Apocalyptica Concert- Edmonton Events Center. Thursday, May 24th.

So this day started out to be typical, I woke up, had a shower and sat at my desk to get ready for my day. Usually on concert days, I love to do my make up very elaborately and I love to wear corset dresses, or corset shirts and be all gothy. I can't help it, it's just who I am. I've always had a flair for dramatics, gothic clothing, especially in my teens and it carried through until adult hood. My make up was done, resulting in something of a purple smokey eye and then I put on my corset dress and I was good to go.


I decided to take DATs, the transport for disabled adults, seeing as my automatic wheelchair was very broken but I needed it for the show. DATs comes to your door in a white small bus, picks you up and takes you to where you need to be if you call three days in advance. It costs you what it would normally cost to get on a bus ($3.00), but it's slow as hell, that particular ride took two hours.  There are pro and cons to everything in life, I suppose.

Anyways, I'm at West Edmonton Mall now with tons of time to spare seeing as it's 2 PM, and the doors don't open until 8. We decide to get this whole "venue and places for wheelchairs" thing sorted out because if you've read my blog in the past this is where I got beat up at the H.I.M concert and I didn't want a repeat of that to happen. So we go in through the arcade entrance to the Edmonton Events Centre and immediately a sense of panic hits me as all those memories come flooding back. I go up to the restaurant and we talk to the bartender, who tells us to go through the double doors and straight to the office.

A little bit of back story is needed here, at the H.I.M concert we spoke to the booking agent after the concert who was named Troy Dezwart, he did everything he could for me, told me if I needed anything, free tickets, backstage passes, arrangements to get in a bit early to make getting seating better he could arrange it. This was in 2010, so I was nervous he was going to forget me. All I wanted was assurance I could get in five minutes early and get to a spot close to the stage, because otherwise I wouldn't be able to see anything.

The Edmonton Event Centre is very interesting for handicap accessibility, it has ways around things, but it's just really a pain in the ass to do things, like you have to take an elevator up, down and then go across a pedway kind of thing. It's an older building that they put renovations into, so I understand, you can mostly get around it in a wheelchair, which I'm really thankful for because so many venues are just completely inaccessible.


As I'm passing over the balcony, we can hear people doing sound check on cellos, and see the sound guys.. I feel like I'm not suppose to be there and I'm breaking the rules or something. We finally get to the office and talk to a young blond lady who assures me Troy would call me within the hour and takes my phone number. We end up backtracking, go for lunch at the bar just adjacent and then go for ice cream.

Still no phone call. I didn't want to bug Troy or the lady but my friend, Corrie-Ann and my husband Daniel practically dragged me back there and made me stand there while she fetched him. He came out and sat on a couch.  He told me he remembered me and that he could let me in early and that I shouldn't have even bought tickets because I could always get in for free. He gives us all these phone numbers to call, assures me we'll be able to get in fifteen minutes early and then tells us that he's going to try to get us a private meet and greet with the band. I left there feeling sky high, honestly. That someone would go to that much effort, for me, was truly amazing.

So we left, and we walked around the mall. We did play the slots for a bit.. I lost some money, which isn't that usual for me. Usually I win money, or something. Not that day. We had some dinner in the food court, and then it was time to stand in line outside, except not really, because there had been people standing in line since two and they were all glaring at me because I was standing in the Guestlist/VIP area. Oh dear.

Suddenly my friend Cat texts me, "Are you at West Ed?" "Yes..." "At Ed's?" "Yes...?" "Waiting in line for Apocalyptica?" "WTF where are you Cat?" Turns out she was going too, so I just added her and her friend to our group. Corrie Ann calls Tate, one of the numbers Troy gave her and he comes to get us and he escorts us inside.

Now inside, they take our tickets, and wristband us. A very nice security guard leads us in and informs us that I'll be sitting just right of the stage which at the time, I have to say I was kind of bummed about, but it turned out to be really awesome. I have my friends, My front row seat and most of all, I had god music coming to me. <3 Here's some pictures while we waited for the opener band Incura, who I had heard lots about.

