The Last Carnival – July Tour, Nottingham

So despite the fact that my friend’s newly cut keys meant that I didn’t need to be up early, I didn’t actually sleep all that well, waking up every few hours for no apparent reason. Still, I was technically in bed for a good ten hours and I definitely felt better for it. Hopefully it will be enough to keep me going for the next couple of nights. It also helped, at least in terms of relaxation, that having properly woken up I still ended up spending a good hour longer lazing around daydreaming before actually getting up. Of course it then meant I was running late for my train, plus having legged it across Manchester to Oxford Road, my train’s next stop was Piccadilly which would have been far more convenient had I known at the time. Still, I made it in the nick of time and off to Nottingham I went.

Club:

When I arrived, Lacey were outside so I said a general hi, before heading in to VIP. Tia took us upstairs, so I got to say hi to her, and when we walked in, the band were all chilling in a sofa-ed area in the corner and didn’t actually bother to move at first. If there hadn’t been a bunch of other fans behind me I’d probably have just gone and crashed the party, but I dutifully stayed back until they deigned to grace us with their presence a minute or two later :P. Russ reached me first and I got a much needed big squeezey hug from him. I then turned to Justin who I hugged but who didn’t actually hug me back. Meh. He did however smell amazing, which I told him without really meaning to, at which point he thanked me and walked off…

After that I decided to head where I might actually be wanted (*sulk, mutter*) and went to talk to Russ and Mike. They were chatting to another fan as well, who at one point showed them a video of her parrot headbanging to No Hero. That prompted Mike to tell me a story about a giant parrot that used to live in a pet shop near him, which sounded pretty awesome. I also asked him for ideas for my VIP photo. He couldn’t think of anything, but obviously wasn’t enamoured with the facing backwards idea, so I gave up on that.

I then went to join Kieran who was holding court entertaining a group of girls and Mike joined us shortly after. Kieran seemed thoroughly bemused by the fact they had discovered the band on tumblr, even though the band don’t actually have a tumblr…! Anyhoo, the boys were discussing tight trousers (Kieran’s in particular, which my attention had already been drawn to in Manchester – against my will, I might add!) and lunging… Yes, really. Kieran’s counter-attack in defence of his tight trousers was that Mike’s were too baggy. Mike pointed out it allowed him to lunge, to which Kieran retorted that his own trousers were stretchy and therefore allowed him to lunge too. Both felt the need to demonstrate and I was caught somewhere between highly entertained and slightly disturbed :P. I don’t know what the other girls thought, having never met either of them before..?! Kieran then progressed to doing impressions of Justin’s signature Can-Can move (standing on one leg, with the other lifted at a right angle(ish) and bent at the knee, with a bit of a kick motion going on), which was even more entertaining than the lunging and became yet more so when Mike joined in too. There was much discussion of balance and how hard it actually was, which prompted both of them to start playing air-guitar whilst remaining on one leg. At which point, Justin himself joined us and did it as well. And perhaps I’m a tad biased, but he does give a slight edge to the move that the other two lack. It’s sharper somehow ;).

The ‘Justin’ Move

The conversation that followed was more of Mike teasing Kieran and it was decided that he needs a move too; specifically, a jazz hand during his one-handed piano solo :P. After that I was chatting to Kieran by myself and asked him what he thought I should do for my last VIP photo. He suggested that we could all do the Justin move, which would have been epic, but I didn’t think for a second that I’d be able to persuade them all to do it.

The acoustic set was fabulous as always, but this time it finally cost me my shoes… There’s A Road made me cry. Whether it was just a reflection of my mood, the beginning of the end of tour blues or simply just the lyrics getting to me (‘I wonder what it’s like up there, where every dream is how it seems’?), I don’t know, but it’s a tad worrying… because now there’s nothing left to stop me falling apart tomorrow. I mean, I suppose it was inevitable really and if it hadn’t happened then, it would have done sooner or later. The shoes were a nice little carrot, but I never truly expected them to work. As you can probably deduce from the fact that Justin’s earlier non-hug bothered me enough to be noteworthy, I wasn’t in a particularly positive mood and even the Mike and Kieran comedy routine didn’t really come close to pulling me out of my funk. It should have been a brilliant VIP session, with far less people than there were at any of the other shows and therefore, theoretically at least, far more time to spend with the boys, but it just wasn’t. I hadn’t even spoken to Adam by the time they began the acoustic set, but he did come over and tapped me on the shoulder during There’s A Road. I gave him a one-armed hug, but I was filming so couldn’t give him a proper one until afterwards. He stood by me for the whole song though, so when it was done he got a massive hug – although that was more out of necessity than anything else. I needed that hug :'(.

