic @ Warner Theater, April 2, 2008

I caught Widespread Panic at the Warner Theater last night. I haven't thought much about them in years, and over the weekend a friend mentioned they were in town. I haven't been to a good old fashioned hippie show in a while so I thought I'd try to get tickets. Well, it was way sold out. I emailed a few folks on Craig's list and got nothing. Then, magically, I went on ticketmaster yesterday and just tried again, and two tickets for the Wednesday show appeared. Great seats, too, though as it turned out, that hardly mattered.

They put on a hell of a show. And the scene was ridiculous. It was like the clock had turned back 20 years to when the freaks were flying under the radar. There was a dude selling nitrous oxide on the sidewalk to people waiting to get in. Upon entering the theater, there was a wall of weed smoke that would have made Jerry Garcia raise his eyebrows. Security made only the most token of efforts to limit people's activities in the theater. So our seats were in Row P, but after the first set we thought we'd wander a little bit and with little effort ended up literally at the stage, where we remained for most of the 2nd set.

I couldn't begin to tell you the names of the songs they played, having not heard them in years, but suffice it to say it rocked out.

Funniest moment: Waiting in line outside the show, girl, from Baltimore, early 20's, drunk, sucking down nitrous balloons.... with her dad.

Best moment: after standing in the aisle for 15 minutes at the beginning of the 2nd set, security vaguely shuffles us back up the aisle in their brief moment of giving a crap. So we immediately proceed around the other side, end up on the rail stage left, 10 feet from Jimmy Herring, where nobody bothers us the rest of the night.

All my pictures from the show on Flickr.

I wish I had brought in a real camera, given that security didn't give a damn! These are from my point and shoot which sucks at no-flash shots, but a handful of them came out nicely.









I swear, that's exactly what it looked like after my fifth jack and coke...



Gimme somma dat hippie crack!!



Inside the theater... is that a flying saucer landing?




Waiting to get in