Yesterday, it was the Crammerock festival in Belgium and I had the occasion to get backstage. My name was on the guest list.
But when I arrived yesterday, there seemed to be a little problem. I was put -as i said- on the guest list, but apparently, there was a backstage list as well. So I only got a free ticket to the festival, not a backstage pass.
So I entered the festival, trying to reach the backstage from there. I told the security guys that I ‘know’ Matt, as a member of TNS and a huge fan of the band, but none of them believed me.
So I went out, walked about 6 miles to reach the festival area from the other side, you know ‘the VIP -and artists entrance’. Told them the same story, told I 'know' Matt and that I'm a member of a famous Sum 41-fansite. I showed them the bottle of Jack I bought for Cone's birthday. One security guy allowed me to hand it over, but he only gave me 2 minutes for that.
But, as a gift from above, I bumped into Matt. I was like "Hey, you're Matt, right?! Well hi, I'm Lars from TNS! I'm having some trouble getting backstage, could you explain him the full story?" (while pointing at the security-guy).
Matt did, and so I finally got my backstage pass, after about 2.5 hours. I had a little chat with Matt, he said that this happens all of the time at festivals. He also told me that everyone was still asleep, but that we would put up a meeting later on.
So I just took a seat and had some free drinks when suddenly Steve appeared. I quickly introduced myself but as he just woke up, we just agreed we would meet up again, later.
I went back to the festival area, checking out some Belgian bands, had some food etc.
After an hour and a half or so, I returned to the backstage. There was some sort of party going on, with lots of drinks and snacks. I even had a little bit of lobster! But as I was getting bored, I decided just to leave that party and sit back and relax at the bar nearby.
As I was sitting there, Cone appeared with his iMac, probably checking the birthday-wishes he got. I grabbed my Jack, introduced myself again, gave him the bottle and told him I won’t be disturbing any longer while he was checking his e-mails etc.
When he left the bar, he said spontaneously “Thanks again for the Jack, man!†and give me a tap on the shoulder. A few moments later, Matt and Deryck entered the place to have dinner. Matt: “Hey thanks for the Jack you gave Cone!†Deryck: “Owh shit, today’s his birthday?â€Â. We laughed, had a quick chat and I just let them have their food.
I came out of the bar, saw Tom and handed him over some Belgian chocolate and said that I would be waiting right after the show to have a quick meet ‘n greet.
As I was texting my friends about me seeing Sum 41, Matt appeared and asked me: “So, you wanna follow the show on stage?â€Â. Of course, I didn’t hesitate and got my ass up there. I made some pictures.
The show hadn’t even started yet, or a local security guy came over: “What the fuck are you doing here? Go standing over there!†and he pointed me the spot a couple of meters further, which was not ON the stage anymore, but really ASIDE. Bummer.
When the guys came running on stage, Matt said “Hey man, get your ass back up there!â€Â. And so I did. Their first song –The Hell Song- reached its first chorus when the security guy almost literally dragged me off stage. “Final warning dude! Once more and you’ll be kicked out of the festival!â€Â. Bummer, once more.
But then, during their second song –We’re All To Blame- Deryck invited –as he always does- a bunch of fans to come on stage. And so did I. I went back on stage. Five seconds later, the security guy showed up again and got really angry when he saw me standing there. But then he saw all the others, and was like “Huh?â€Â. He then asked Matt about all of this and Matt said it was his responsibility now.
During the entire show Chris Holland was standing right next to me.
While Stevo was soloing (during KOC) Deryck came over to us and hugged us etc. By then, we already got some guitar picks from the guitar tech, super awesome dude by the way.
When Still Waiting kicked in, the rest of the fans had to leave and had to go back to the festival area. I said I was there with Matt and I would watch the last songs from aside the stage.
So when they finished Fat Lip, they came off stage. Stevo was like “Hey maaaaaan, how’d you like thaaaat?!†and Cone and Deryck gave me a high five.
After that, I waited for another 30 minutes, while they were changing clothes etc. Tom came out, but didn’t say anything, I just said it was kick ass. After him Stevo came, and he had some French fries a dude offered him.
Matt and Deryck showed up, and me and Deryck had a chat about the new record, about the release date and so on. He thanked me like three times for being such a fan.
Last, but not least, Cone showed up. We talked about the show, about the Jack I gave him and said he would like to meet up again when they’re back in Belgium. We walked to the bus and said goodbye.
I really had an awesome day.
Here is some ‘new’ stuff you’d like to hear:
-The record’s probably coming out in February (from Deryck)
-A single will probably be released in December (Deryck)
-The new single will be either Screaming Bloody Murder or Blood In My Eyes (Matt)
-The record is all done and sounds really fucking amazing! (Matt)
Deryck and Cone are really really nice guys. When I was talking to them, I didn’t get the feeling of talking to rockstars, but to normal, down-to-earth guys. They’re really kind.
And so is Matt. At first, I didn’t like him. I mean, the first update he showed up in, I didn’t like him. But the updates after that one, see him cleaning all of the stuff etc opened my eyes. Nic and Heather already said he’s a really cool guy, and he really really is. He’s extremely awesome and cares a lot about us, fans. During the show, he was constantly filming and taking pictures, by the way.
He really surprised me, in a really good way. I love him.
Share your thoughts, please.
