This was a show I had been looking forward to for a LONG time. I can’t remember when I was first shown Awolnation’s music (maybe a year ago already?), but his first full length CD is by far my favorite release this year. I have been obsessed with that album, and with him not being a big name yet, a Canadian tour wasn’t looking promising. I checked the Facebook page constantly for concert updates, and I finally I saw that he was coming to Alberta. However, it was in Edmonton… so what did I do? Buy tickets the moment they came out, and drive the 6+ hours to see him, of course!

The show ended up selling out a month before because he’s really blown up lately, so I’m very thankful I plan everything far in advance. He performed with his band at the Starlite Room, and holy crap, they were fantastic – he needs to keep them on as his regular band because they are so tight together. Not knowing the venue, I didn’t want to take any expensive gear so I went equipped with only my old Rebel XT and my 50mm lens. It was a challenge, especially since most of his lighting was that gross purple-red that destroys skin tones and any facial contrast, and we were packed in so tightly, but I managed to dodge all the arms flying up around me to get some shots. The only issue is that sometimes we were too close and I couldn’t fit him in the frame… but I’m not complaining, being in the front is the best :)

San Sebastian from Hamilton, Ontario opened the show with tons of energy.

And then Awol!

I’ve been at shows were I danced so hard I wanted to puke from the heat, but this one was even hotter. There was no dry face in the entire building. I love seeing his hair get progressively more wet through the photos.

TNT

Wednesday at DrupalCon was another full day of learning, and I attended extremely diverse classes from styling maps to talking about internet marketing. I had a few “ah ha!” moments, which are always a treat at these events.

Okay, that’s it for the actual DrupalCon photos in this post; the highlight of Wednesday was the Lullabot party in the evening! Trevor and I headed to the Underground, along with our new friend from Puerto Rico, Yazan. The night started with a “Geek to Chic” fashion show, where many of the “Drupal rockstars” donned top of the line nerd attire and strutted in front of us as we cheered on. I was almost in pain by the end from laughing so much!

Yaz and me

Me and Trevor

This was intense!

Luckily it was videotaped, and I happen to be opposite the action taking photos :)

Having webchick in crazy tall heels was probably the funniest part :)

We finally ran into Gord and Anne from NorthStudio (based in Victoria). I hadn’t seen them since DrupalCamp Alberta a few months ago, so it was great to be reunited and enjoy the dance party together!

The party finished off with Jeff Robbin’s (Lullabot) band Orbit, who were insanely good. Listen!

When I had had enough of the loud music, I followed Jacob and a few others to the karaoke party at Murasake, and was amazed by how many Druplers know how to belt out a tune.

These guys, whose names I never caught, did a number of classic karaoke duets including, “You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling” and “Don’t Stop Believing.”

It was here I met Jeff, and although he lives in Vancouver now, he used to live in Calgary and even spent time working in Brocket when he was younger. What a small world! It’s like us Canadians have homing devices built in.

Each time I go to Disneyland, I intend to blog my favorite photos but never get around to it… well, no more! This time around it was a challenge to find photos of things I have never taken there before, and with a few new Christmas elements and special touches around the park (along with some inclement weather), the task was much easier than I expected! Even though it rained quite a bit, it was nice to get away from the snow for a week and have a break :)

The Calgary Airport

Holiday candied apples

The artificial snow following the fireworks

It’s a Small World

Some odd stuffed animals for sale

A hidden Mickey in the orange tree

The cutest snowmen (and snow-women) you will ever see

The Grand Californian Hotel (which I sadly did not stay at!)

The rain puddles made for gorgeous reflections. It was still pouring at this time, so I had an umbrella over me and the camera.

No one here believes me that California gets cold in the winter, but those snow capped mountains aren’t at that high of an elevation!

Marshmallow snowman

The Haunted Mansion gets switched to the Nightmare Before Christmas for the entirety of the holiday season, so you can still experience Halloween belatedly :)

A murder of crows swarmed near the Haunted Mansion, how fitting :)

One of my favorite bands, Surburban Legends, was playing one night. I was so excited to find out that trumpet player Aaron has rejoined the band!

Another exciting gift from “Santa” was that my friend Alan had a piano shift on our last day at the park (he only fills in for other players, so we don’t always get to hear him).

That day they also had guest marching bands from the Rose Bowl Parade. This dog is naturally with the firemen.

This band trotted like horses while they played, which was super impressive.

With the release of the new Tron, Disneyland put on “ElecTRONica,” a street dance party inspired by the movie. They also recreated Flynn’s arcade, which was quite accurate (including 80s music!).

The event starts with a stage show, with 80s music and costumes, and then switches to the style of Tron Legacy, with music by Daft Punk.

Flynn’s

The infamous $80 Tron Mickey Mouse Ears

Leaving a bit of snow for a lot of snow.

Lastly, the highlight of my trip was my conversation with a talking trash can:

Grady played in Lethbridge a few weeks ago at Average Joe’s, and it was a fantastic show – it was definitely worth braving the freezing weather for it. They haven’t played in Lethbridge in quite some time, plus Gordie Johnson’s former band Big Sugar were the second band I ever saw in a bar, so I was super excited for this show since I found out about it. The performance was fantastic, and Johnson’s guitar chops never fail to blow my mind.

Local Lethbridge band Lustre Cream opened the show. You can tell it was -30C outside by their wardrobe :)

The Motorleague, from Moncton NB, were next on the bill.

And Grady!

I hadn’t heard of Maria in the Shower until catching them open for Lily Fawn at the Slice a few weeks ago, but they impressed me in a huge way and were luckily playing their own show at Slice again the week after! Their music is a fun ecclectic blend of all kinds of delightful things and fantastic for dancing to. Not only is their music amazing, but they are top notch performers, never letting their energy wane for a moment; I’m sure the pictures speak volumes of that.

Check out their MySpace page!

Yes, he plays them at the same time :)

It’s been a while since they were last here, so Lethbridge was stoked Big John Bates and the Voodoo Dollz had finally returned to the city for one of their awesome rockabilly/burlesque shows. This was their first time playing at Henotic (which is unfortunately ending operations in two weeks), and it was a fantastic venue for this show. As usual I enjoyed every moment of their performance, and wish they could have played for several more hours!

Disclaimer: Some of these photos come pretty close to being topless (but in true burlesque style, the girls are wearing pasties!), so if side-boob offends you or if you are at work you better not click through the rest ;)

Lethbridge’s own psychobilly band The Phantom Creeps opened the show, fresh back from touring!