So if you haven’t seen the spam all over Facebook from my sisters’ and my account, yesterday was a very eventful day. And, honestly, I can say I don’t know who I would’ve wanted to spend the day with other than them. Really, it was s such a blast. Anywho, this is going to span a couple of days and I’ll keep it as linear as possible. Two weekends ago (Memorial weekend), Mack came down to hang out like she did the year before. We already had it planned to go to see Captain America: Civil War and X-Men: Apocalypse, both were amazing by the way, but we didn’t expect much else to happen. One day while looking through Twitter Mack noticed that our favorite band (but her all-time favorite band as she had been a fan for 14 years) Simple Plan, would be playing a show in Williamsburg. Upon further investigation I realized I had noticed the flyer (attached to their tweet) for the show a few days before but as it was a bit cluttered didn’t realize what it was saying so I ignored it. We saw that the show was coming up soon and on a Sunday and that meant that Mack could go too as it didn’t coincide with her work schedule. Plus Steph could go because her promotion has now given her Sundays off. Tickets were only $45 dollars and we all said that we would go just to see them and so we paid for the tickets right here to be sure they wouldn’t sell out like the VIP and All Access Tickets did*. So we’re incredibly excited because Simple Plan, which is a Canadian band, rarely ever comes to this part of Virginia and even they’ve said its’ been a long time since they’ve been here. So the days go by and we’re growing more and more excited with us doing a countdown of it or mentioning it at least once in conversation. Throughout the time we were planning we wondered a few things such as 1) because we were in general seating (aka lawn seating) would we have a good view of the stage, 2) would anyone stand up and get in our way, and 3) would we still get a chance to meet the band? Honestly, we were a little skeptical of the last part but figured we would bring stuff for them to sign anyway just in case. I brought my copy of their latest CD ‘Taking One For the Team (which is awesome and you have to listen to it), Mack brought their coffee table book, Steph brought a journal, and Mere didn’t have anything for them to sign so she borrowed some paper from Steph’s book. The day before the show Mack came down and we hung out and went to the pool while deciding on outfits to wear; mostly so we didn’t roast in the sun. It was 95 degrees with little cloud coverage and a breeze here and there. But I’ll speak more about that later. So it was the day of the show, we got ready, made sure we had everything together about five times and headed off to Williamsburg. We already planned on getting there about a half hour before the doors opened but Mom suggested that we get there at least an hour early. According to her our ‘early’ may not be considered early to other people. Thankfully the Williamsburg Winery, which is where the concert was held, is a pretty short drive away from where we were so it was even more worth it. On the drive there we listened to Simple Plan’s album and joked about how we would push people out of our way when Simple Plan came on. The concert at the Williamsburg Winery was their second annual Uncorked and Unplugged acoustic show for numerous artists hosted by a local radio station. So along with Simple Plan there was also The Lost Element, Mariana’s Trench, Ben Rector, and Rachel Platten performing. And while we’re not really fans of Rachel Platten we hadn’t heard much from the other artists and figured we’d be exposed to new music as well, which would make things even better while waiting for simple plan. So we go there early and that was the best decision we made. We were the first people there. So not only did we not have to worry about getting good seats but we arrived just as Simple Plan was doing their sound check so we got to watch them do that a little bit while waiting outside of the venue to be checked in. A woman came over to ask if we were at least 21, because we look so young. But the funny thing was before she finished her question I was about to immediately jump in and say that we were quadruplets rather than twins because we get asked that question so often. But then we confirmed that we were actually 23 and said it was okay she thought we looked younger because we also get that statement a lot. We continued to wait in line and talked to this older couple who were behind us, waiting to see Simple Plan as well. Then we were checked in and given our yellow wristbands to enter the venue. We met one of the hosts of a morning show on the radio station and spoke to him for a few moments before we were let inside. (The other cool thing is that they gave everyone in the audience souvenir wine glasses for the event). Okay, you know how I said it was good that we were the very first ones in line? It got even better before