Official start of summer

June 21st maybe the date for the summer solstice but the real start of summer in Otto's House begins when DMB comes to town. DMB, or Dave Matthews Band, is a staple in Otto's House. Dave can soothe jangle nerves, lull a child to sleep, as well as perk up us non morning people (but who is a morning person at 5 AM). One member of Otto's House almost made their first appearance at a Dave concert in the summer of 2008.
Last night Matt and I left the kiddies and made our pilgrimage. This year we opted to see him in Hartford (the two nights they play in Mansfield this year are in the middle of the week). Acoustically- Comcast in Hartford is amazing. The sound was crisp, clear and loud without being deafening. The encore carry over our mile walk to the garage. However- the clean venue quickly turned into a beer luge as thousands of Dancing Nancies litter, puke and pee all over the place. There definitely was a sad Native American man standing by the stretch of highway looking over the parking lot this morning. Crowd control also not the best- Yay Dudes everywhere. And the center had many entrances but only wanted you to exit out one gate (which would have added another mile to our hike but we lucked out and found a hole in the fence).
The flaws of the venue did not overshadow the experience- the band played an amazing set. They did a great variety- some old, some new, sadly no covers. Dave started out solo with the song "Sweet" then "Grace is Gone." It turned up when they played "Don't Drink the Water." The band played for three hours. It was probably one of the best sets I heard in awhile.
And- it wouldn't be a Dave concert without the usually cast of characters. This years characters- a middle age woman who past out before the opening act Carolina finished their set; three Yay Dudes that dance mainly with each other and one at one point relieved himself on the lawn; our new friend Mike and his lady friend that informed us that they did not make it to the concert last night because they made some "poor choices (but don't we all);" and finally the sad girls that smuggle their weed in a maxi pad and remain sad even after they smoke all six of their jokes in a matter of ten minutes. New friend Mike tried to score some off of them but one of the sad girls told him sadly "no."
When Matt and I return this morning- a very livid Bear claim to be old enough to go see Dave. Not even a t shirt cheered up this lad (but his own Dave cd and Matchbox turn that frown upside down).