In the limbo while the guitars were put away before the photos, I found Kieran and gave him a hug too. Which almost backfired spectacularly when I very nearly ended up crying on his shoulder, but I managed to hold it together – I don’t think he would have been impressed… Anyhoo, in the end I didn’t do anything special for the photo at all. I couldn’t think what to do and Adam called me in for mine halfway through the group, so in the pressure of the moment, I just got a regular photo. I didn’t even think to squidge in next to Justin, so that was a bit of a failure all round. [Edit: they actually lost the Nottingham VIP photos somehow or other, so in the end it didn’t even matter. In fact I’m quite relieved I didn’t bother making a fuss and doing something silly. Of all the photos for them to lose, I think this was the best, especially given I’d been crying (although it would have been nice to have an alternative to London – I’m not overly fond of that one). I’m still gutted that I never got Manchester’s pic though :(]

I spoke to Russ during the group photo and told him that he made me cry during There’s A Road. He agreed it was a very sad song and sort of implied that he almost hadn’t realised how sad it actually was. Then we all headed downstairs and Mike tried to sell me more merch, but somehow or other I managed to resist buying something I didn’t actually want… :P. After the sales pitch, I finally got around to speaking to Justin. He and Kieran were looking at some of the supports’ merch and they asked me about the bands. They mentioned that since they’re always backstage, they don’t actually see them play so I said a few nice things and mentioned that I’d been a fan of Lacey for a while and that they should check them out :). When Kieran drifted off somewhere, I carried on talking to Justin for a moment or two more and we ended up discussing taxis in London for some reason (I think I was saying something about night buses?). He told me that the postcode makes a difference and money can be saved if you know what you’re doing (calling a cab from a street or two over, for example). Apparently Tom taught him that. Anyway, I also told him that I was feeling huggy tonight and apologised for it, but in actual fact it probably didn’t make any difference to him. He just felt a bit off with me tonight, so whilst I ended up hugging anyone else who got too close, I generally kept my distance with him. I really was in a thoroughly rubbish mood and I don’t even know why. All I can hope is that it means I’ll be okay for tomorrow but I don’t see how. The after party dread has already stated in earnest…

Support:

So it didn’t help my mood much that the venue was bloody freezing and I’d also developed a pounding headache. Lost At Home were first up again, but to be honest I have nothing further to say about them. They just don’t do it for me.

The Afterparty opened to Boom! Shake The Room, which was an excellent choice, I felt. They also perked me up a bit, so that was nice :). I had Matt in front of me for a change (when he was setting up his pedal board, he informed me that he would be situating himself there in a sort of ‘hope you don’t mind’ kind of way, it was cute) so that gave me something a little different to look at! Headache aside, once again I really enjoyed their set and it was a good start to pulling me out of my funk.

Lacey gave me something new to look at too and I had Pete in front of me this time, which was rather fun. It’s kinda interesting watching the guitarists that don’t sing, since they have more freedom to move without needing to tether themselves to a mic stand (and I wasn’t even thinking of Justin when I wrote that, believe it or not!). Anyhoo, what The Afterparty began, Lacey finished and by the end of the set I’d been cheered right up :D. Although it possibly helped that Graz had me on water duty again during Contender! It’s the first time all tour I’ve actually been close enough, although I still thought he was joking when he first motioned to me! When I realised he was serious, I dutifully passed him his bottle, which certainly made me grin. It was a fabulous set and nice to see them play with a lot of their own fans in tow.

The Show:

[Edit: I barely wrote down anything about the show itself and what I did write is mostly OTT fangirling that even I won’t publish, so apologies for the brief nature of this section]

So the show was amazing as always and even with my mood as it was I absolutely loved it. There is nothing quite like watching those boys play. Still, my emotional stability wasn’t quite what it could have been and I was genuinely worried about Beautiful. Fortunately, it was ok, (although I don’t know how much of that was because I filmed it, which always distracts me, at least a little) and I didn’t even come close to crying. It really is a heartwrenchingly stunning song though – I still can’t get enough of it. I recorded Setting The World Alight (& the Crazy solo) too, mostly because I just felt like filming tonight, I’m not sure why. The lighting certainly wasn’t conducive to it, with no background lighting at all – meaning that when the fancy lights weren’t on, you couldn’t even see them. I don’t think that helped with the atmosphere much, either. It certainly wasn’t a patch on yesterday, with loads of people chattering away through the set (why do people insist on doing that?! It’s so rude, both to the performer and other fans).