                                          Above is me and Corrie-Ann, my valiant protector.

                                         Above is Dan, John and I.

                                                          John, Dan, Cat, Jeff and I.


Anyways. So, Incura comes on and I LOVED them, and upon further reflection "I'd Give Anything" and "Who You Are" have to be among my favourite songs by them. I definitely enjoyed headbanging to them, almost too much. My neck was sore after that night. Really sweet guys too, but more on that later...

Next up was Apocalyptica and after a brief bathroom break, I was back in my seat just in time to watch the lights dim and Apocalyptica to come on stage. Now I'll admit it, I had very little knowledge of them at this point, but what I had heard I absolutely adored to death, musically speaking. I love it whenever you smush orchestral components into metal/rock.

Now being that I didn't know much about them, and I didn't manage to track down a set list, I couldn't tell you ALL they played, just that I was completely transfixed, so I'm going to post some pictures. I did recognize, in no particular order.. I Don't Care, Master of Puppets, Nothing Else Matters, Oh Canada and Hall of the Mountain King.

And then everything quieted down, and the stage went dark and Perttu came on stage and did his solo...

and while he was doing that.. My friend snapped a picture of me doing this...

Yes.. I was actually crying.. String instruments, particularly ones that are played with bows get me emotional every time. Thanks a lot for catching my lameness, Corrie-Ann.

The concert was over far too soon, but not before they played Oh Canada.. Which really just kicked ass! Ever heard Oh Canada with three cellists and a drummer?! I have!

Corrie-Ann calls Troy (Who was tending to another venue that night unfortunately) and he tells us to wait by the stage. Now, I had a hunch that no meet and greet would happen, so I didn't get my hopes up. As some members of my party left, I started to find it harder and harder to hold hope. Finally someone comes and tells us that the tour manager said no. I wasn't that upset about it to be honest. It would have made some great material for my blog, but I have a hunch that I'll end up having even greater material eventually. :)

So we went over to the Incura table and saw the guys from the band signing CDs and I was interested in buying them, and the guy was like, "Well they are 3 for twenty.." and I threw a twenty on the table and was like, "Shut up and take my money!" Hah, and then we joked and talked about Diablo 3 for a little bit and I watched Corrie-Ann flirting with one of the members. All of a sudden all of the guys are coming towards me and I'm like, "WHAT DID I DO?! Oh.. pictures.." And pictures were taken!

All in all, the people to the people at Edmonton Events Centre, especially to Troy Dezwart, the entirety of the security staff, to Tate who put up with my wheelchair bullshit. To the staff who wasn't even really involved in the event centre itself and helped, (the bartender, arcade staff and things like that) I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Also the guys from Incura live here Incura  and here is their Facebook!


Bailey Dawn

Vlog time, for real this time.. lol

Remind me why I chose to do this? I feel like a kid on pixie stix, I'm jumpy, hyper, nervous and shy. Please don't judge, this was my first! <3

Bailey Dawn.

Nightwish's "Imaginaerum" Review.

Edit to add: I know this is way late, I'm sorry, but my muse is back!

This is my review for the album Imaginaerum by Nightwish, a Finnish metal band.  Now for those of you who don't know Nightwish has been called so very many things in the metal spectrum from symphonic to gothic, power to gothic and most frequently that I've heard is theatrical metal. I kind of enjoy that, to be honest. It really catches the elements and having been able to see them live twice on 70,000 tons just reaffirmed the fact that they feed into each others energy and playful spirits, delighting the audience with that overwhelming play by play feeling.

The band is made up of five amazing musicians.

Tuomas Holopainen- My personal favourite. He is the lyricist, composer and keyboardist of Nightwish, with his deep mind and his laugh like his child-like eyes it's no wonder the music is amazing. With Anette at his side, singing his music, I think they can just about do anything.. I love this collaboration. Of course, I love the entire group too, don't worry!

Anette Olzon- She has been the vocalist since 2007, and she brims with beauty and genuine kinship. I enjoy her voice, her personality and the fact that she brings a new light and energy to the stage. She is a true gem. Originally from Sweden, she's the only one who's not Finnish in the band.

