It ended up being freakin' awesome. It was the day after Halloween. We didn't really watch the first two bands, but then Deftones came on. I've heard a few of their songs before and I wasn't that moved, but their live show was impressive. Tons of screaming, which is always good. Then it was Rob Zombie. He was a trip, the good kind. My son even said afterward, "It's all about Rob Zombie." This is a kid who listens exclusively to top 40 crap.
I've seen Linkin Park live before, but they were truly amazing. First they came out in full zombie make-up.
Then they gave an really bad-ass show. One of my favorite parts was the crazy DJ solo (40 minute mark).
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3E2rQF4-QJE
I felt a little strange afterward. As we were walking out, my mind was somewhere else. I felt a sense of awe and a disconnection from reality. Maybe it was just the effect of the loud music on my brain, but MAYBE it was something more. I'm probably gonna get in trouble for this, but after some reflection, I likened it to a religious experience.
This is straight from Wikipedia:
Psychologist and Philosopher William James described four characteristics of mystical experience in The Varieties of Religious Experience. According to James, such an experience is:
Transient — the experience is temporary; the individual soon returns to a "normal" frame of mind. It is outside our normal perception of space and time.
Ineffable — the experience cannot be adequately put into words.
Noetic — the individual feels that he or she has learned something valuable from the experience. Gives us knowledge that is normally hidden from human understanding.
Passive — the experience happens to the individual, largely without conscious control. Although there are activities, such as meditation (see below), that can make religious experience more likely, it is not something that can be turned on and off at will.
I can say with certainty that I experienced 3 of the 4 characteristics. The only one I'm not sure about is "noetic" being that I'm not sure if I learned anything that I didn't already know. I did learn that religious (or spiritual, or mystical) experiences come in many different forms. For me, it was a concert. For someone else, it might be experiencing nature. For someone else, it might happen in a church. Keep your mind open, and don't judge, people.
J. L. Dodd
“If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph:
THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED
FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD
WAS MUSIC”
― Kurt Vonnegut
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