Of course, I was directly in front of Justin again (he must be sick of the sight of me by now…) and there was plenty of his signature move thrown in, often whilst stood on a raised portion of the stage off to my left. Which meant that I seriously considered the possibility that he might kick me in the head… Fortunately Kieran’s new signature move (which is clearly not going to catch on, but it would be SO awesome if it did!) is less dangerous and far more amusing. Mike actually crossed the stage to talk him into doing it and Kieran clearly gave in to the pressure, if only briefly. It was brilliant!

Do it!

I was also relatively entertained when at one one point I was taking photos of Kieran, but Benji was ducked down nearby and evidently thought I was taking photos of him instead. I just pointed at Kieran with a grin, but to be fair to Benji, whilst he may not have been my focus, he was definitely still in shot…!

Crouching Photographer, Ivory Tickling Pianist

Other than that, Justin’s hair was driving me slowly insane… The longest strand of it kept catching at the corner of his lips every time he so much as moved and I couldn’t take my eyes off of it. I’ve not noticed it before and I have no idea why I suddenly noticed it tonight, but once it caught my attention I couldn’t stop noticing it. It didn’t really help any that it was like a neon arrow pointing at his mouth…

Lights will guide you home

It’s a good thing I still have some vague sense of propriety left or I’d probably have just reached out and brushed it away (not that he actually got close enough, but a girl can dream). I was also bizarrely fixated on his right forearm, which really seemed to be doing it for me this evening, although I haven’t a clue why. I think it had something to do with his shirt sleeve.

Russ, Justin & The Strand Of Torment

Post-show:

So, I’d forgotten how bad Stealth are for rushing the fans out at the end of the gig and I barely even managed to get a full set of selfies before they started kicking people out. The band moved the post-show hangout outside (which was fine for chatting, but I’d never really considered the negative effect of early kick-out on merch sales – it must be a right pain for them) but by then I’d completely forgotten that I wanted to get my setlist signed (I grabbed Justin’s at the end of the set as usual). I remembered a little later, but by that point I didn’t think it was such a good idea as I didn’t dare speak to him beyond saying goodbye (more on that in a moment). [Edit: I still had the setlist with me in Brighton, so I got him to sign it then, hence the fact it is in fact autographed despite what I just said about forgetting.]

The Last Carnival – Nottingham Setlist

Anyhoo, Tia had friends and family in so I gave her more of a hand with packing up the merch than usual (I’m getting rather good :P) to free her up to talk to them and ended up spending a fair amount of time just hanging and chatting to various people inside, before heading back out in search of band members with both Tia and my camera in tow. I added a few more Lacey pics to the collection and then headed for the usual suspect, which didn’t quite work out as I’d hoped… He was chatting to a couple of girls when I found him, so we hovered to wait until he was free. They evidently noticed us, however, and offered him to us for photographic purposes. Given the rare opportunity to have someone else take the picture, I employed my standard ‘grab from behind’ technique and hugged him (incidentally he’s really ripped… those abs!). Tia took the photo for me, but on closer inspection, she deemed it unsuitable and told him off for pulling faces. She flashed the screen at me, but I didn’t really see it, just took her word for it – after all, Justin pulling faces is hardly a stretch of the imagination. Only he apparently decided that one was enough and refused to pose for a second attempt… to the point that he yanked himself out of my arms (the one saving grace of this were the ripples under my fingertips…) and snapped at me that he was talking. Tia thought he was joking around (at least initially), but I was pretty sure he wasn’t and was relatively upset as a result. In fact, I avoided talking to him again after that (until they left) and that was all before I even realised quite how bad the photo actually was. It wasn’t until I was flicking through them later on that I finally saw it properly, at which point I very nearly cried. He wasn’t just pulling a stupid face this time… His eyes are focussed back over his shoulder towards me and his lip is curled up in disdain as if to say ‘get this thing off of me’. I, of course, am blissfully unaware and happily smiling at the camera. It hurt far more than it probably should have, but fortunately I didn’t know about it until well after he’d left, so for the most part I was able to brush the incident aside (although that didn’t extend to me being brave enough to try speaking to him again for the rest of the evening). Tia and I went in search of other, more charitable band members instead and ended up getting a whole bunch of random pics and selfies with various collections of people. I also managed to get a photo with all of The Afterparty boys, so that was fun (and made particularly amusing by Matt trying to hide behind his band mates to block the beer spill on the front of his t-shirt from view).

