What happened my first time at the House of Blues

A while back I was given tickets to The Wombats concert at the House of Blues. It was their first stop on their tour in the United States, so I was excited to say the least.

I’m not from the Boston area, so I have not been to any of the concert venues.

Back home in Albany there are a lot of concerts, many of which are in smaller venues like bars and clubs.

Monday night was terribly cold. My friend and I got to the concert early to pick up our tickets and unfortunately didn’t think it would be as freezing as it was.

Luckily, the Capital One Coffee people were there giving out free coffee to give us a little warmth, but that was not enough. We lost all feeling in our toes.

The doors were supposed to open at seven, and as it was getting closer and closer to that time, one of the girls near us said to expect to wait an extra 15 or 20 minutes. That was not good.

My friend and I attempting to stay warm

Sure enough, we had to wait an extra 15 minutes to get in, and while some of you might think that isn’t that long of a wait, try standing out there for over an hour. It was painfully cold.

Finally, they started letting us in. Or I should say, the other line was let in. No one said that if you bought $15 worth of food in the restaurant that you’d get to go in first. My friend and I skipped eating dinner and would have gladly gotten food if we had known that.

So then we waited. Again.

When we finally got in the building, I was pleasantly surprised. I love the set up, with multiple floors and a more intimate space. There is the highest section – the balcony area with seats, and the standing balcony section under that, along with the main floor.

Pop Etc, the opening group

The stage was so close, it was just an arm’s length away. You don’t get that feeling of intimacy at larger concerts where the bands are practically on a pedestal and a long distance away. Throughout the show, members of the band were able to jump down and directly interact with the concert goers.

Royal Teeth, the second band

Now, when I say the space was small and intimate and that I was very close to the stage, this is what I mean. The bassist for the Wombats got in a very good workout running all over stage, and some of the time when he would whip his hair out of his face, you’d get splashed with a little bit of sweat.

The bassist for The Wombats

The bands were amazing and I loved the concert. There were occasional problems with the sound and feedback from the microphones, but that’s almost expected at concerts.

I have to say, despite having to wait out in the cold for a bit longer, I love the House of Blues and would definitely come back again.

Next time though, I am going to that restaurant.