Marco Hietala- The bass player and male vocals. Hietala's raw, edgy voice adds such contrast to Anette's songbird like vocals. Also, generally hilarity ensues whenever Marco is around, doing interviews or just on stage.

Emppu Vuorinen- The guitar player of the group, Emppu can shred like it's his damn business and believe me.. It is. Whatever he lacks in height, (the other band members refer to him as a hobbit because he's just a little over five feet tall) he more than makes up for in guitar skill. Plus, he's kind of adorable when playing guitar. That smile gets me every time!

Jukka Nevalainen-  The bands drummer. He's seriously overlooked for being so awesome at what he does. That being said very little is known about him, although I do know that he twirls his drumsticks in between beats and usually is very quiet.

Troy Donockley- Is not a member, but rather a guest appearing with Nighwish. He's done some work on previous albums, as well as a lot of work on Imaginaerum and he's most known for playing the uillean pipes, celtic bouzouki and tin and low whistles. He's also known for doing magic tricks in very high wind on cruise ships..  Bonus points!

Now on to the album!

I waited for this pre-order for months and my friends started listening to leaked versions and started trying to make me listen to it to, but I was vigilant in waiting for my pre-order. I will wait for good music, and Nightwish is well worth the damn wait.

I got home one day mid-January and there was my package and it had in it, the special edition t-shirt (which never fit me anyway, because let's face it I'm a fat chick) and the CD with the bonus CD of all the orchestral versions. The artwork is absolutely beautiful. It's open gates, and a roller coaster track leading you into an abandoned theme park at night. The track for the roller coaster is all topsy turvy and above the gate is the Nightwish logo and just under that is the the title of the album "Imaginaerum." It's a fantastic album cover and I immediately upload the album cover and music to my phone and lie in bed for about four hours straight, music on loop. Here are my thoughts on the album and the music as individual pieces.


The entire album is just a trip from beginning to end and are you ready to take that trip with me? I sure hope so...

Taikatalvi

So this is the first song on the album and we start with on the album and at 2:25. We see a whole different side to Marco's vocal range, a sweet lullaby from a music box. It gives you the feel that you could indeed fall asleep to it. The song is in Finnish, but it's beautiful. As the song hits about a minute, cue in.. Well everything, really. The keyboards, the orchestra and the choir. Towards the end of the songs you get a feeling of building suspense in the keyboards, and then.... (See what I did there, eh?)

Storytime   

At roughly four minutes long, this is one of my favourite songs, and one I heard before the CD was released. They released this song on YouTube  (seriously click the link because it's an awesome video full of amazing weirdness/genius!) three days before my birthday. It was the only thing keeping me going for a while there in a time when I had just dropped out of school for medical reasons and I was going through some really rough stuff so this was possibly the best birthday present ever!

Anyways, back to the album review, shall we? Storytime is like this delicious compilation of everything I personally love in a metal song. It has heavy elements of classical fairy tale story telling, a good beat, a hefty dose of orchestral components, good guitar riffs and above all a good melody.  It's light hearted and fun and it's not your typical metal. Most of all though, it makes you want to dance and headbang but just a fair warning... Don't do it with your glasses on, bad combinations happen there... I know.. I've tried it.

 

Ghost River

This song is just.. Pure genius.  The instruments in this song alone make me want to put this on repeat a zillion times and frankly there are even more elements to this song that I love but we'll get into that a bit later.  This song is said to be a "Duel between the Devil and Mother Gaia" and that's straight from the wikipedia page, and from Tuomas's mouth, even. The sheer emotion that's put into this song, and the creepy level that I achieve while listening to it is enough to make me delighted. I'm a "Tim Burton loving, if you're weird it's okay, I'm weird too!" kind of gal, so I absolutely adore this song! Another part I adore? The child choir!  Yes, I've said it! I love the child choir in this seemingly obscene and creepy song. It's beautifully orchestrated though and that's the main part. I like to think Mother Gaia is kicking some ass and taking some names. Five and a half minutes of sheer awesome.