Finally, on a rather random note, I had a dream last night (or the night before? I forget now) in which I kissed Kieran on the cheek during a selfie and he got mad. I hadn’t really intended to mention it, but it came up in conversation with Adam post-gig (I think we were talking about unexpected people getting angry in dreams), so when I saw Kieran again at the end of teh night (he vanished when they went outside and didn’t reappear until they were about to leave) I told him about it too. In response, he offered up his cheek and sure enough, he did not get mad when I kissed it! Although to be fair I wasn’t photographing it :P. It did belatedly occur to me where the dream might have come from, though. I reckon it’s some sort of transference. I’ve been ruffling his hair all tour and pointedly not ruffling anyone else’s who’d be likely to get annoyed with me over it. So obviously I know I could kiss Kieran in a selfie, no problem, but if I tried to do it to Justin…? Of course, I could be wrong (about the cause of the dream, that is, not their respective reactions), but it’s a fairly plausible theory. Anyhoo, they all headed off at that point so after the usual round of goodbye hugs (during which Justin did in fact give me a proper hug, so I was slightly less upset) we parted ways. And I only felt slightly self-conscious when I saw them pull up at the lights behind me as I was walking down the road…!

So despite my pre-show stroppiness, I generally felt much better by the end of the gig (except when Justin was being a ****) and once again, it was worth the effort. Aside from everything else, the set itself was just as incredible as always and I can’t even express how much I adore watching them on stage. Still. Knowing tomorrow is the last one… I don’t want to say goodbye. It gets harder every time :(.

Peace, loVe loVe and happiness,
K xx

[Actual publish date: 16/9/14 and I’m still upset about that photo. I can see the funny side, ish, but still. Ouch. I can’t quite shake the thought that that’s how he really thinks of me… and I could have done without a photographic reminder]

The Last Carnival – Nottingham

So this one may be just a teensie bit on the long side as well. I will not, however, be making rash promises at the end since this is probably the review most likely to actually get tweeted, what with the Drarry photos lower down. I guess I kinda toned down the fangirling just a little too, but probably not so you’d notice. And probably not enough to stop the band being somewhat weirded out by me if they actually read any of it. Meh, I am what I am (I am my own special creation *dum de dum*).

Pre-show & VIP

Anyhoo, I didn’t start the afternoon off particularly well by nearly missing my train, but managed to make it just in time. Still, I got to Nottingham later than I’d been arriving for the other dates so I just went on a quick reckie to find Stealth (which was a good idea as I’m not sure I’d have found it otherwise and of course I was running late when I headed back later on for the show) before checking into my hotel (another Travelodge, a little run down, MASSIVE room. Could have done the gig there :P). I actually bumped into Mike when I was exploring (though he’d had a haircut and I almost didn’t recognise him from across the road!) who gave me directions, then headed back to my room to finish off the banners. The filthy Justin one is now done, but whether it’ll be seen is another matter. I’m possibly feeling a tad more encouraged today (especially as I showed one of the other fans a photo of it and she thought it was great), but who knows how I’ll feel next weekend.

It turned out there were a couple of people I’d met in Leeds in VIP too so chatted to them outside which was nice. Almost like having friends :P. I also got IDed going in, so woo! Tony showed us up to the room, so got to say hi to him and then it was VIP time. Saw Ads first and got a hug (yay!) and then intended to do the rounds so said quick hi to Russ and moved on to Mike. Except he’d told me online (I’m still not over that! Mike! Online! Woo!) that Cardiff had been interesting and I’d heard a little about it from one of the Welsh girls so I asked him what happened. Sounds like a completely nightmare journey, poor things! Full of overweight vans and flat tyres. Anyhoo I ended up talking to him about it for ages and then chatted about some other random crap (merch, I think. He objected to me not wearing one of their shirts) before I finally moved on to Justin who, for some insane reason, was just as easy to talk to as the rest. I actually practically pounced on him, throwing my arms around him from behind by way of hello and when he saw it was me, he turned to give me a proper hug hello so win! We chatted for ages about all sorts of stuff and I was only a teensie bit over-excited by the entire experience… read: I was grinning from ear to ear for a good hour afterwards *sigh*. He was massively apologetic over ignoring me online & mentioned he’s been getting earlier nights etc. (I’d kinda already forgiven him after the FB chat last night anyway, but it was lovely to hear it in person as well. Hopefully it’ll stop me getting so stroppy in future. Hopefully…). He also apologised for the Tim Minchin video too, which made me feel bad :S. I think I was just in a strop that night and being overly touchy. Though I suppose I was probably sulking over him, so meh, maybe it wasn’t that unfair of me :P.

