Blue Man Group

Okay, this is a personal posting, so if you are uninterested in my personal life - or if you plan on seeing the Blue Man Group's How to be a Megastar Tour 2.0 - pass over (spoilers).

Sorry that I haven't posted much lately on the tech side of things. Right now I'm simply working on features for the next release of LabVIEW and working with a team of folks to ensure our products roll out on Vista when it releases. However, if you have anything specific you'd like to learn about, please feel free to shoot me an email.

But enough of that, let's talk about me.

So I saw the Blue Man Group (BMG) originally out in Las Vegas and was absolutely blown away by their concert. It's a very drum heavy music, which I like, but combined with a lot of visual effects, CGI movies, strobes and comedy - it's a real experience. If you have a chance to see them on DVD, don't. Just get around to seeing them in concert - there is no way to capture it on film.

So they came to Austin today on their concert tour and my wife and I went to see them. I had joined their fan email list back when I first saw them, so we managed to get an early announcement. This gave us great seats - floor of the arena and about 20 rows back.

To start with, the pre-show "video" or slides told you how to text message the BMG to be part of the mobkastr experience. These were several text messages sent to you throughout the show that were either (a) funny, (b) informative, or (c) giving you "secret" actions to perform - such as holding up your cell phone whenever a ? appeared on the screen (kinda like a modern version of the lit lighter during concerts).

My favorite one was a question they sent after one CGI video: The fire escape represents: PLEASE REPLY A) A path in life that's less typical than traditional routes and that's outside "the system." B) A small furry animal. Of course, being a dog person, I picked B. This was the reply...

Correct. The fire escape represents the "pika," a small rabbit-like mammal indigenous to the high-altitude talus slopes.

Just in case you thought they were kidding...they weren't :)

Anyway, the show itself was opened by Tracy Bonham, who did some great songs but also returned during the show to do several vocals, including my favorite song from this tour: Up to the Roof. The big shock for me, having listened to the soundtrack many times before, was the video they played during Exhibit 13. I've listened to the song before, but not realized what it was. If you haven't clicked the link and watched the video - do it now....whew...

It reminds me of the first time I saw the music video to Garth Brooks The Dance. Again, no idea what the song was really saying until I saw the video - and cried. (Sorry, I couldn't find the actual music video...let's just say it had pictures of tragic loses such as the space shuttle explosion, etc).

Whew - shake it off, shake it off...

As in Vegas, there were several "Rock Concert Movement" tips for aspiring mega-stars...such as the classic hand gesture, a reference to a rock legend. The video here is the actual "tip" from the show!

Again, I can't really describe the show - it's simply an experience. So, I'll wrap up saying we stopped at Amy's Ice Cream on the way home and I wrote this post. There.