So I thought I’ll start this thread so we could all share are experiences at the Summit, and for many, the epic concert later that night. Since I thought the Summit was such an extraordinary event I think it deserves a thread like this. So hopefully you guys will tells us your stories from that day. I’ll go ahead and share mine first. (Taken from my LPU blog post)
This is just a general overview of my day and I try not to go into every little detail to avoiding being too long, as its long already, and then as a result get boring. Summit started at 9 AM lasted until about 5 PM and then we got let into the concert which went on from 6:30 to 11. So a lot of stuff happened during that time. Enjoy = )
The Journey
So my journey began the night before the actually Summit. My house is just a 2 hour drive to the arena but since I don’t have my license yet and my parents were on vacation, I was left to take public transportation. I left my house at 10:40 PM to catch the 11 PM bus to New York City. I then arrived at the Port Authority bus terminal in Times Square at 42nd street and then walked all the way to the Javits Center where I was to take another bus. It was scheduled for 1:15 AM but it was late and came at 3 AM. I arrived at the 30th St. Station in Philadelphia at about 5 AM and then took a train to 2nd street. From the train stop I walked all the way to Penns Landing to meet up with a group of LPU members staying at the hotel. So at 7 AM I meet up with everyone in the lobby and we had breakfast at the hotel. Meet a lot of amazing and nice people there. Made a lot of great friends there too which I am extremely grateful for. Finally meet a lot of LPU members like Mike (The organizer of the hotel meet up and flag), his daughter Trinity, Irene, Josh, Dayna, Randy, Cody, Jen, Mary, Mohammed, Melissa, and much more! There were like over 20 people there! We then got about 4 taxis and drove over to the arena for the Summit. There was already a line when we got there but it was short. As I was walking up to the front of the line to meet someone, Richard (LPxDC) recognized me and called my name and we then proceeded to talk for a little bit. Richard and I met back at the 2011 Madison Square Garden show. He was volunteering at the Music For Relief booth and also doing a giveaway which I won and it had some pretty awesome things in it lol After talking to Rich I walked to the front of the line to meet Adam. I hung out and talked to him and other LPU members as we waited outside the arena.
The Summit
The Summit started a little bit late but we were like the first 5 people inside. Since we were like the first people there there were no lines for anything! The activities that they had to kick off the Summit were purchasing raffle tickets, LPU auction, taking pictures with Brad’s guitars, playing around with LP’s new music software, designing your own t-shirt and signing the LPU wall. I took a picture with and was able to play Brad’s red PRS Custom 24 Hybrid Theory Soldier guitar which was a dream come true for me. I played the riffs for One Step Closer, Faint, and Lying From You quickly on it. I also got two custom made guitar picks specifically for the people attending the Summit from Brad’s guitar tech. I did everything there was to do there pretty fast because there were no lines when I got in so I just hung out and talked with people for the remainder of the time. After that we got to do one of two activities, tour the backstage area or tour the crew buses. I picked touring backstage. Our group leader was Jim who is LP’s Production Manager. We first went into the production room and Jim explained everything there. There was a list there for the Summit activities and also the actually setlist for the concert that night! Took a lot of pictures of them lol We then toured the front of the stage (basically the pit area) where we saw the crew putting it up. After that buses took us to the Hard Rock Cafe in Philadelphia. Sat at a table with Mike, his daughter Trinity, Randy, and Cody. Had a great time talking and hanging out with them there. The Hard Rock was also playing some LP music and music videos which was pretty awesome! When they played Faint they cranked up the volume and the whole place started rocking out. After that we headed back to the arena. We then sat down and waited in the lobby for LP. I stood in the back to get a better view of everything. LP arrived and it was amazing. They began with an acoustic set which included In My Remains and the Messenger which was then followed by a Q&A session. After that it was M&G time. They had all of the LPU members there make one big single file line that went around the entire lobby there and instead of doing a traditional M&G (The 6 members at a table, you go get one item sign and say hi) they had all the band members walk around the line themselves and get to meet you one on one which was pretty awesome. I brought my LIVING THINGS CD to be signed. Had small conversations with all of them. Joe was first around. I joked around with him and messed with him about messing up on the Numb intro the past three shows haha After talking I said its ok we still love you Joe and patted him on the back lol Next was Brad. He read my name tag and said hi Holden thanks for coming lol and then I told him that I already told him this before but I wanted to thank him again for being an inspiration to me for guitar. He then thanked me and it said that was really cool. We then joked around for a bit. He was like you’re putting a lot of pressure on me tonight. Talked a tiny bit more than he said what if I mess up tonight would you care to which I respond I wouldn’t care. He then said what if it was my worst show ever to which I said I still wouldn’t even care haha Next was Rob. Told him that he did an amazing job on the new album and that I really loved it. He thanked more told me that they worked really hard and put a lot of effort into it so he was really glad to hear that. Phoenix came around next and I was like whats up man lol I asked him why the jam band/touring the stage didn’t happen today during the Summit and he told me that he really didn’t know. He said he’ll ask and get back to me on it. Don’t know how he’ll get back to me on it though LOL Next was Chester. I told Chester that he kicked ass on this record and that it was awesome. Also told him that his is one my favorite albums by them and that I wasn’t just saying that. He then put his hand on my shoulder and said thanks man that means a lot to me. He then patted me on the back and we talked a tiny bit more. Last was Mike. I asked him if they will ever let a fan come on stage and play guitar with them again because they decided against it in the 2011 tour. He told me the reason they steered away from it was because they like to keep the shows consistent and everything and when I asked if they would do it again one day he said maybe. I still have hope! Lol After the M&G we took the group picture and I was front row kneeling right next to Brad. I was literally touching against Brad lol After the picture Brad began to walk away and I told him good luck, have a good show tonight Brad and usually they don’t really respond when people say stuff to them but he turned around, looked at me, and said thank you then waved and said goodbye to me. That really meant a lot to me. Also got Adam to sign my LPU Summit ticket! Haha Then the Summit was basically over and after the picture I ran to line up for the pit section as many people started to do that.