We also chatted about music for ages. He was talking about rock and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. Blood Sugar Sex Magik is amazing apparently. He was also telling me I should listen to AC/DC, specifically the Back in Black album, so I guess I know what I’ll be listening to next. Apparently Tony told him I’m a TT fan and he was being complimentary about Gaz & his talent as a songwriter. I basically swooned as soon as the Captain was mentioned, so he teased me about that in a ‘look at you!’ sort of way. I didn’t like to mention that I’m the same over him when he’s not actually stood in front of me ;). Then he said I had good taste in music! Me! I don’t think anyone has ever said that to me before! He asked about the morning after Southampton too and I said it wasn’t that bad as I was still high from the gig. He said he’d noticed my highness in Glasgow (as if he could have missed it, I was literally bouncing when I was talking to him afterwards). I think he thought it was a bit unusual but in a positive sort of way. We also discussed when I discovered them, back in July at the Room 94 tour. I mean I know it feels like longer and it seems like they all think it’s been longer too, but it really has only been a few months. 20th July 2013, the day that changed my life :P. I know I said something about Room 94 (along the lines of ‘I still like them, but I think TLC are so much better’) plus discussed some of the other boybands I like. It was kinda surreal in a way, but mostly because it was just so chilled and easy and normal. After Southampton I just didn’t think I could manage that with him. Made my night, if I’m honest… :S.

We were interrupted when he had to go and get ready for the acoustic set so I finally said hi to Kieran also via hug from behind (and awkwardly knocked the CD out of someone’s hand in the process – fortunately it was someone I knew but I still cringe thinking about it!). Didn’t really chat to him much though as I kinda ran out of time. The acoustic set was as gorgeous as expected and I videoed all three songs (though the lighting was so weird, bright white spotlights in the corners that blinded but did little else to illuminate, that the picture came out pretty fuzzy). Don’t think I stopped smiling the whole time *soppy grin*.

After that I ended up chatting to Russ properly for a bit, also about music as he mentioned that Tony had told him I’d seen Journey. What I wouldn’t give to have been a fly on the wall when they were talking about me! Me!!!I’m actually slightly weirded out by the discovery that they discussed me enough that two of them commented on things that had been said. I mean, I suppose it’s only fair since I talk about them pretty much non-stop and clearly I’m not-so-secretly delighted by the discovery, but still, weird! I think I’m so used to being forgotten that it’s still enough of a big deal when someone actually remembers me, let alone notices me enough to warrant a conversation (which apparently wasn’t just ‘well she’s a bit mad, isn’t she’, though I’d be surprised if that wasn’t at least glossed over at some point :P).

Anyhoo, Russ started recommending albums too including an old Journey one (which I promptly forgot so I’ll have to tweet him to check which) and Queen’s Night At The Opera. I also tried to sell him RoA, but I don’t think I’m going to have any more luck getting them to the Garrick than I’m having trying to get the ROAdies to the London TLC gig *sigh*. Anyway, he was telling me that he used to act before he got into music, but we got interrupted before he could tell me much. Really need to remember to pick up the conversation again at some point as I was completely fascinated. Though that said, I still haven’t remembered to quiz Justin on his theatrical background, so don’t hold your breath on that. Also, despite having written it on my FRICKIN’ HAND, I still forgot to do the Drarry pictures or ask Ads about the old videos. I remembered right at the end when I figured it probably wasn’t worth starting as I wouldn’t be able to finish and I (incorrectly, apparently) assumed I’d have plenty of time with them later. I did remember to ask him about sweets though. Dolly Mixture is good, apparently, and the strawberry creams (I think) from Roses. Though he also seemed keen when I mentioned dark chocolate. I’m thinking a general band ‘thank you’ goodie bag for London (because it’s easier than schlepping stuff to Brighton), rather than specific stuff for specific people. Although I’m sure some of the treats will be more obviously focussed than others! There will definitely be (love – if I can get them) dates!

I also, after much fretting (though at least I was over my ‘I’m annoyed with you and don’t know if I want to give you a present anyway’ strop) gave Justin his cuff, right at the end of VIP. I told him I’d got him something and it was really silly and then some nervous babble of rubbish about seeing it and thinking of him or somesuch. He opened it and told me it wasn’t silly at all, that he’d just broken his favourite belt with all the metal around it (I’m not sure why that was exactly relevant – I mean I know he’s stick thin, but I don’t think a wrist cuff will quite fit around his waist) and gave me a thank you hug. He seemed pretty happy with it anyhoo and after all the stressing, I’m definitely glad I went through with it. It was worth it just for the hug (which sounds stupid given that I’ve had dozens of Justin hugs, but that’s not the point). Side note: I gave it to him in the bag and he put it back after looking at it and then tucked it into his inside jacket pocket… Thing is, I’m quite aware that that carrier bag tended to attract RoA confetti and the bottom of my handbag is full of it. He may have a pocketful now. Oops :P.

