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KoRn at Family Values Tour in Bako!

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KoRn at Family Values Tour in Bako!
By: Kruizn KoRn 64
Description: One of KORN's biggest fans shares her day in KORNfield on 8/29/07!

Topics: Korn, Family Values, 2007, Bakersfield, blog, Bakotopia, Melissa O'Neal, Erica Gonzalez, music, fan, LIVE
Posted by cruiznkoRn64 Mon Sep 10, 2007 10:21:28 PDT
Viewed 135 times
0 responses 0 comments
Location: Bakersfield, ca

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To Bakersfield and Back AgaiN

Recent recollections between myself and friends discussed how each time before we are about to ‘go home’ to Bako, we start getting all excited a few days in advance.

The excitement gets taken to the next level when it is for a reason like the 2007 installation of the Family Values Tour!

Something is in the air, and comes over people, when the boyz are back in town. This year was no exception with the full moon and lunar eclipse that happened on the eve of the beloved KoRn homecoming. Just like was related in the Bakotopia magazine special edition released a week before the tour hit Bakersfield, the town gets weird when KoRn comes home.

It is not only the old, and not only the young who feel this phenomemon. Such starts the event every Bako KoRn fan waits for with baited breath! As for my KoRn fReak Erica and I, we had done it up proper this time! Not only did we have the opportunity to contribute articles to the special KoRn edition of Bakotopia, we did it pimpt out style with a suite right next door to the arena—something we always have wanted to do.

I arrived to the ‘field on Tuesday, and after a lot of KoRnrowing and pimping out, we headed up to the suite and literally chilled for a while. Indeed, the late August forecast was listed as ‘blistering sun’, and that was no freakin’ false advertisement!!!

After we thoroughly chilled out, we decided to head over to Front Porch Music down on 19th Street to see what they had to say about Munky’s upcoming appearance on 8 September, in support of Ibanez. Front Porch is full of Bako music history, and there are signed pictures of stars everywhere around the store, not to mention that KoRn recorded some tracks in a basement studio there many years ago. You can just feel the history there! There is even an old KoRn road case from a long past tour in one KoRner. I would strongly recommend that anyone who loves Bako music history—including that involving you know who—goes there to check it out!!!

I will spare you any further details of the KoRneve and suffice it to say that it was a kikass evening filled with an early turning in time with anticipation of…

THE 5 AM WAKE UP CALL!

Yes, 5 am rolls around quickly, and I always loathe getting up early unless it is to fly to Hawaii or to be first in line in front of the arena. The rush of getting ready and running next door paid off in a huge way as I put down a bamboo mat, opened up my beach umbrella, grabbed a cold one out of the ice chest, put some KoRn on the CD player, and kik’d it first in line. Here comes my KoRngirl a few minutes later to keep me company! We kicked it. We chilled. I painted my nails, cracked open another cold one (water, haha) you thought I meant beer, didn’t you? Not when it’s set to be 106 degrees and you got a full day sitting out in the sun!

Time passed quickly and pleasantly under the arena overhang as new and old friends materialized to keep us company. It seemed as though most of them were not such early risers, but when they did arrive, we all chilled to some kikass music, discussed past shows, the new album, KoRnKonnekt, and made plans for the upcoming Bitch We Got A Problem Tour. I had fun squirting everyone with this spray bottle I brought—no one seemed to mind—and every now and then we had random people come up and want to get misted! FUN—fo’ sho!

Nick Belardes from Channel 23 came by and wanted us to say a few words about why KoRn fans are so loyal. We gladly stepped up and told the whole world the number one reason why the fans are that way—because KoRn have always been close to their fans and gone out of their way to do special things for them—but there is a whole other blog of mine on that subject alone!

When the Bakotopia crew arrived, we gave them a hand in passing out the special KoRn edition which included our articles, some great stuff from interviews with the guys, old pictures of KoRn that Rick Davis contributed from KoRn’s first press kit, and a pictorial history of the historical places in town that KoRn played at when they were first coming up! On our rounds passing the magazines out, people were like, “Hey, you guys are in here, huh?” We would just smile and nod. So nice to be able to say things publicly in support of KoRn!

