It's your gravity, that's holding onto me...

**2/11/2012 - I'm Taking Off - Nick Carter - House of Blues - Chicago, IL**

This weekend was another first for me...my first solo Nick Carter concert.  And what a show it was!  If you recall, when Nick first released news of this tour, I had hoped that he would come closer to where I live or add more weekend shows so that I would be able to go.  During the Pre-Cruise event in December, I asked him if he would be coming to Chicago.  He replied that he probably would.  Not only did he add a Chicago show, but it was on a Saturday.  I was happy I was not going to have to miss any work to see him.

I decided right away that this would be the show that I wanted to see and I wanted VIP.  I saw how quickly the VIP sold out for the other shows so I knew I was going to have to join his fan club in order to even have a slight chance of getting VIP,  let alone four of them for the group of girls I was going with.  So, I paid the small fee to join the online only fan club and waited patiently for my tickets and VIPs to go on sale.

The tickets went on sale one hour earlier than they were supposed to and luckily I happened to be waiting and ready for those VIP sales.  The concert was going to be General Admission so getting the tickets right away was not a huge deal.  My fingers moved like lightening as soon as those VIPs went on sale though. Within a minute, I had four VIPs in my cart and paid for.  By the time I finished, VIPs were sold out.  I found out this weekend that two more rounds of VIPs were released between then and the concert.

When news was released the week before our show of the death of Nick's sister, Leslie Carter, we were not sure if the rest of the tour was going to be cancelled or not.  We had been making plans on renting a limo so that we would not have to drive into downtown Chicago and Susan was supposed to book it on the day that the news was released.  Luckily for us at that time, the company's credit card machine was down and she was not able to book it.  This was a good thing since the deposit could not have been refunded of the tour was, indeed, cancelled.  I personally thought he should have at least postponed the first few shows after the death of his sister but he chose to go on with the tour as planned because performing was going to help him.  I know he had some trouble at his NY show, which was the first after Leslie's death but after that I believe he stayed pretty strong.  I do know one show was cancelled but there were several rumors as to why...he was either sick or the show did not sell well.  Anyway, we never did end up booking the limo after we found out the tour was going to continue because the limo place never did return any of Susan's calls and all the other places were more expensive.

On Friday and Saturday, Northwest Indiana had a Winter Storm Warning and the temperature was significantly lower (Teens) than what it had been the rest of the winter (40s).  Chicago itself was not under the Winter Storm Warning but it was going to be cold.  We knew that with our VIPs we would not have to wait in line forever to get a good spot.  We just hoped that we would not have to line back up outside after the VIP for the show.  Because of the weather and the notorious Chicago traffic, we made sure to leave with plenty of time to spare.  Once we got into Chicago and parked, we had several hours to kill.  We had decided that we would get a late lunch in order to kill this time we knew we were proabobly going to have.  

We decided to stop in at Bar Louie's which was right next to the House of Blues.  When we walked in we were told that they had $1 martinis as their special.  We knew this was our place!  We then found out that they also had $1 appetizers....could we get any luckier???  We each ordered our first round of drinks, an appetizer, and an actual meal.  We could have gone without the meal because sharing the appetizers would have been plenty for us.  We took our time eating, drinking, and just socializing before it was time to head to the venue.  None of us had been to the House of Blues before so it took us awhile to find out where to go.  There were so many VIP girls!  I later heard that there were about 120 of us.  We were given one very simple set of instructions...do not bring up anything regarding Nick's personal life from the last weeks...AKA the death of his sister, Leslie.

For the soundcheck, we were about 8 rows back.  Nick came out and sang two songs, "Fly Away" and "Free Falling."  I liked the fact he did other songs that we would not be hearing during the concert...or so I thought.

"Fly Away"

"Free Falling"

After two songs, it was question and answer time.  Here are the questions that were asked that I remember.  They are not word for word but get the idea across...

Q:  She liked the fan club t-shirts (my guess is the ones that come with the non-digital only membership) and asked if there would be anymore like it.

A:  He said that he liked designing shirts that have more than just his face plastered on it so that there would probably be some more in the future.

Q:  Could he teach us the Burning Up dance?

A:

Teaching the "Burning Up" dance

Q:  Is there anything special planned for the Backstreet Boys 20 year anniversary next year?  

A:  Yes there are plans being made but he could not elaborate on it.

Nick got a kick out of the ice cream question

Q:  A fan showed him a photo of "Shweaty Balls" ice cream and then asked him what kind of ice cream he would be.

A:  He'd throw in a bunch of things that don't mix.  Popcorn, Sour Patch Kids, Warheads.  He hates chocolate ice cream, although he "likes other things that are chocolate."  This got a laugh from the audience.

Q:  The fans then tells him what she thinks he would be.  Peanut butter so you can take it out of the jar and lick it.  White chocolate.  Nuts because he's crazy.  And mint chocolate chip (which he says is actually one of his favorite ice creams).  

So I found out that one thing Nick and I have in common....we both hate chocolate ice cream!