The Concert
Was pretty close to the front of the line. Since we were in the Summit they let us in early. Got a spot front row right against the barricade almost in the center of the stage. Just a tiny bit to the left because I wanted to be a little bit more on Brad’s side of the stage. Since I was one of the first people in the pit I got the perfect spot. I was literally five feet away from the stage no joke. Mutemath went first then Incubus. Didn’t really get into them but they put on great shows both of them. I just wanted to see LP though. The place was packed! It was sold out with 25,000 people and I was in front of it all in the pit first row. Felt amazing lol So before I start talking about the show I just want to say that the set LP played that night was set B of the Honda Civic Tour. It is one of the greatest set lists they have had since the 2003/2004 days. So the concert started with A Place For My Head. Throughout the entire show I was jumping up and down, singing along, head banging, and rocking out hard. I lead that movement in the mosh pit! Haha Because in the beginning I was one of the only people really rocking out and jumping. But after warming up for a little bit everybody started joining in which made everything even more epic! They played Victimized/QWERTY 4th then followed with With You right after that being the 5th song. Come on. By the 6th song I literally started already losing my voice already no joke and was sweating so much from rocking and jumping. The setlist was highly energetic and the band was jumping and rocking out the entire time on stage and telling the audience to jump and get the fuck up too lol So it was really fun. The band members noticed me rocking and stuff. Had interactions with all of them. Mike, Brad, and Phoenix all acknowledged me. Phoenix got up on the stand in front of me and pointed at me. And if I remember correctly Mike and Brad pointed at me too. I know Mike and Brad were like whats up to me and I made eye contact with both of them a lot. A good amount of times Chester would come up to right in front of me and look at me while he was screaming/singing which was pretty badass because we were making eye contact the whole time. Made it a more intimate experience for me. The whole band were having fun and smiling on stage and the crowd was great. Chester said we were a band’s wet dream because we were so crazy haha I also made eye contact with Joe a lot during the show. He was definitely looking at me and thinking that mother fucker because I gave him shit for messing up the Numb intro every night this tour so far at the M&G haha but he nailed the Numb intro that night! After the show when they were saying bye Rob saw me, pointed to me, smiled at me, and then waved to me and I waved back and was like fuck yeah haha I also got Mike’s guitar pick from Faint! It was an amazing show with an amazing setlist and was highly energetic. My second LP show and the best one yet! Can’t believe I’m saying that but its true! LP are doing an amazing job this year with the setlists and energy levels. The LPU International Summit flag also made its way on stage which was really awesome! You could see my name that slowly went from small to big haha Spent like 2 months in the LPU message boards with a couple other LPU members trying to make the flag happen and it did and it came out amazing! Big shout out to Mike for that. After the show the flag was thrown into the crowd but I got it back and gave it back to Mike who gave it to Adam. Got a ride home with Adam who also lived in North Jersey so that worked out great. After only sleeping 40 minutes on the bus the night before I slept for 14 hours that night after the show! In conclusion now It was probably the best day of my life. Definitely the greatest experience of my life. I met a ton of awesome LPU members with whom I made a lot of new friends with and I’m extremely gratefully for that since everybody was so nice and awesome, I got to hang out and meet Linkin Park for the day, and I also witnessed an amazing concert where I rocked the fuck out and had a lot of interactions between me and the band. August 17, 2012 will be a day that I will never forget. Thanks to LP, the LPU staff, and the LPU members that made this day incredible and unbelievable.
(Photo taken by me of Brad performing the guitar solo to What I’ve Done. LPU Summit Flag also in the background.)