Support

Little Crazy were too loud again, but I do like a couple of songs, at least enough that they irritated me far less than they did in Glasgow when performing at a similar volume. End With You (the ‘start again’ one) & Devil Inside (the ‘say what you want’ one) are ok, anyway. I also finally saw The Retrospectives (they’ve been favouriting my tweets for weeks). Not bad. Not my thing particularly, but not bad at all. Next up were The Inside Is Live. Still pretty meh over them. They’re far too young and shouty :P. Finally, we had Lacey. They were still a bit noisy but definitely my favourites of the night. Contender was actually pretty awesome and I really rather enjoyed it. The guy on lead vox/bass was kinda cute in a Tom Felton/James Charlton/Edward French sort of way. He asked me to open his water bottle for him in the middle of a song (motioning & mouthing – took me a sec but I got it) so I opened it for him and then closed it on further request. Got a point straight at me/thank you after the song and a wink when I opened it for him again a little later. It gave me something to smile about during their set anyway :P. Support does tend to drag a bit when there are that many of them.

The Show

I enjoyed watching the usual pre-show set up with cameos from a couple of the band. At one point Mike was soundchecking mics with a ‘one, two, two’ technique and I couldn’t stop laughing. I so wanted him to add ‘I have an enormous…’ to the end of it à la Lonny!

The gig itself was amazing. Really amazing. I grinned all the way through. The Too Many Dreams intro was epic and even more so for being so hotly anticipated after my discussion with Kieran the other day. I filmed Cadillac (mostly for the Dashboard intro, but once I’d started I figured I may as well finish. The footage is very Justin-centric again, but I did try to film the rest of them a bit! There’s a fab moment when Russ looks straight at me, points at me then motions towards Justin with his thumb. I’m not sure what he was trying to communicate exactly, but I took it to mean ‘film him more’ :P). I didn’t bother with High as I didn’t think the audio would be any good from that close and didn’t want to distract myself from it without cause. The videos I did take actually came out relatively decently, sound wise (not too bass heavy anyway), but my camera REALLY doesn’t like low light conditions on the auto setting and all the videos I took had terrible image quality. I also recorded Slaughter, just because, well, because I did, though I sort of mostly ended up filming Mike and Justin at the back as they were amusing me! Plus Russ was a bit too far forward to fit him in the shot properly.

High kinda destroyed me again and there was also, much watching of fingers on guitar strings which did interesting things to my equilibrium. I’ve decided that it is quite possibly the hottest thing a musician can do on a stage. I would actually rather watch Justin play one of those fast guitar solos than watch Gary’s hands on a grand piano… What the hell have this band done to me?! Though that said, when Gaz really gets into it and does the standy-uppy bouncy thing, it’s probably at least as hot as Justin playing a solo. And speaking of getting into it… Ads was mostly hidden behind Russ (though on the plus, I had a nice clear view of Kieran this time), but when Russ moved I had a decent view of him and I was watching him during the Scream Boy Shuffle. He seemed to be really going for it, it was gorgeous to watch! I also noticed Kieran’s leg thing… Someone was telling him about it in Southampton, I think, and he evidently doesn’t have a clue that he does it, but when he’s getting into something, he lifts his left knee, I guess in a similar way to Justin actually, it’s just less of a balancing act since he’s sitting down… :P. I’m vaguely conscious that I do the same thing when playing air guitar, so I guess it’s a ‘feel the music’ sort of thing. Made me grin when I spotted it though!

I asked Kieran just before the show for his setlist and he seemed slightly amused that I had ‘chosen’ and wanted his specifically. Turned out to be a mistake as Mike nicked it to give to someone before Kieran realised it was gone and as I’d been waiting for it, I didn’t steal Russ’s when I could have, so didn’t get one at all :(. At least one of the girls I knew had one, so I do have a picture, if not the original…

Nottingham Setlist

Post-Show

After the show I finally got the coveted meet & greet for Lego!Harry & Draco, complete with photos!

Justin was up first and knocked them off their little block, so had to put them back. He was trying to put them next to each other so I told him they wouldn’t stand next to each other as they don’t get on… Which I suppose isn’t technically true, but they’ve been engaged since that first trip to Paris and have yet to get married so I’m beginning to wonder if there’s something they’re not telling me…! Anyhoo, the boys were naturally delighted to finally meet the band, even if Justin didn’t seem overly impressed to be meeting them…

Draco, Harry & Justin

Ads made a bit of a fuss, complaining he felt silly and then realised that by being difficult he’d just drawn more attention to himself! Unfortunately, the boys didn’t have their wands with them or a quick Episkey on the bloody hand would’ve won him round, I’m sure. Kieran made less of a fuss, but a fuss nonetheless!

