Hey everyone!
This is my first post on here and I wanted to share my review from last Sunday's NS show in Taylorville.
The concert was awesome - I had a great time!! I have to start my review by saying I love Matt Mason!! I had a M&G with Chris from his FC and one with Matt. When we got to the venue we parked in front until the parking lot opened and we were right next to Nicole's parents. They were talking to some lady from the venue because they didn't have their tickets at the ticket window. I went up to the ticket window to get our M&G passes while my mom waited to get in the parking lot but the lady told me she didn't have any passes at all. We were let in the parking lot after that and then waited outside the doors until it was time for them to open. While we were waiting we talked to some Matt fans and they were really nice! Once the doors opened we went to the merchandise table and I got a new Matt shirt and my sister got a Nicole shirt. This venue had people that worked there running the merch table so we caught up with Lisa outside who normally is in charge of the merch. She had all the M&Gs with her so I got mine for Chris and she wrote my name down on an envelope for the M&G with Matt. While we were waiting for Chris the tour manager came down the line saying that he couldn't sign anything during the M&G because he broke his pinky finger on his right hand a couple days ago while they were in Indiana. The M&G was outside by the bus and when we got around the corner where we could see Chris I kind of froze right there! I knew he was tall but he's even taller than I thought! I was the only one who had a M&G pass for Chris but since my mom & sister were back there with me to meet Matt the tour manager let my sister get a pic with Chris too. Then it was my turn and I got my pic, asked how he was doing, and told him thank you after the pic was taken. He said, "You're welcome darlin'" then smiled and I'm sure I must have been smiling like an idiot right about then! I completely forgot to ask for a hug then because Matt had just walked by on his way to the bus right before I got up to Chris. There were about 6 or 7 of us that had a M&G with Matt so after we got pics with Chris the tour manager told us to wait off to the side. While we were waiting Casey walked by on his way inside and signed a few autographs before he had to go. Once Chris was done with his M&G Matt came out and I couldn't believe he was standing not even 6 feet away from me. Nobody wanted to be the first person to go up to him - it was funny! Matt was like, "Now don't everyone come up at once!" The other people we were waiting with went up first and we were last. When it was our turn my sister went first and after she had her pic taken the tour manager said, "Is that Joe Don on your shirt?" She wanted to wear one of her JD shirts and was excited when he said that to her. Then it was my turn and in my head I was saying to myself, "I'm about to meet Matt!" When I walked up to him he said, "I like that guy on your shirt" (I was wearing a Matt shirt) and I said "I like him too!" He laughed and asked how I was doing then we took the pic. I asked him to sign my shirt and he said, "Yes m'am!" I still think that's funny because I'm only a year younger than he is. I asked him for a hug and he said, "Of course baby" then it was my mom's turn for a pic. She asked the tour manager if it came out and he asked if she wanted another one. My mom asked Matt, "He fell for that?" and he laughed and they got another pic. My sister and I got a pic together with him and I told him thank you for taking the time to take pics/sign autographs for all of us and he said, "It was great meeting you!" I said it was great to finally meet him too and then we went back inside to our seats. We were in the 2nd row and I really liked watching the clips from the show. They all 4 came out then Matt came on for his set. He was awesome!! My favorite song from his was "Whiskey on Ice." He did a Waylon song and a couple by Johnny Cash too. I loved his version of "I've Been Everywhere!" I've never head anyone sing that fast! Before he started it he asked the crowd to yell out on the count of 3 where they were from and after they did he said, "I've been there." After Matt it was Nicole's turn. I wasn't a fan of hers on the show at all but she was OK in concert. After her set the band took a 15 minute break before Casey came out. He was great!! He's got a great stage presence and knows how to put on a show. I saw Matt backstage watching some of his set so I had to get a pic. Lee, the keyboard player, asked the crowd if they'd seen the homemade I Love Casey Rivers shirts for sale and Casey started talking about how he had made the shirts himself with markers. I thought that was a cool idea! He got a standing ovation after "How Great Thou Art" and let me say - that boy can sing! Then is was time for Chris! The crowd went nuts when he came out! He started off with "Real Good Man" and seeing him do the body roll in person was just WOW! He was talking about his broken finger and said it was the drummer's fault but didn't say exactly what happened. He said he would have say something about it everytime he'd play his guitar to make the drummer feel guilty. I loved "Flowers" - I'd heard it was a great song and it really is. "Beer or Gasoline" was great too and of course I loved DML! He brought a sweat towl out with him and kept it on his guitar stand all night. (I'll talk about the towel again later!) Chris was awesome - I would love to see him again! After his last song Matt, Casey, and Nicole came back out to shake hands with some people but they didn't sing "Save A Horse." Chris told everyone they'd be signing autographs after the show then they said goodbye and left the stage. The line was really long and we were almost at the end of it. We were right in front of the stage when my mom saw that Chris' towel was still on the guitar stand. She asked Lee if I could have it and he gave it to me!! Two security guards brought the four of them up through the side aisle so they could get to the lobby. The line was moving pretty fast and I had them all sign Chris' towel. Matt was first and he said, "Hey again! How are ya? I still like that shirt." I got another hug and then went to Casey. I got a hug from him too and he asked where I got my guitar pick that was on my necklace. I told him it was from Troy Gentry and he said, "That's awesome!" I said hi to Nicole and then went on to Chris. He signed the towel and I remembered to ask him for a hug this time! He could only do it with one arm since he was keeping the other one back to keep his finger from getting hit. I thanked him and he thanked me for coming out. All in all it was a great show! I really hope to see Chris & Casey again soon! Matt is going to be in IN on his b-day in November so I'm going to go see him again then! Can't wait!!
Sorry this is so long! I wanted to put in all the details!
Here is the link to my pics:
Taylorville Pics