The Lady Doth Protest Too Much

I've just had an unbelievable experience.

If you read my posts on the Hairball John website, you probably know that I recently penned "An to Open Letter to Ticketmaster."

The angry letter was in response to my bad experience purchasing Def Leppard tickets to their Cincinnati show on July 27.  I logged on at 1o a.m. and ended up with really bad seats at the back of the pavilion. I went ahead and purchased the seats - $150 for the pair - and seethed all afternoon.

For whatever reason, I was clicking around www.ticketmaster.com today and decided to see if the seats for Def Leppard were sold out.

Um, no.

In fact,  I scored seats in the first 10 rows!

Angry, I grabbed my phone and dialed up the money mongers that run Ticketmaster. I demanded a ticket exchange. For the first ten minutes of the conversation a woman with a southern accent argued with me, saying all sales are final.

I kept protesting and she put me on hold. When she so kindly resumed our conversation, she said I could trade my tickets but I had to pay for the convenience fee again!

This really made me mad.

I argued for ten more minutes, but she wasn't budging on this one. I gave up and repaid for the over-priced ticket fee. Now, I'll be seeing Def Leppard in the 8th row at Riverbend in the Queen City.

It only cost me $175.

Experiences like this ruin rock music - all music - for your average fan. I can't afford many concerts at $175 for two people.

I would imagine that there are many people that can't afford one concert at these sky high prices.

It's one thing for DL to put a $71 value on their tickets. It's another for Ticketmaster to add $30 to every order just hit the print button on a computer.

For many people, $30 is a week's worth of groceries. Or a tank of gas. Or a babysitter.

If die-hard music fans can't afford to support live music, then who will? The music industry as a whole is crumbling on itself as album sales slump and kids turn to iTunes to buy one or two songs of the latest release by their favorite band.

Concerts costs have sky-rocketed, and commercial radio plays the same, manufactured bubble-gum garbage at every turn. New bands are dropped by their labels before even amassing a loyal fan following.

Something needs to be done, and quick.

Oh, and I'm conducting an non-scientific experiment. Poison/RATT/Vains of Jenna are coming to Cincinnati on Tuesday. I'm going to the show, but I haven't bought tickets yet. I want to see how close I can get on concert day.

Me thinks I have a good chance at being within the first ten rows.

Toast of the Town

First, let me say Happy Father's Day to all the glam rock dads out there!

"Mirror, Mirror on the wall...who is the glammest of them all?"

So, en route home from Cleveland, Eric and I stopped at one of those tacky outlet malls. I was in search of a new computer bag, but what I found is perhaps the glammest clothing item of all time.

Yes, I wandered in to a Wilson's Leather, lured by the promise of a giant store wide sale.

The glam mistress loves clearance racks. I don't believe in paying full price for much of anything, and when I found a long section of leather jackets for dirt cheap, I pounced.

On the end of one of the racks was a cropped, white leather jacket with studs. I grabbed the jacket and it fit!

Then, Eric pointed out there was a giant Guns n' Roses logo on the back. This in addition to the studs, a small rose on the front, and full animal print lining.

My heart stopped a little.

It is, perhaps, the best jacket ever created. It was like the designer made it for me and placed it near Cleveland in the off-chance I would stop in for a visit.

Here's the best part: The jacket had an original price of $375. I paid $30.

I do love a great deal.

Watch this video: Guns n' Roses "You Could Be Mine"

Rock of Love

Unless you've been living under a rock, you probably know that Poison front man Bret Michaels has a reality show coming up. Rock of Love premieres July 15 on VH1. The music network has just released a video montage of Bret to one of his more recent solo tunes "Go That Far." The song is available for download on iTunes and will serve as the official Rock of Love theme.
Ladies, enjoy this eye-candy. Bret Michaels "Go That Far."

VH1.com Blog

Birthplace of Rock?

Some of you might know that I was slated to interview Doro backstage before her show Thursday night in Cleveland.

Sadly, I had to cancel that interview because my husband had a significant medical emergency.

Still, we had prepaid for a hotel the entire weekend, and I wanted to get some use out of the overpriced room so we packed up and headed north.

In fact, I'm writing today's entry on my laptop from my hotel  room.

We didn't do much while in Cleveland except visit the Rock n' Roll Hall of Fame. I've been there once before, but that was nine years ago. Eric has never been to the Hall, so I think his expectations were a little high.

For those of you that don't know, the Rock Hall is like any other museum in that it features special exhibits from time to time. During our visit, The Clash and The Doors were highlighted. These special installations were interesting, as I like both bands.

Most exhibits in the Hall are in the bottom floor. As we toured around, I kept my eyes peeled for a little 80s glam.

