The Hip in Anaheim

Wow! Imagine getting the opportunity to see The Tragically Hip in a small venue. The Anaheim House of Blues is very small. For Londoners - imagine a bar where the square footage of the entire bar is about the size of the dancefloor of Cowboys (previously The Drink, previously the NAC). Thats right you could see the hip in a venue smaller than Cowboys. Now, the venue wasn't perfect; the upper lever did not have very good sight lines. But the main level had plenty of spots to have a great view of the band.

We took a spot to the left of the stage at the start of a raise area so that Lindsey would have a great view. We were not more than 25 ft from the stage. We had a great view of the entire band, but you rarely take your eyes off of lead singer Gord Downey. The venue was pretty full, but I suspect you may have been able to get tickets just before show time. It was a big Canada reunion; hockey jerseys were seen throughout the bar and an impromptu "Oh Canada" erupted during intermission probably causing the few Americans present to wonder what country they were in! I have never seen so many high fives delivered among the audience as they eagerly anticipated the opportunity to see The Hip in such a venue.

The Hip came out and played a high energy hour and 45 minute set (including 3 song encore). Gord was all over the stage doing his trademark showmanship. The Hip are truly a live band as their weaker songs from this recent album suddenly become engaging in a live setting. While they ripped through all or most of the recent album, they still had time to hit us with some of their greats including New Orleans is Sinking, Little Bones, Courage, 100th Meridian, Nautical Disaster, Ahead by a Century, Music at Work and others.

You can't put a price on seeing Downey up close, but I am sure our $35 ticket (all fees included) was a great deal. The man was dripping sweat (or he doused himself in water) from the moment he hit the stage. When he played the acoustic guitar, you could see it glistening in his sweat. I have no clue how he could hold onto his pick with all that sweat. Being this close allowed us to see every detail he puts into a show including his subtle facial gestures. After last night, I don't think I could ever see them in a large venue again because it will not be the same experience.

Well, I hope they make another trip down here before we leave because it was awesome experience. It is a shame that the Americans don't know what they are missing as they worship Nickleback and Avril Levigne.