Matthew Chmiel

I have never been to a big concert in years. If you you want to get technical, I have never been to a real big concert ever. When I was a kid, my mom took me to see Sherri, Lois, and Bram and that man who song "Welcome to Toontown, where you can do anything..." along with "You gotta get a haircut..." back in the early '90s; but that's been about it. I've been to a few local shows, but that's been it.

Today I went to Ticketmaster at a local supermarket and bought the following ticket...



The other day, I heard Spymob would be playing with N.E.R.D. and Black Eyed Peas at their concert at The Joint (and it's also listed on their official website). Now since I'm a really big fan of Spymob (currently one of the most underrated bands in the music industry), I knew I had to go. I have no idea if they're doing their own set and/or are just being N.E.R.D.'s back-up band, but they will be there and so will I.

I own N.E.R.D.'s first CD (and will be buying their second) and I have liked most of their stuff so far. I'm not a fan of the Black Eyed Peas, but my friend who is coming with me is.

Now I have a few questions:

Since it's standing only, what time should I get there to be able to get a decent view of the stage? The concert is at 8pm and doors open at 7pm, so what is a reasonable time? Remember, this is coming from the guy who got to the theater at 7:30pm for a 10:00pm showing of Matrix Reloaded on May 14th, 2003.

Why does Ticketmaster rip you off so much? Seriously, my ticket which was $30 ended up costing me $40. Seriously, and online is even worse!

That's about it.

Rypro 525

even though its standing room, it looks like there is indeed a "seat", so i guess you get to stand where ever your seat is. this isn't festival seating. (thats where you buy your ticket, and sit/stand where ever you want to)

MJKTool

Not necessarily. I've gone to many concerts where the ticket said Floor and had a seat number, but infact were never any seats.

As for getting a good spot on the floor.....wiggle your way up

Matthew Chmiel

Yeah. Most concerts that have been held at The Joint that I'm aware of (due to of friends and family I know who have gone), have been standing room only. There have been a few that have had seats, but not many.

fallow

Oddly enough, the last "big" (as in festival or stadium) concert I went to had N.E.R.D. on the bill as well. Depending on the size of the venue, you might want to get there anywhere from an hour or three before the opening act. Like MJKTool said, though, you can just wiggle through if you aren't concerned about dirty looks. I doubt you'll actually be able to get in the very front though. 3 rows forward and people start getting nasty (and rightfully so).

whynotsmile

its floor.

no seating. 99.9 percent srue of that. you gotta be careful. i dont know of the venue you are going to, but i know a lot of places that have different floor section. THe wiltern in Los Angeles for example. 2 sections of GA, but only early people get to go in the very front. If I were you, i would get there around 6:45.

I got there around 6:30 for an 8pm sold out travis sold at the wiltern, and not only did we get the space in the front, there was hardly anyone infront of us.

deadlax

it's general admission. it says so on the ticket. See GA3. It ain't a phish show, so you don't have to be there till 30 mins before doors open. Just bumrush the mob, and run like hell.

Gdrlv

I've been to the Joint several times for shows and have never really showed up before the doors opened. It's basically just a big long room with a few (slightly) tiered sections. Show up right when the doors open, and you should definitely get a good spot.

BTW, I've never seen seats on the floor of the Joint for any show I've seen there.

Matthew Chmiel

For the David Bowie show recently and the Eagles show (when The Joint first opened), there were seats placed in there (supposedly, there are seats for more of the higher-end shows too like Rod Stewart). Most other shows don't have seats.

ChiTownAbs, Inc

It's their convenience fees. Everything from printing the ticket, phone reps, etc etc is in there.

It's a rip, but your other option is to not go to the show.

Gdrlv

Your other option would be...go to the Joint to get your ticket. I've found that casino shows have even higher service charges than regular shows because there's a "casino entertainment tax." You can avoid Ticketmaster's service charges by going to the Joint box office. I haven't bought a ticket from Ticketmaster for a casino show for years.

Josh H

Yep, every concert I've been to that had "pit" sections on the floor gave you a seat number even though there are no chairs.

I think it's to meet the fire marshall standards. They can only sell as many tickets as they have seats, and the number of seats allowed is determined by the fire marshall. Thus they just sell these shows like they were selling seats and they're sure to not sell to many.

Or it could just be to save them from having to modify the ticketing system.

ike0000

There's a reason they are called Ticketbastard.