F*****G Ticketmaster

[Buck]

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/f...1a13scene.html

Street Scene melee: 'It just happened'

Promoter, officials cite safety measures
By George Varga
UNION-TRIBUNE POP MUSIC CRITIC

August 13, 2006

'Look out for your brothers and sisters. No one has to die in rock 'n' roll.”

Those cautionary words at last weekend's Street Scene from Maynard James Keenan, the lead singer of Tool, were as sobering as any of the lyrics he subsequently intoned during his band's simultaneously galvanizing and chilling performance.

Few rock acts create music that can be as rousing and aggressive, or as thoughtful and intricate, often all at once.

Fortunately, no one did die during Tool's nine-song set, which began with “Stinkfist,” a song that includes such lines as Constant over-stimulation numbs me / But I would not want you any other way.

However, 14 fans were injured and hospitalized – three in life-threatening condition – in the wake of Tool's performance. More than 100 others were treated and released on site during and after Tool's performance, according to authorities.

“We have always been very pro-safety conscious at Street Scene. We spent a year planning this event,” said festival founder Rob Hagey, breaking his media silence for the first time since the event concluded early last Sunday morning.

“I know how hard we worked with Staff Pro (which provided on-site security). And we worked very diligently with Tool's security personnel and with the San Diego Police and Fire departments. It's because we had additional security at the event that we were able to be very pro-active in responding during Tool's set. Some of my key staff people were with me in front of the stage during Tool, working to solve the whole situation.”

Led by the charismatic Keenan, who declined an appointment to West Point in order to pursue a career in music, Tool performed in front of a loudly enthusiastic, multi-generational audience, whose size was estimated by authorities at between 15,000 and 18,000. A majority of the fans who sought medical assistance were treated for dehydration, heat exhaustion and minor injuries such as twisted ankles, authorities said.

City officials, who praised Street Scene's layout and security measures, described the surging crush of fans as “a freak accident.”

But there are few quick or easy answers about why Tool's headlining performance at Street Scene went wrong, or why the same band's performance in April at the Coachella festival in Indio created a comparatively less volatile crowd response.

In both instances, Tool performed nearly identical sets. In both instances, the four-man band headlined on a Saturday night. In both instances, excited fans pushed and shoved to get close, at least during the first few songs, before being calmed down by Keenan.

The excitement level was intensified by the fact Tool was returning to the concert stage after a hiatus from touring of several years. The band's music is a potent mix of punk-rock fury, heavy-metal thunder and prog-rock complexity.

Keenan's lyrics can be dark and disquieting one moment, barbed or surreal the next. His band eschews spotlights in favor of moody backlighting and eye-popping videos of otherworldly creatures, which are projected on large screens at the rear of the stage.

Because Tool was one of the few Street Scene acts whose performance was not shown on the video screens on the sides of the stage, authorities said Thursday they believe fans may have pushed forward from the rear of the venue to better see the band.

And the Tool crowd at Street Scene may have been larger than anticipated, said Police Capt. Bill Edwards, because of Saturday's last-minute cancellation by pop-punk favorites My Chemical Romance.

“Because the stage My Chemical Romance was scheduled to play on went dark early, a lot of people who might have been watching them came over to watch Tool instead, and it caused the crowd at Tool to surge,” Edwards said.

“Plus, people are in a much different state at the beginning of the event than they are at the end. I think we thought everything was in place. But you can't predict everything. And, obviously, there were some exacerbating circumstances that led to this unfortunate situation. It just happened.”

A key to calming down the Street Scene audience was Keenan, who was praised by Hagey and city officials who were on the scene. Most of the injuries, according to fire department officials, occurred near the beginning of the concert, when the crowd moved forward.

During his band's second number, an anthem-like song of defiance called “The Pot,” Keenan repeatedly implored the audience to chill out.

“Step back so you don't get trampled. It's just rock,” Keenan said. Later, he told the crowd: “If you all take a couple of steps back, we can keep playing. That's two feet (back), instead of somebody's life. . . . ”

City officials met Thursday to begin their “after-action” analysis. It will be several weeks before they issue any formal suggestions for tweaking next year's festival in the massive Qualcomm Stadium parking lot.

One likely suggestion, several said, is to implement the use of multiple stage barriers. Sometimes called “T-barriers” because of their shape, such barriers were used for Tool's performance at Coachella. They provide added protection for fans by separating them into different areas, which can help prevent the scary surge of people that occurred near the front of the stage during Tool's performance here.

Even without this “stacked” barrier approach, the overall consensus among officials is that last weekend's Street Scene was well-planned and executed.

“The people at Street Scene did everything we asked them to do,” said Garrett Pryor, the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department's fire prevention supervisor of special events. “And through many many years of experience in doing this, we thought we'd laid the event out to accommodate well over the number of people who attended.”

Inevitably, however, there will be changes to the plan, said Fire Marshall Sam Oates, who has helped oversee Street Scene since its inception in 1984.

“There's no question that all the entities involved will come up with some recommendations for next year that would prevent this from happening again.”

[sedated]

Originally Posted by MediaCenterJunkie

size was estimated by authorities at between 15,000 and 18,000.

wtf? only 18,000?

rockfest last year had 50,000, was in an open lot, was swaying back and forth going apeshit when Stone Temple Pilots played, but no one got hurt. Weiland didn't stop the show, but told everyone to calm the F down after the 2nd song.

[Buck]

Originally Posted by sedated

wtf? only 18,000?

rockfest last year had 50,000, was in an open lot, was swaying back and forth going apeshit when Stone Temple Pilots played, but no one got hurt. Weiland didn't stop the show, but told everyone to calm the F down after the 2nd song.

It was a music festival.

Snoop Dogg was on at the same time, and he had a crowd just as big on his side.

The problem was that the sides were gated in, so the crowd couldn't get closer but to the sides.

I swear that there were people lined up a half-mile deep, at least.