Draco, Harry & Adam

Draco, Harry & Kieran

To be fair, they all seemed completely bewildered by the entire thing, despite my rather vague ‘it’s a blog thing’ which surely should have been explanation enough?! I may have to find a better way of presenting it if I ever decide to introduce the boys to anyone again, though I’ve recently realised that the original ‘Harry & Draco do Paris’ blog post which was the start of all of this back in November 2011, doesn’t actually appear to exist… Still, Russ and Mike were brilliant. Between the Gryffindor red hair & the lion-like roar,  I think Harry took rather a liking to Russ, while Draco preferred Mike’s more gentlemanly approach of chilling at the bar.

Draco, Harry & Russ

Draco, Harry & Mike

Aaaand moving on… I also asked Russ for his pick as he was leaving the stage and he gave me a sort of ‘later’ response that I didn’t really understand. Then, when I spoke to Kieran for the Drarry photo, he gave me one of Russ’s picks and told me that someone had retrieved it after someone else had stolen it and that I should return it to Russ. I dutifully did so, despite being somewhat bemused by the whole situation and in return he gave me his actual pick (the one he used on stage, that is), so yay! Just Mike to go now :D. (I’d love a drumstick too, obviously, but I know Ads doesn’t generally give out sticks and I don’t like to ask, since I’m well aware that they’re rather more expensive than picks!).

Annoyingly, especially after the brilliance of Southampton, we got kicked out of the venue almost immediately. I got a picture (and another accidental video…) with a few of the Little Crazy guys, because I felt like I should and I suppose it was the time to do it as apparently they’re done with the tour now. I also got a free CD from the Lacey dude as a thank you for helping him out, which was rather cool! I told him I really liked Contender plus got him to autograph it and pose for a selfie with me. Think they’re doing another date, so that might be cool. I didn’t love them, but wouldn’t mind seeing them again. On that note, I still think it’s a shame I only got to see Tides once, they were the only support that’ve really caught my attention from the off.

Anyhoo, I then loitered outside for ages freezing my arse off waiting for them. They hung about outside for a bit post-gig, but not for that long and I didn’t want to get in the way of people who don’t get to see them much. I did end up having a random chat with Russ about the creative process and how inspiration always comes at weird times and never when you’re looking for it (he was talking about song writing, obviously, I was talking about writing (fanfiction, mostly, but I left that part out)). He mentioned that he ends up with loads of clips on his phone whenever he gets an idea… Not so dissimilar to me really, but I didn’t think of that at the time. I also apologised to Kieran for neglecting him, but apparently he didn’t feel neglected and we did get to discuss the Too Many Dreams intro at least. I think I said something about grinning through the whole gig and that only TT usually have that kind of effect. Apparently he’d noticed me smiling as he looks over at me every now and then to see how I’m doing or something like that! I also ended up speaking to Justin about being over emotional. He seemed impressed I could keep the gig high for so long (days, sometimes), but I pointed out it means the lows are harder too, which he agreed with. Worth it, generally, but it can be tough, especially when I know I’m losing my regular high with RoA. I could rely on that, whereas gigs come and go. Apparently he’s the same in terms of being over emotional, though that’s not really a side of him I’ve seen (or am ever likely to see, I suspect) so I’ll have to take his word for it.

I also asked Russ & Ads if they saw their banners. Russ wasn’t sure, so I think he possibly saw it but didn’t really register it properly or read it, so I showed him and he asked me to bring it again in London. Ads didn’t see his at all, so now I have to do both of theirs again AND Mike’s in London. Though speaking of Mike, he definitely saw Russ’s (no idea if he saw Adam’s as I was, unsurprisingly looking at Adam at the time), so what’s the betting when it gets to be his turn, he won’t see it?! I really need to remember to mention it in VIP so there’s at least a chance of them watching out for them. I don’t think I can handle the stress of saving any of them for Brighton if I have even the slightest hope of getting Justin’s out. As for the general band ones, I’ve decided not to bother with them unless I get a barrier to drape them over as I don’t really want to hold them up for ages. If I don’t get an opportunity, I’ll just save them for the next tour, or possibly a support tour if there is one.

Anyway, they then vanished inside for ages but I couldn’t bear to leave (shocker) despite the frigid temperatures. On the plus, I wasn’t alone and ended up chatting to the people I already knew outside for ages. The boys finally appeared for the load out and I finally spoke to Ads about the videos (though he was tweeting at the time so I felt like I as interrupting). Ended up with more questions than answers (he said something about some old (Luisa Rey?) mixes that made me wonder what else I’ve missed out on by getting into them so late) & by that point I was already drifting into shy mode, so kept tripping over the stuff I wanted to say. Not sure it was worth the effort really & don’t think I ever will get to see Stars :(. Still, they actually went for a drink this time, at the bar next door but I felt so out of place it was a bit crap, really. There were a couple of girls chatting to Kieran for ages who were all dressed up and didn’t really help with my self-confidence thing. I ended up feel horribly shy, with nothing to say for myself, the way I used to be before my breakthrough with Dyl after Twelfth Night at the cemetery. Mike asked me about my job, so I ended up telling him a bit about that, but generally the whole thing was so awkward that I almost wished I hadn’t gone, except for the fact I’d have been in a strop if I’d left without spending more time with them and (mushyness alert) I’d rather be miserable with them than without…