Me, Amanda, Susan, and Samantha (bottom going clockwise)
waiting for our photo op with Nick

Next, it was time for our VIP photos!  I had been thinking about what I wanted my pose to be since I bought the VIP.  This was going to be my first solo photo with Nick.  I kind of wanted to do something fun but then I decided to go with the standard "Huggie Pose."  I figured that maybe eventually I can get  one of these poses with every single Backstreet Boy.  I already have several with Brian so why not get one with Nick?  I walked up to him and he said, "Hey Kentucky."  I just happened to be wearing my Kentucky Anthony Davis jersey.  UK was playing that night and Davis is from Chicago.  I thought that I wanted to dress warm and comfortable since I didn't know if we would be standing outside and I knew we would be standing for several hours during the show.  I gave Nick a hug and he gave a nice tight hug back.  I asked him for a hug in my photo and he said "of course."  After the photo he kind of held onto my hand for awhile and then thanked me for coming.  I have to say that is the nicest that I think I have ever seen Nick.  When I would see him on the cruises he would just seem to be a bit rude and not interact with the fans much.  And I think when I have met him at the group VIPs, I am always so focused on getting to Brian that I don't notice him.  But he was amazingly sincere during this meet and greet and I have a whole new respect for him after this show.

Me and Nick Carter - VIP

After all the photos were done, we got ushered back down to the lobby while they set up the stage for the actual show.  Luckily, we did not have to go outside and VIPs were put ahead of everyone else.  After waiting for some time, they let us back upstairs into the venue, where I was able to get about 5th/6th row back.  Susan, Amanda, and Samantha decided that they were going to try to get a table to sit at so that they did not have to stand.  This made it perfect so that I did not have to hold my sweatshirt and coat while the concert was going on.  I stood next to a few nice girls, one of which happened to have sung with the Boys (10,000 Promises) during karaoke in 2010 on the cruise.  She had flown in from Las Vegas to visit some of her friends and see Nick.  

The concert started with an opening act named Gwenevere.  She wasn't horrible but her songs were a bit angry and I could have done without all of the flipping off she did.  I've seen worse but sometimes I don't get the idea behind some of the opening acts that the Boys have had.  

It was finally time for Nick to come on!  I had done a good job of not looking at the set list before the show, because I like to be surprised.  It made recording videos a little harder but I managed.  Nick slowly walked out in his space suit and opened with "I'm Taking Off,"  which happens to be my second favorite song on his new album.  

"I'm Taking Off"

He then went right into "Blow Your Mind," from his debut solo album.  One of the things that I very much liked about Nick's show was that he did several medley's with other artists songs.  The third song he performed was a medley of "Not The Other Guy" and The Killers "Somebody Told Me."  These medleys made the show interesting and showed how music influences other's music.  Another of Nick's songs from his first album, "I Got You" followed the medley.  Next, Nick pulled up a lucky fan to sing the beginning of "Special."  She seemed so nervous at first and had the same reactions I probably would have had.  She did seem to loosen up as the song went on though.  As always, I was super jealous it wasn't me but happy for her.

"Special"

"Nothing Left To Lose" was next on the setlist....and then it got really good.  Even though this was just Nick touring as himself, you can't have a Backstreet Boy give a concert without singing Backstreet Boys!  "Incomplete" was Nick's first Backstreet song of choice in his setlist.  This song was amazing as always, but I do prefer it with the voices of the other Boys.

"Incomplete"

The first song that Nick wrote for I'm Taking Off was a song called "The Great Divide."  This song was next in line and put into a medley with "With Or Without You" by U2.  Again, it was great combination.  Not only did Nick sing his own songs put with songs from other artists, but he also rearranged some of his own songs.  His ballad "Do I Have To Cry For You" was given a new twist.

"Do I Have To Cry For You"

"So Far Away" was next, followed by another Backstreet Boys classic, "Larger Than Life."  This got the audience pumped and the entire floor was shaking, hence the not so great camera work.  This song was also mixed with another song and done as a medley.  Nick's mix choice:  "Fresh" by Kool and the Gang.

"Larger Than Life"

"Just One Kiss," Nick's first single from his second album was performed next.  However, it was the song that followed this that I was looking forward to seeing performed.  During his NY show, it was "Falling Down" in which he broke down and had to leave the stage.  I knew that by our show he would be stronger and be able to perform the song, but I knew it would still be emotional.  Nick came out with just his guitar, dedicated the song to "all the loved ones we've lost," and sang a beautiful acoustic version of "Falling Down."  Fans had discussed bringing glow sticks to hold up during the song in honor of Leslie and many of them did have one.  I knew I was going to be too busy recording to also hold something up in the air.

"Falling Down"

Nick revealed after this song that he was supposed to go off the stage but forgot.  So he just stayed out and continued playing and said he was going to add a song.  I'm not sure if this was the case or if the song has always been in the set list and he was just saying that.  All of the set lists that I have looked at online do not include this song.  And while this was one of his soundcheck songs, "Free Falling" is a great song and I loved hearing it again.

"Free Falling"

And what is a concert with a Backstreet Boy without "I Want It That Way?"  Not a very good one in my opinion since the song is so well known.  Yes, I know people get sick of it...I don't!

"I Want It That Way"

It was finally time to end the night with Nick's best song.  The high energy that "Burning Up" feeds into the room is amazing.  The entire floor was shaking as girls jumped up and down and danced.  Nick showed us some of his moves, which many fans compare to a muppet.  At one point, Nick pours water over his head and shakes it, spraying water all over the place, including right on me.  It was such a perfect ending to a great show.

"Burning Up"

On my way back to Michigan City, I seriously contemplated just making the five hour trip to Columbus, OH for the next and final stop of his tour.  However, I didn't know if tickets were available and knew that the show just would not be the same without a VIP.  So I got off on my Michigan City exit instead of continuing.  I blasted my I'm Taking Off CD and sang at the top of my lungs the whole way home.

The road trip itself was pretty uneventful compared to some of the road trips I have had to see the Boys but the concert was amazing.  If he does another leg of the tour, you can count me in on going to at least one of those shows.