we got front row seats when seated. Actually there were a few people in smaller chairs that sat in front of us first but then they moved because the music was too loud and then we got front row seats. So that’s when our waiting for Simple Plan journey started. While they were setting everything up Mack made sure that we were in ‘formation’ to be able to see our favorite member of the band more easily, and to be sure we were front and center because you can’t miss four identical faces looking back at you. While we waited for them to set up we read the books we brought and talked to each other about a few things while looking around to see if we could catch another glimpse of the band early. The first band that came on was The Lost Element; Mack and I have heard one of their songs on the radio or featured in some other way so we knew they were at least familiar to us and they were great! Compared to other bands right now their addition of a keyboarder made their sound very different. Their songs are catchy and very fun. Also, in the middle of one of their songs they added in Crystal Gayle’s I Don’t Wanna Lose Your Love, seamlessly mashing it with their own original song. And as much of a 80s music fan we are, it was an awesome surprise. Bonus story #1: at one point Steph went to get us some drinks and she ran into Lost Element as she did so. She congratulated them on their set and said she was now a big fan and would follow them on their social media accounts, they thanked her and the keyboarder said he liked her flower headband! :) Bonus story #2: Mack and I were consistently looking over at the side area while The Lost Element were playing to see if Simple Plan would ever come back out. And finally, they did, because they were doing a meet and greet. We weren’t sure if they were for everyone or just All Access people and so after watching someone with a yellow band get in to take a pic (which we later learned she snuck in) Mack and I went over to see if we could. They said ‘no’, only for people with red wristbands, and then we went back to our seats. But then we saw some fans go over and take pictures of Simple Plan taking pictures for the meet and greet and Jeff (a guitarist of Simple Plan) walked over to take pictures with them. Then Pierre and Sebastien went over while David walked into a tent to get some shade. So Mack and I immediately leapt up with our CD and book and (without telling Mere. Sorry, Mere! Lol) went over to see if we could talk to them. So I went right up to Pierre (my favorite of the band) and asked if he would ‘please sign my CD and take a picture with me’. He said of course, signed my book, took a pic and then I moved onto Sebastien to do the same. Then I asked if they would take a pic with Mack and sign her book; this was a bit of my motor mouth/eldest sibling part of me kicking in but Mack did say that if I wasn’t assertive enough to do it she might’ve been too meek to do so. So she got a picture and an autograph from her favorite member of the band, Sebastien. She didn’t get one of Pierre because they had to go back to do official meet and greets, but it was awesome! The next band was Mariana’s Trench. We hadn’t heard any songs from them before or really knew who they were, but they were pretty good. The lead singer has a really wide vocal range and the band’s harmonies were cool. But I’m not sure if I’d listen to them again. They did a great job of interacting with the crowd, though. By this point they were moving onto Ben Rector…and he was running late. The issue with that was that it was getting really, really hot. Not only was it the time of day where the sun was directly beaming down on us but there weren’t many clouds left at this point and barely a breeze. And so all of us started to snap at each other, though we didn’t take it personally because we were very hot and kind of hungry and we just wanted Simple Plan to come on. Finally Ben Rector comes on, and he has a song out called Brand New, which is actually pretty good. But he played some songs off of his album and at one point asked the crowd to help him make up a third verse for the song on the spot. One lady in the crowd got chosen and gave him the topic of ‘wine’ for the verse. He did it seamlessly and even said that though he’s from California and drinks a lot of wine, he hadn’t found better wine than he had in Williamsburg that day. Finally, Ben Rector finished his set and the four of us got up from our seats and maneuvered out way to the front row of standing area, which was roped off from the VIP area. We had seen people stand there for Mariana’s Trench and Ben Rector and vowed that we would get to the front. Unfortunately the elder couple we met earlier that day had to leave before Simple Plan because the husband had gotten sick but another girl we spoken to throughout the concert that day had made her way to the front too. So we waited there while Simple Plan set up and then completely rocked out to their