Remember, Van Halen was recently inducted into the Hall, and I was expecting to see at least one Eddie Van Halen guitar.

Nope.

Zilch.

Zero.

Nada.

There was nothing from Motley Crue, Poison, Quiet Riot...or Van Halen. Perhaps I can understand the first three, but there's no excuse for the lack of Van Halen material.

The Hall features "decades," with important bits locked behind glass. You get the 50s, 60s, 70s...and 90s.

They skipped the 80s!

To say that nothing of musical importance happened in the 80s is absurd. To be fair, there is a tiny Michael Jackson display, showing off the famous rhinestone glove and red leather jacket from the "Thriller" video.

As I wandered the dark museum, I grew increasingly angst-ridden over the entire situation.

During my first visit the Hall was still in its infancy, and the only thing I remember was a giant Aerosmith display. That display no longer exists. Instead, there are three Aerosmith stage costumes and a Joe Perry guitar and Tom Hamilton bass on display.

I can see that at just about any Hard Rock Cafe.

I suppose all is not lost. I had media tickets so I didn't have to pay admission and in the gift shop I found a very gaudy shirt on clearance.

Oh, and there is a special exhibit on the Warped Tour, featuring important artifacts on such legendry bands as My Chemical Romance and Flogging Molly. I had fun mocking those bands as the teeny boppers looked on in awe, and made comments like "Gerad Way is the best songwriter...ever!"

I liked muttering things back like, "Oh yes, he's so much better than Lennon."

The 16 year olds looked confused.  I guess I did my job.

That Dog Can Hunt

Ok, it's time for more Rocklahoma rumors because they are swirling around the Internet like a swarm of flies at a picnic.

I might as well help stir the pot.

Last night I received an email from Lee Pistolero, lead singer of Gypsy Pistoleros. He was talking about the extra night of Rocklahoma and how his band and Tigertailz will be performing.

He also said Nikki Sixx is rumored to perform that night.

When I read that, I was ready to kick something. As I said before, my travel plans are set and moving things around is going to be like an act of a Republican-controlled Congress.

Sixx, along with members of L.A. Guns, (perhaps BOTH versions of that band!), Bang Tango, Chip Z'nuff and others will possibly participate in an 80s jam.

I say "possibly" because the line-up in is in question at this point, but I'm trying to get details confirmed.

In other news W.A.S.P. is in the process of canceling nearly every date of their planned summer tour. Right now, it's not clear if Rocklahoma is one of those dates, but my assumption would be that Blackie and company will still play their Sunday night set at the glam fest.

The glam mistress is on the case and I'll try to get some answers soon, dear readers!

Update on Friday, June 15, 2007 at 11:02PM by Allyson B. Crawford

A late delay in the updates, dear readers.

I'm out of town and haven't been around the computer. Still, I called Catch the Fever Music Festivals out in Oklahoma and inquired about the extra night. The receptionist told me that that the line-up was simply "tribute bands."

When I asked about Gypsy Pistoleros and Tigertailz, the same receptionist confirmed this appearance but said no other "celebrities" were expected for the extra night. This only half-satisfies my suspicions, so I'll be calling agents on Monday when I get back to my desk.

KISS Army Rocks!

So, more now on that extra night of Rocklahoma.

In addition to Gypsy Pistoleros and Tigertailz, a lot of tribute bands are said to be on the Thursday night roster. One of those bands is KISS Army.

The band has been together for over a decade. Press materials say: "Building the perfect beast, this group of highly trained professionals have become nothing short of a tribute phenomenon climbing the heights of "Beatlemania" as they continue to conquer the worlds finest theme parks, casinos, fairs, festivals, House of Blues to Hard Rock Cafes and only the absolute best nightclubs across the country... After countless trial and error and well over 3,500 shows it is no wonder this group has received rave reviews from not only vintage Kiss fanatics the world over,  but also Gene Simmons, Paul Stanley and Peter Criss."

Visit www.kissarmyrules.com for more information.  

But Wait, There's More!

BREAKING ROCKLAHOMA NEWS!

Well, the excitement and reach of Rocklahoma is (presumably) growing by leaps and bounds. So much so, that the organizers have added an EXTRA night to the festival.

Yep, the glam now starts Thursday, July 12. So far, British rockers Tigertailz and the Gypsy Pistoleros are confirmed for the main stage. Other bands to be announced.

This is a bittersweet announcement. For many rockers - myself included - travel plans are already locked in  place. I guess this means a lot of us won't be seeing the extra night of debauchery.

Still, for others it will be a great way to kill time until the gates open Friday morning.

To celebrate, watch this video: Tigertailz "Living Without You."