 

Slow Love Slow  

I admittedly, in my excitement to hear other songs for the first time listening to this CD went, six minutes?! SKIP! I never loved jazz until this song and because of this song I started to listen to a few new songs of jazz-like music. Nightwish has never done anything jazz inspired and it really took me for a loop.

It took me about four times listening to this song to actually like it.. I think I'll tell you what sold it for me though. I was on the bus in November and it was warmer than normal and I was sitting in my wheelchair and it started to rain heavily and this song came on.. Watching the rain this song felt so right; and I started to listen to the lyrics. I heard a specific piece of lyric and thought to myself, how true is that? "Do I love you, or the thought of you?" How very insightful, because I think love, should really come from the deepest part of your heart, your brain and your being.

On to the instruments though, the brushes used on the drum were very creative and though common in jazz (or so I'm told). I liked the beat of the bass line, just very simple, and low. Marco's growly, rumble voice and Anette's overstated vocals work well here. I enjoy this song thoroughly, but I find I have to be in a real contemplative mood to listen to it.

I Want My Tears Back 

This is my absolute favourite song on the album because it is so nostalgic for me. This song is five minutes long and all I can say negatively about this song is that I wish Troy Donockley was in this song much more than he is. My grandmother was Scottish and for those of you who've read my blog you know that she was like a mother to me.. The pipes are... bittersweet indeed to me and when I heard this song, I immediately related it to how when she got into her elderly years she use to wish she could have her youth back so she could go to school and become a nurse to help people, or have put off having children for a few more years to get settled in Canada a little bit to help my grandfather out with the money, because they struggled.  It's strange that a mere song can relate to people so differently, isn't it? I guess that's the beauty of music, though. Everyone can have their own take on it and no one can tell you it's wrong.

The pipes are amazing in this song, as I've said. The drums are a bit understated here, but still keep an amazing tempo and that's what counts. The guitar is what I hear here more than anything, and I've gotta say I dig it, especially at 1:56 when you refine yourself into a oogey gooey celtic mess and realize that the only member that is remotely celtic is Troy and the rest that you're dealing with are all Nordic/Scandinavian.

 

Scaretale

Scaretale is a whole ball of childrens nightmares. That's really all it is.. Now being as I actually willed myself to stop having nightmares at five, (due to an unfortunate dream where a skeleton head was biting at my ankles) I never got to have cool ones like this. Remember when I said the entire album was a trip? Yup... I'm told this particular song was based off on Metallica's "Enter Sandman."

The seven and a half minute song starts off with some children singing ring around the rosie and then the orchestra pipes in with strings and brass that I can identify alone (but I'm not expert so who the hell knows what else could have been involved) and then the ride starts. The music makes it sound as if you're being chased and you're being cornered. What's really cool is how much the guitar and bass are shredding and the drums are just going crazy in this song.  You should see it live, it is insane! The entire song is just like you've stepped off in some strange and twisted carnival and horrors befall you at every turn.... and I LOVE IT! This is my third favourite song on the album and it's amazing!

Arabesque

This is my least favourite song on the album and by proxy it's still pretty good, like... I still listen to it and imagine and dream good.. I guess it's just because it's so short and it reminds me of a Cowboys and Indians kind of thing, which I never really got into as a child. The song is only three minutes long and has the choir and orchestra in their pretty heavily and it was made for a specific scene in the movie, so it'll be interesting to see what it's all about!

Turn Loose The Mermaids

This song, with Anette's ethereal voice and the celtic influences of the great Troy Donockley is simply magical. It reminds me of my grandfather because while he was in the war he was so well travelled, and when I was a child he told me stories similar to this all the time.. The instruments are such a beautiful compliment to Anette's voice, and her voice to the instruments. At around three minutes and forty seconds the strings kick in from the orchestral component, and oh boy are they just lovely, giving you a sense of urgency. The song is only four and a half minutes long but by the end you are resting calm...

