On Friday, October 27, 2013 I was able to go see @Bassnectar in concert at Pershing in Lincoln. Having enjoyed Bassnectar for awhile and hearing about his great live shows, it was exciting to see it come to my home town. The show had some really unique things, and in total it was great. The sound was unbelievable.
Security
The security to the show was nearly as extensive as at an airport. They required everyone to take everything out of pockets, have a pat down (not as invasive as an airport), and lift up your shirt to look at the waistband. Despite this, they allowed sealed water bottles in (they took the caps at the door) and bags after looking in them as well. My observation while waiting in line was this caused a lot of people to consume anything they were hoping to get into the show before going in. This did cut down a lot on substance use inside the concert, but of course the concert still smelled like an EDM concert.
Koan Sound
Usually opening acts don’t get much attention, Koan Sounds was the opposite of that. They got the crowd going and were a surprise for me. Being from the UK, their music was a bit different and more like a club. I am definitely going to check them out.
Bassnectar/The Sound
Bassnectar’s set was over 2 hours of constant music and dancing. He had 1 giant screen behind him supported with 4 smaller pillar boards on the sides. The video was very colorful and synced to songs. Some were random fractal designs, others were moving video or stylized bits from music videos.
The music was a great selection of new and old Bassnectar. One of the things I like about Bassnectar’s music is it incorporates pieces from lots of styles of music, and this showed in what he played. It was similar to some of his recent mixtapes. It’s the Bassnectar we know and expect to hear.
The sound quality was unbelievably clear and dangerously loud. It brought new meaning to “feel the music”. I had read a little on the Meyer Sound system being used. I thought some of it was hype, but the system lived up to its reputation. Never before have I been to any concert that was as loud, but super clear, as this one was. You could feel the music in your body way more than you typically would at a rock show. As a long time follower of Bassnectar on twitter, I knew that he recommended ear plugs; I was very glad I had my Etymotic Research ER20 in my pocket. These are unique in that they evenly block volume in sound without distortion or changing pitch. They make it so you can talk to someone near you without yelling. My guess is this was the loudest and most bass heavy concert that the old Pershing building had ever seen.
All photos below were taken with my Note 2.
