Pearl Jam To Play Bonnaroo!

LukinFan wrote:

Thanks! And this may be a stupid question, but do they sell pipes there for, aw...tobacco use

Wookiee_Blaylock wrote:

If anyone's reluctant to go to Bonnaroo due to whatever issues they have with festivals, well, please know that the absolute irony of this is that, unlike all of the other 'normal' (arena) shows, there is no limit to the length of their set. I doubt they'd want to play for more than three and a half hours regardless of the circumstances. How often do they play shows which are that long in any other controlled venue? There are a few exceptions, but for the most part, you're looking at about an average of what, 2 hours and 25 minutes for a PJ show? Like others have mentioned, it's on a PRIVATELY OWNED FARM. You CANNOT beat that! It's not subject to any sort of local laws or curfews as far as that goes. As it is, bands are scheduled on the other, smaller stages, officially until about 3:30 or 4:00 a.m. If the band stops playing after three hours [start time for the headliner of the night is 9:00 p.m.] it would be because: They just don't feel like it; they're simply tired; there's a mad thunderstorm (bringing hail and heavy winds) approaching; they feel bad for holding the crowd there, resulting in other bands starting their shows around midnight having hindered audience numbers.

As for getting up close for those still unsure, you really don't have to get there at 7 a.m. to get a good spot. Bands are playing on that stage throughout the day, up until about 8:00 p.m.ish. If you want to be really close, you might want to wade through the crowd during whoever's playing prior to Pearl Jam, or at least just as that band finishes. Ok, if you want to be up along the fence, it might be easier to go there mid-to-late afternoon. Even if a single additional band wasn't added to the lineup from this point on, I really doubt that everyone going there this year is going to be a die-hard pearl jam fan. Granted, there might be an additional ten or twenty thousand more than say last year.... What I'm saying here is, you have the fact that there's such a diverse mix of artists playing there to your advantage in that sense. You have much better chances of being in good spot (with a decent view, and more importantly, a great spot sound-wise) there than at some tight indoor place like the Bill Graham Auditorium in San Fran., where TC tickets were GA. The two big headliners last year were The Police and Tool. For both shows, getting well under a hundred feet from the stage (so, in front of probably 85% of the people there) minutes before show time was easy as fuck. Lots of people there were pumped for either - or both - bands. Yet, even fairly far up, people were nicely spaced apart, some just sprawled out on blankets. [Lots of people were also content with being way at the back of the crowd, with loads of space and easy access to the shithouses.] There was also never any relentless mad pressing of people. At the same time of course, you can't go there expecting to have your own little space, ten feet from Mike or Stone or Jeff or Ed, as you're kinda there to SHARE the experience with countless others. What's killer about that stage is how godly the sound system is.

ninfan wrote:

Quick Question...Not sure I can make it do to work. Do I need to worry about these tickets selling out?

Wookiee_Blaylock wrote:

You're welcome. I don't want to just kinda rant away endlessly... it just kinda happens! I mean, it's only what will likely be the greatest weekend of the year, so it's hard not to get excited about it!

Actually, pretty well everybody there WILL be camping. The majority of the people there will just have their non-RV vehicles and tents, what not, sprawled over about 500 of the 700 acres there. The numbers might scare people. My roommate was there in '03 with a couple of the bands, just helping out backstage, and she said she was glad that she didn't have to deal with the endless sea of people. I guess it's a matter of where your comfort zone lies. She grew up in Vancouver, whereas I grew up in a town of 5,000 people, yet, I didn't mind the numbers at all last year. OK so, as far as entering and leaving the main grounds (Centeroo), it's never a big deal really. The longest wait I experienced last year was during the first night (Thurs.) when a lot of people were showing up, and leaving their campsites to check shit out for the first time, and there was probably a 20 minute lineup. Eventually everyone's just kinda scattered everywhere, and for the rest of the weekend it was what seemed like a five minute (or less) wait each time passing through the "gates". You're with your friends anyhow, so really it's still better than waiting for the D-Train alongside a bunch of people who'd rather put a gun to their heads than go off to work/what not. The "searches" there (this is under that big yellow arch which you'll see in the photos) are very lackluster. The first day I was reluctant to bring my bag of 'herbal remedies', fearing "security" would take it away (or worse). Turns out some people even had rather elaborate bongs everywhere inside (ok, maybe i'm exaggerating somewhat here, but there was certainly more than just rolling papers in action). They might pat a pocket or two, inspect your bag briefly. Their biggest concern - and understandably so - is, as Hatfield mentioned, glass. Don't bring any glass with you in your vehicle. Anyhoo. So, when leaving the main grounds, you don't even brake pace. The only issue with getting around that you might have is if you're camped on the outskirts of the 'campground', making for a 40-or-so minute walk. That's worst case scenario. Unlike at the Gorge, once you're at Bonnaroo, you get a bracelet and you're free to roam. You don't need a day pass/ticket for each time you leave the campsite and enter the grounds. There are lineups for the "showers" (troughs really). Alternately, there are spots where you can pay... what was it, $5 for a hot, private shower. The shithouse lineups can be long at times. Actually, I never really waited more than five minutes to use one, and usually it's about a minute. The only other time that the high number of people is a problem is (besides getting in on the first day I suppose) say when the headliner of each night finishes, and you're trying to go to the washroom/meet up peeps/get to another stage. That can be chaotic for a half hour. OTHERWISE though, it's really not a big deal. Again, everyone's generally quite evenly dispersed throughout the place.

As for tickets selling out, I wouldn't panic for some time. And if they DO sell out, there's always a crapload on ebay.

Otherwise, just be sure to bring arseloads of water.

81shark wrote:

what are these credit cards that you speak of?

we are a cash only house