Rest Calm

This is one of the heavier songs of the album, and taking inspiration from bands like "My Dying Bride" and other doom metal. The song is the heaviest on the guitar and bass on the album, in my opinion anyway, it might not be as fast, but there are more solos. It's interesting to hear, actually the compilation of the instruments together and the voices in such a heavy state. The best part about this song in my opinion, is the choir and the way their voices emphasise the orchestra. I'm in favour of any time you put an orchestra and a choir together. It's just seven minutes in heaven.

The Crow, the Owl and the Dove 

This is one of the more easy listening songs on the album, and I actually really enjoy it. Marco co-wrote this one, and he really did a nice job with Tuomas to create a song that is both truthful and maintains integrity. I love the instruments in this song, particularly Troy but I'm not sure if he's playing the flute or his pipes. It's rather short for Holopainen/Hietala at just over four minutes but the tempo is just lovely and the drums seem to be vivid, but at the same time not overpowering. 

Last Ride of the Day 

 The orchestral part kicks off this song and the choir comes in.. and the angry wheelchair lady knows it's going to be a good day. The is the one song I can just imagine going into Disneyland and having so much fun to this song! I can just hear the musicians going at it and working hard and I just love it. I love everything about this song. I love it's carefree admittance, I love the fact that it has a good message, I love that it's playful but mostly,....I love the fact that I can see myself on.. Oh, I don't even know, "Ride to Atlantis" and dropping about 200 feet into the water below because I'm an Ocean Soul through and through! Also, there's a pretty kick ass guitar solo that starts at 2:56. Listen. <3 I want this song to last foreverrrr but sadly it only lasts four and a half minutes. Boo.....

Song Of Myself 

Song Of Myself is a whopping thirteen and a half minutes long, but the choir, orchestra and drum parts alternating make it so it's very hard to get bored. At around the seven minute mark, a man comes in, and children and various other people and start talking. Most of the things that are said are enlightening, such as... "Paper is dead without words, ink idle without a poem, all the world dead without stories.."  You have to listen to it to get the jist of it, because I can't put it into words eloquently enough.

Imaginaerum

This is like.. The ending credits almost, it encompasses all the main music into one and it makes so a nice little short of the orchestral versions. It's so beautiful!

The Album

All and all, the album works for me, because I can seperate the music and listen to it as a movie soundtrack as well. I've always been a dual listener like that and I think that will never change. Holopainen has managed to write and compose something that's outstandingly theatrical, but at the same time each song can also work an an individual level. Keep rocking, Nightwish!

And that's really the end of this little review, I hope you like it, and if you do, and if you're new to Nightwish or if you're interested they live Here! You can go there to buy their album, check out some stuff about them, or even just browse around.

Also if you live in North America and are a fan or want to go to a show you should come see this link, because they are starting their North American tour in September! (To which I already bought VIP tickets, plane tickets and stuff too since they aren't coming to my city!)

 Nightwish North American Tour

Also, if you want to hear how I met the band back in January.. You should go and check my previous blog posts.. It's a pretty lame story, but I figure if people want to check it out they can!

Thanks for reading, my next review will be up by the end of next week, so watch for it. Until then, I might post a vlog. You never know! Also,  I'm part of the Nightwish Canadian Street Team so I feel obligated to post shitty camera phone pictures of my t-shirt lol.

Bailey Dawn <3

I haven't updated in a little while..

You know what really gets me heartbroken? I had some really great news to tell you.. I'm sure everyone knows already, since the only people that read this are from my facebook and to be honest, you are probably way more than sick of all the Nightwish stuff.  Really, I'll try to be delicate about this, but this is just so heart crushing that I don't know what to do about it.

I went to get my funding in order for school.

Back story: I was in school, upgrading at NAIT since high school was a big mess for me.. I was sick, I started having seizures, fainting and another multitude of problems.. It sucked. And despite the fact I did try in high school, when I was there, I seemed to never be challenged enough, or far too much. They would put me in the special needs classes for things I've tested far beyond my peers for, and put me in too much for the classes I was lacking in.. They would push me ahead, even though they could see I was struggling, but they just didn't care. In fact, this happened to me ALL through out school once I got my brain tumor. I was one of those children who, in retrospect, just fell through every crack there was.


