People who say there’s nothing good about New
Jersey obviously have never visited Hoboken. The city touts fantastic bars,
restaurants, boutiques, a great university, athletic clubs, and everything is
topped off with a sweeping view of the New
York City skyline – that phenomenal skyline nearly
stole the show as Mumford and Sons took the stage at the first ever massive
concert on Pier A.
Everybody who is anybody in Hobotown was at the show and, despite some early sprinkles, the energy was palpable. It seemed like everyone was just
excited to be there and enjoy the tunes provided by incredible musicians in an
epic setting. Expected crowds were estimated at nearly 15,000 people.
The word on the street is that this event took some major
coordination and planning, which was very evident. The large number of barricades
and ample security upon entry told all participants the Hoboken meant business. Oh, and the ga-zillion portable bathrooms set up around the perimeter also gave the impression to all, "we have thought of everything."
We grabbed a Brooklyn Summer Ale and got in line for the grilled
cheese food truck early. The grilled cheese truck had lightbulbs on the side which
spelled out the word “EAT” and I couldn’t tell if that was the name of the
truck or simply an extremely succinct (and excellent) instruction. Ends up, it
was an instruction. It’s name was “The Morris Truck” and I went for the classic
grilled cheese (NY State Cheddar & Landaff), which was SO much better than any grilled cheese my mom or grandma ever
whipped up for me, that’s for sure! I think there might have been something
else in it… like pure butter, truffle oil, or maybe ecstasy.
All I know is it was glorious!
After grabbing our food we snagged a spot in the front section. Aaron Embry kicked off the night of music by providing the tunage for our meal. I had never heard him before, but he was excellent! He was folksy and played solo. His style completely reminded me of Ben Kweller. I know I'll be checking out more of his stuff on Spotify in the near future.
As the skies officially began to clear and the buildings in NYC started to reflect the awesome sun setting over NJ Dawes took the stage and thus began the rockfest. It seemed everyone around us burst into song, whether or not they'd heard it before, as their anthem "When Our Time Comes" flooded the pier. Their awesomeness just added to the high energy crowd.
Mumford and Sons strode onto the stage to officially begin their set as the sun went down and the Empire State Building became alight with colors celebrating the London Olympics. The scene was beyond brilliant. I've never been to such an amazing concert location - and it was all made possible by those who live and work in Hoboken. (Thank you, Madame Zimmer! You rock!)
The show was phenomenal! The lighting design and the large black and white screen just south of the stage gave the whole show a very special vibe. The guys rocked and played a fantastic show. It was so amazing to be a part of such a big event with so many other music enthusiasts and Hoboken peeps. For the most part, everyone in attendance seemed to be really chill and were just out to enjoy the music. However, at the end of the show we did have a run in with a belligerently drunk and aggressive couple, which was odd considering the strict beer policy of only one beer at a time per person, but there were enough sober people around that these two were out of place and my friend and I never felt threatened.
As the boys finished up and said their goodbyes the crowd begged for one more, and one more we received. A rousing version of "The Cave" was our reward for a night well spent in Hoboken and then, to top everything off, fireworks erupted from a barge across the river as the crowd "oooo-ed" and "ahhh-ed." The only way to describe the night was, perfection.
The biggest (and only) botch of the concert was the exit strategy. To enter, we had to go through a long line of barricades, which made sense. However, to leave I had expected the majority of barricades to have been removed. They were not and there were minimal event staff present. People trying to leave had no idea where they were going or how to get out and started to panic. There really needed to be more event staff throughout the exit with flashlights instructing people how to get out. It was the only major miss of the evening.
Major kudos to Hoboken and a special thanks for holding the 500 tickets for Hoboken residents. I hope this is the first of many events like this to come!
After grabbing our food we snagged a spot in the front section. Aaron Embry kicked off the night of music by providing the tunage for our meal. I had never heard him before, but he was excellent! He was folksy and played solo. His style completely reminded me of Ben Kweller. I know I'll be checking out more of his stuff on Spotify in the near future.
As the skies officially began to clear and the buildings in NYC started to reflect the awesome sun setting over NJ Dawes took the stage and thus began the rockfest. It seemed everyone around us burst into song, whether or not they'd heard it before, as their anthem "When Our Time Comes" flooded the pier. Their awesomeness just added to the high energy crowd.
Mumford and Sons strode onto the stage to officially begin their set as the sun went down and the Empire State Building became alight with colors celebrating the London Olympics. The scene was beyond brilliant. I've never been to such an amazing concert location - and it was all made possible by those who live and work in Hoboken. (Thank you, Madame Zimmer! You rock!)
The show was phenomenal! The lighting design and the large black and white screen just south of the stage gave the whole show a very special vibe. The guys rocked and played a fantastic show. It was so amazing to be a part of such a big event with so many other music enthusiasts and Hoboken peeps. For the most part, everyone in attendance seemed to be really chill and were just out to enjoy the music. However, at the end of the show we did have a run in with a belligerently drunk and aggressive couple, which was odd considering the strict beer policy of only one beer at a time per person, but there were enough sober people around that these two were out of place and my friend and I never felt threatened.
As the boys finished up and said their goodbyes the crowd begged for one more, and one more we received. A rousing version of "The Cave" was our reward for a night well spent in Hoboken and then, to top everything off, fireworks erupted from a barge across the river as the crowd "oooo-ed" and "ahhh-ed." The only way to describe the night was, perfection.
The biggest (and only) botch of the concert was the exit strategy. To enter, we had to go through a long line of barricades, which made sense. However, to leave I had expected the majority of barricades to have been removed. They were not and there were minimal event staff present. People trying to leave had no idea where they were going or how to get out and started to panic. There really needed to be more event staff throughout the exit with flashlights instructing people how to get out. It was the only major miss of the evening.
Major kudos to Hoboken and a special thanks for holding the 500 tickets for Hoboken residents. I hope this is the first of many events like this to come!
The crowd gathered for the show
Mumford takes the stage
Fireworks finale
