I remember late October last year eagerly anticipating the release of 'RED', Taylor Swift's 4th studio album. I was already on study break for a few weeks leading up to university exams & contemplated whether or not I should get the record when I had a ridiculous amount of work to catch up on & had study coming out of my ears. Music however is a passion & weakness of mine I don't always have the self discipline for to put off for a certain amount of time, especially when its eccentric, good, timeless music. I knew if I went out & got it that the 16 track record would take up a lot more of my time than I would want to think in a day. When I fall in love with an artist or bands music I willingly want to go out & purchase a physical copy of it. This act although rare was no different with Miss Swift.
Having admired her lyrical technique, relatable storytelling, calming honesty in her words & catchy melodies since starting my degree almost 5 years ago , this was a moment where my appreciation for her was about to reach a whole new level. After putting off purchasing the record for a few days which lead up to a week I rushed to the closest electronics store from campus, snatched it off the shelf & walked out with RED feeling guilty but excited to finally have it in my possession.
This record is undoubtedly her best.
It was on repeat during study, during breaks, before bed, basically all the time. Weird. Only because I don't own a record by anyone I listen to as many consecutive times in a day as I did with RED. The perfect balance of fun & catchy pop tracks along with soft & slow melodies which painted a perfect picture of the contexts Taylor finds herself in & the emotions she makes every girl relate to whether it be on all 16 tracks or just 1.
My obsession with the record at such a stressful time helped me get through the worst exam period I've had to deal with since i started studying. I fell in love with this girls mind yet again & the way in which she expressed her thoughts & feelings. Although to some an 'annoying' concept to get their heads around by looking past who the songs may be about & leaving them open to interpretation allows anyone to appreciate her music like it should be.
I told myself that no matter what I was going to go to see this tour when it came to Auckland
(hoping she would come back as I had missed the 'Speak Now' tour in Auckland earlier in the year & really regretting it).
After waiting a year, this anticipated weekend FINALLY came around & I couldn't be more excited.
.THE RED TOUR 2013: Vector Arena, Auckland, NZ .
. Saturday 30th November. Sunday 1st December . 2013.
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| Soaking up some NZ summer sunshine on Waiheke Island. She posted this photo on her Facebook page along with a few gorgeous shots of her taking to scenic sights on the sea & coastline. I wish i had thought about where I was this day more carefully lol. Imagine seeing her out & about! |
I'm not usually a huge sporting concert merch in a creative way kind of concert goer (I think it has something to do with being inconveniently poor by the time any special event comes along & turning into a cant be bothered grandma who usually gets seats & chills the whole time) but I made sure I made some form of effort to go see girlfriend in concert sporting whatever I could find. I ended up wearing a bright red top, one of her favourite red lipsticks (Covergirl's Hot Passion) & her new 'Taylor fragrance. I remember walking past all the kids & seeing one girl dressed in the full blue band geek attire seen on Taylor in the 'You Belong With Me' music video and thinking how amazing she looked in line at Taylor's last tour & this time there were multiple groups of girls with fairy lights draped all around them with awesome accessories. Lets not lie I was kinda jealous & wondered why I didn't put my creative brain to use earlier designing something bold & interesting to wear. Next time I'm bringing my A-game. Watch out kids.
The first night I went was the Saturday show with a couple of high school girlfriends & one of their boyfriends. This was a super social night filled with french fries, hot dogs, stitches, awkward adult moments surrounded by munchkins & of course pre-show antics courtesy of my friend Claire's boyfriend who thought directing people to seats he had no clue about with his glow sticks & Taylor Swift t-shirt was a good way to pass time. I think I laughed like a hyena more times than the little girl next to me could handle (sorry little girl, this was hilarious).
You can view a snippet of his free concert venue services & more from the show on my Instagram account :)
So the show eventually kicked off with Neon Trees opening (this I loved) & frontman Tyler had new blonde hair, smooth dance moves, a glowing microphone stand & LORD them GOLD SHOES! I don't know if he wears them on tour every night but they were AWESOME! he even did a semi moon walk/ballet tip-toe walk in them up and down the runway. Ive wanted to see Neon Trees perform for a loooong time. Wish they stayed on a little longer because 'Picture Show' is a SICK record. Their set consisted of about 5-6 songs and you bet your behind I was singing along to '1983', 'Animal' & 'Everybody Talks'. I also didn't refrain from yelling out 'Tyler your a beast' a couple of times. Sorry children. I lost all senses that night & was clearly somewhere else. Not drunk. Definetly not high. Still sensible.
During the break between their set & Taylor's there were more antics & fooling around until the lights went out & as usual my ears were only just tolerating a crowd of 14,000's piercing teenybopper screams. *EARDRUMROLL PLEASE* I swear I was acting like a deranged 12 year old super fan girl the entire time & the little girl next to me did not stop looking astonished at my rather 'excited' behaviour all night... even though she had the biggest ball of blue cotton candy I think I've ever seen.
Thought: If you don't eat that cotton candy little girl I WILL.
Screaming screaming ... More screaming.
The words 'RED' began to flash & we heard an extended intro to the opening track of RED, 'State of Grace'. The bright red curtain then presents a silhouette of Taylor who kicks of the show straight away.
Along with her 11 piece band, on this tour she plays the electric guitar, acoustic guitar, piano & banjo, if that doesn't impress you try not knowing where on earth to look during a 90 minute circus themed show where drum playing hanging & flipping acrobats, a giant music box popping circus acts out, men on stilts, key operated human ballerinas, a lifting runway, lifting platforms, a 180 degree rotating balcony, giant waving red flags, sparkly instruments, heart shaped confetti, 2 stages at each end of the arena along with dance routines & a carried, hi-5-ing Taylor Swift circling around the floor crowd makes this show undoubtedly the most entertaining, well thought out, considerate & put together concert I have EVER been to. Sorry Gaga, Sorry Coldplay. Sorry Beyoncé, Sorry Miss Perry. I now have a top 5 list of tours checked off my bucket list.
And yes of course, I sang all the lyrics to every single song & gapped like a fish the entire time.
I LOVE this girl.
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| Taken on my iPhone of Taylor saying her goodbyes wrapping up 'We Are Never Getting Back Together' as she pans around the arena in 180 degrees & closes the show on a rotating balcony extending from the runway. |
The next day I was still blown away at what I had just seen I didn't want it to end to be honest. I was so amazed I wanted to see if I could get another ticket for that nights show. Upon checking I was in a dilemma & found out the whole show was seated so I went for gold tried my luck & managed to book the only remaining floor seat. Having been to countless gigs & tours, I have NEVER purchased tickets to the same show twice before! It was going to be another night but of loner fun & I was completely alright with that. When I arrived and got to my seat I seriously hit the jackpot with deciding to pay another $155 & come again because I was seated 4 rows from the front being the end of the runway where she performed consistently throughout the night. I had the BEST view, was starstruck the entire time, fan girled at Mama Swift bringing VIP picks out into the front row & promised myself that next time, the next tour I would make a kick ass effort with the get up to hopefully catch her attention & be one of those lucky picks. I did it all over again this night & Taylor did it all over again.
Flawless, entertaining, exciting, emotional.
INCREDIBLE Production. AMAZING Theatrics.
One of the most iconic & touching nights of my life.
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| More photos from Taylor's Facebook page on her day off the following day on Waiheke Island before flying off to the land of Koalas & Kangaroos. Come back soon girl! I'll be waiting! <3 |