I never got into trouble throughout my schoolyears, not once.. Until I hit high school. At the end of grade ten, I started having seizures, one day it got so bad that my friends had to cart me out of the cafeteria. One day, I skipped class because I was feeling dizzy, woozy and gross, I had called my mom and told her I was coming home. I was waiting for a friend to come on the bus with me, but she was still in class, so I was in the cafeteria waiting for her.  I got caught "skipping" class by my teacher.  I got an in school suspension for two weeks.

I got pulled out by my mom the next week because my seizures got increasingly bad and the medication they had me on had made me lose twenty pounds in a week. I was still handing in my assignments though, and my teacher was.. "forgetting that I handed them in" and giving me a zero.  My mom had called in freaking out. The only reason that teacher wasn't fired after that year was because she left on maternity leave.

The next year I had somewhere around twelve throat infections in six months, forcing me to drop out of choral studies, which really REALLY was heartbreaking, seeing as at that time, that was what I wanted to major in in post secondary. So that year was toast for me too, and the same thing happened. When Grade twelve rolled around, I was having bleeding spells that were almost killing me, so.... Yeah, safe to say I wasn't going back to school.


Too long, don't read. Blah blah, fat girl in a wheelchair was too sick for high school. Getting the jist yet? Oh and this part gets a little.. Uhm, Too much information, but I'll try to keep it less gross. If blood grosses you out, don't read.

Anyways, I went to NAIT winter semester of 2011 and throughout that time I had my period.. All the time. I bled all the time, for months.. Now, I've always had this, since I was twelve, and it can get pretty bad. Normally they just, I don't know, try to keep it held back with birth control and hope for the best? Suffice to say it wasn't working.

Around the start of October, it started to get heavy, and bad. I'm talking.. I would come home from school, down a bottle of motrin, nap, go to the emergency room, come home at four in the morning, get an hour of sleep, be woken up at six in the morning from cramps that wouldn't quit and then repeat my damn day.  Oh and somehow manage to fit homework in there, too.  Surprisingly, I work well under pressure, because I was still maintaining 80's and 70's in both of my classes.

It took a full month before I broke down and I went to my doctor after.. I dont know, six emergency visits and missing school a bunch. Dan also missed a ton of work, just a ton to take care of me. <3 My doctor wasn't there, so they got me in to see another one, who literally took me by the collar and shook me and told me, "Do you want to end up in the morgue?! You're quitting school NOW!" This was November 7th. My final was on December 15th.. All that work... WASTED? But.. he looked pretty serious and maybe I wasn't doing my body any good by being overly stubborn and treating it like a packing horse...

Reluctant, I agreed. He gave me a doctors note, and told me to rest and gave me an emergency refferal to an obgyn. I went to her. I now have the mirena, I was told to rest up until the fall and if there were no problems I could go back to school.

WELL THEN. Here we are. It's fucking May the 8th. And I'm fine and dandy. I can actually say that! I haven't bled in months! I feel great! I started working out yesterday and I'm startin.. *gasp* walking! yeah! I'm actually going to start walking today.. Just babysteps, but I figure it might strengthen my leg.

So why am I not jumping for joy? Well, I went back to NAIT yesterday to get my funding in order.. They won't fund me. Uh huh.  They won't, because apparently even WITH a doctors note and proof that it will not happen again they cannot fund a person for courses that they already took and didn't complete. I'm too much of a liability. I'm so sorry for getting sick and damn near dying, guys!

 As if I have $750 to blow per course when I need six of them in the next year..  Oh wait, but I do..  Well, sort of. I have to appeal their decision, which could take months and I might not get into school this semester anyways.

I have 750 to spare, I do.. But it's tied up in airfare, hotels and VIP tickets to see.. (I can't believe I'm crying as I write this, god damnit...) Nightwish. I knew something was going to come up to ruin this trip...  I now have the toughest choice to make, and if you think it's not.. Just think of your favorite band, please. Think of what you would do to see them. This is heartbreaking.