I did have a few moments of fun though. Watching Mike macarena from his perch on a bar stool was rather amusing (I ended up telling him that I used to think he was quiet) and they did play Backstreet’s Back (I immediately perked up with an automatic ‘ah, tune!’ which made Kieran & Adam laugh…). Then Ads wanted to dance and there wasn’t much space by the bar, so I went with him to the dance floor which was a bit surreal, but fun. We were joined soon after by Kieran and Mike, but I mostly still felt like a spare wheel (though I’m not sure how many regular wheels they had…!). They all seemed to want Justin to join them, but he didn’t seem that way inclined and didn’t. In the end it felt like I hardly spoke to them after the gig (which is possibly more about my own perspective than what really happened, but there you have it), plus I had two glasses of wine (at £3 each!!!) on a mostly empty stomach, which was intended to make me chill, but mostly just exacerbated the ‘feeling ridiculous’, so I left on a bit of a low. I did get my goodbye hugs at least, though I think I probably crushed Justin a bit. I barely saw him after he went back in post-gig, so was feeling particularly needy at the end :(. Though he did get a pink lei from the bar (who were handing them out with cocktails) and when he was going to abandon it due to itchiness, I nabbed it and wore it for the rest of the evening (what was left of it anyway, it was well past 1 when I got in, but I don’t know how long I hung around before they went on to the bar. To be honest everything felt long until I started dancing with them and even then it didn’t get that much better). It was pink, at least, so he made a comment about it matching the hair. I think I was thoroughly spoiled by all the easy conversation in Southampton.

Anyhoo, stumbled back to hotel to find the blaring music from somewhere nearby was loud enough to clearly hear the lyrics through my closed windows, plus I was firmly in ‘sulky drunk’ mode and already missing the boys an insane amount. I’m so not going to cope when this month ends. I think the less than ideal end to the gig killed my buzz somewhat, which is unfortunate. Well that & the bone-deep exhaustion, combined with the fact I’ve now passed the halfway point and the end is scarily close to being in sight. I’m going to miss them so much :(.

On a different note, I realised earlier that I’m the person I’m usually jealous of; the one who talks to the band like they’re best mates. Only seeing that from the inside is weird, because they actually do feel like friends now, yet I know they’re not. Plus at the same time as feeling that way I’m still insanely fangirly over them (even discounting a certain stupid & inappropriate crush) – I can tell this mostly from the crazy buzz I get from even the tiniest interaction. The fangirlyness also knocks the ‘friend’ theory on the head. I mean, I still don’t feel I could invite them to a tea party, or at least, I could in a vaguely jokey way, but they wouldn’t actually come, which is the main thing!

Anyhoo, in other news (that sounds weird… usually TLC are ‘other news’), I was listening to the RoA Broadway cast recording a lot during the day and realised I’ve seen it so much lately that it sounds wrong to me. Particularly the Regina & Hertz vocals, specifically in terms of mannerisms and phrasing. It’s stupid, really, given how many people I’ve seen play those roles, but I suppose Jodie & Rohan are two of the show staples, so I guess it is relatively rare to hear someone else. Although, that said, I was listening to Waiting For A Girl and managed to go through the entire conversation between Drew & Sherrie and come back in on time with the track. Not bad for someone with a memory like mine. I may be seeing it too often… *sob*.

Plus in yet more ‘other news’ not relating to the Last Carnival, I managed to get my ticket for Gaz in Glasgow this morning. It’s also pretty rubbish but hey, better than missing opening night. I think I might hold off on any more until I know what TLC are doing as it’s going to start getting complicated with holidays, trains and hotels. It’ll make my life a lot easier if I don’t have to replan everything around their tour after having already booked a bunch of stuff… Ugh!

And I think that’s quite enough from me for one day!

Peace, loVe loVe and happiness,
K xx

PS. (Maybe not quite enough… One last thing…) I know that RoA confetti gets everywhere, but I found some in my phone today, between the keyboard and the screen when I slid it out. Admittedly I put some back in my pocket earlier, but I’m pretty sure that’s where it came from in the first place. Well I guess it came from Dan in the first place, but you know what I mean. I bet I’ll still be finding it in a year’s time!