show. They played the songs I’d Do Anything (off their first album), Welcome to My Life (off their second album), Addicted (off their first album), Jet Lag (off their fourth album), Singin’ in the Rain (their first single off their latest album, Shut Up (off their second album) and Perfect (off their first album). This was more songs than the other bands because Rachel Platten, who was going last, was late and they stretched to fill up some time. And it was awesome! I’m not entirely sure but I think Pierre pointed to us a few times since we were enjoying ourselves so much. Honestly, we would’ve preferred if they played more songs off their new album but it was still great. Jet Lag is one of my favorite off of their fourth album so I was glad to hear it. While the band were playing Mack and I were tapped on the back and later we both said that if it were someone who was trying to get in front of us we would’ve said ‘no’. Come to find when we turn around that it was a woman named Stephanie (lol) who worked with the radio station and asked if we wanted to meet the band!! Of course we said yes as quickly as the question left her mouth. So we were told after the show to meet her by the side of the stage and we would be brought back. Once the show ended Simple Plan started to throw guitar picks off stage and Mere managed to grab one from David (the bassist and her favorite member of the band)! Then we immediately grabbed the things we wanted to have signed and followed he woman back stage. Once backstage she told us she chose us because we were clearly enjoying ourselves and because we knew the songs better than other people in the audience. (Thanks for being a fan for such a long time, Mack!!). She starts telling people that we were a group of friend and excited to meet the band but quickly corrected her that we were, in fact, quadruplets. And her eyes got big and she said it was cool and that she had never met a set of quads before (which is what we get a lot, honestly). So, finally, the band is brought around and we were introduced as a set of quadruplets. Simple Plan then got a good look at the four of us and did a double take, which is also something we get a lot, and set off to get hugs from all four of us "to complete the set." When Mack and I were walking down the line meeting the band, Pierre mentioned they already knew who we were because he and Sebastien recognized us from meeting him before. And Sebastien added that he recognized us because we "announced our arrival on twitter". A little background info; about a week before the show Mack and I were consistently tweeting them and the radio station in Fredericksburg to have their single played (still hasn’t) as well as to mention how excited we were that it was our first simple plan show. We had gotten liked or Retweeted by Jeff and the Simple Plan band account so that was awesome to know they recognized us! When we got to Jeff he said "Yeah, we know you guys, who's the twitter mastermind?" to which Mack and I explained how efforts to get the song played and he thanked us for it. And then Pierre said he saw us "rocking out in the crowd" while they played. David said he liked my Vans shirt (which is actually one of my favorite shirts) and they all thanked us for coming out. So it was time for the picture and we all scrambled to stand next to our favorite members of the band. (I sort of yelled ‘I get to stand next to Pierre, he’s mine!’ to which he laughed hard at, but I’m not embarrassed). When we all got in for the picture, Pierre said, "Yeah, it's a sandwich." I got the entire band’s autograph (except the drummer Chuck because it was an acoustic show and he wasn’t there). Mere got Pierre’s and David's autographs with a personalized one from Pierre. Mack got a personalized autograph from Pierre, and an autograph from David and Sebastien, and Steph got a personalized autograph from Pierre. And we were grinning like crazy the entire time and after and the whole way home. Then we called Mom and Dad and told them what happened and then we spammed picture everywhere. It was the best day ever and it certainly wouldn't have happened if Mack wasn't a HUGE Simple Plan fan and got us into their band (especially their two latest albums). So THANKS! It was certainly the best day ever. Thanks Uncorked and Unplugged, Williamsburg Winery, and Simple Plan for an amazing experience! *VIP and All-Access ticketholders were able to have a tent that they sat under to drink wine while watching the show. But only All Access and VIP people could be in the spot directly in front of the stage while the bands were playing. We were sitting/Standing behind them.
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About Me
Loves anything red. Rock music, playing the guitar, drawing, writing, tattoos, and sports are some of my interests and hobbies. I like to laugh, I like to think I'm funny. I talk a lot...just a warning. Archives
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