A shocking surprise unparalleled in history occurred when they actually opened the arena doors on schedule at 4pm! They were on time for once. After getting strip searched and wrist banded, we ran down the 6 flights of stairs—with no regard for life or limb—and secured our spot on the barricade to right center, in between Jonathan and Munky.

The lineup included somewhat brief performances from all of the supporting acts. Hellyeah was definitely ON with diamond plate and classic Texas thrash amongst the sick ass chops Vinnie Paul was busting on his green snake skin drum kit! Flyleaf gave a rockin’ performance complete with the unique style of Lacey and the supporting solid groove set forth by the band. Atreyu definitely had their shit together with a solid performance and great stage presence. Evanescence had a beautiful set but the crowd response was mixed—some loved it and some just stood it.

It did not feel the same when KoRn came on, possibly because David was not there. It was weird when Head left, but felt even stranger this time. The feeling was definitely bittersweet because there was an ingredient missing. The opening of the show was the Untitled Intro—that spooky, eerie carnival from the darkside tune! The stage set was awesome, with a catwalk at each side of the stage and a centrally located set of steps that went up towards the back and had the drums and boards on them. A total of four awesome light ballasts with at least a hundred lights of different color hung at offset angles above the stage like giant glimmering circuit boards. An LCD lit background with a grip of massive strobe lights interspersed adorned the back stage wall. The entire look of the stage was very modern and had a metal feel, to say the least!!!

Jonathan came out, along with the Nubian Princess (which recently had been discharged from the welding shop), adorned by a kilt and Cannibal Corpse shirt. Then came Munky, who was in a gorgeous black suit jacket which had a red emblem on the arm, gnarly ass stage makeup with black eyes and white hair and face accents. Fieldy came out with the classic Bako gangsta style, complete with a blue rag bass!

Since endless set lists have been posted on various KoRnsites throughout the digital world, I’ll spare you a regurgitation of that. Rather, I recollect the setlist as a well thought out and considerate mix of the new, the old, and the in between. Favorites from all of the albums were played, while highlighting new hits, but keeping a definite focus on the old skool KoRn sound and feel. Although two of the old skool boys are still missing—that’s just for the time being--KoRn goes to show that they keep the klassiks in the library and play them all the same regardless of the current company. They will be all ready and fresh to jam them as our beloved fivesome again someday soon! Just hearing the way they ripped on “Dead Bodies Everywhere’ proved that fact to everyone in the house!

A very very very heavy rendition of ‘Falling Away From Me’ with Jonathan growling vocals and guitars down to a bone chilling crunch was a classic concert version that will go down in the FVT history books. The most outstanding visual performance was that seen during the ‘Another Brick in the Wall’ sequence. KoRn went space age on our asses and busted out laser beams that were the most gorgeous display of technology meets music that many people had ever seen! Glorious color and geometric shapes wandered across the stage and the arena while smoke rose up the beams of the laser, creating a marbled look atop the pure beams of light. This was taken a step further for “Goodbye Cruel World’ when Jonathan stood in an almost dark arena with only a rectangle of pure turquoise laser light meandering around him and his microphone stand! He stood just so and allowed the light to drape from one palm to the other while the smoke just swirled and Munky made some tortured, evil, awesome sounds come out of his guitar that only he could ever dream of conjuring!

All in all, words cannot describe the awesomeness of it. I have tried my best. I hope you were able to experience it first hand, and if you did not, make sure to do it at your next chance.

At the end of the show, Jonathan had some fun blasting off T-shirts to the fans with his T-shirt launcher gun! The look on his face as he would pull the trigger reinforces one of his favorite pastimes. I was really stoked to have one of those shirts handed to me by Mr. Davis before we said goodbye till next time.

THE END. Nighty nite.
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