David Crowder*Band at House of Blues

There's nothing like a great show to remind you how much you love a band.
David Crowder*Band at the House of Blues Chicago did that for me Thursday night.

My brother invited me about a month ago to attend the show with a couple other guys from church. We ended up having dinner at the House of Blues which was decent. The cool thing is that if you have dinner there, they put you to the front of the line for the show. We ended up being three rows deep, dead center - great spot. I know bands often get the crowd jumping, but Crowder's music is perfect for making an entire crowd jump around in unison. Literally the floor was flexing at least an inch. We were double-jumping on a wooden floor like it was a trampoline!!

Crowder brought out the key-tar and then the guitar from a new video game, Guitar Hero. Fully plugged in, it was a unique sound and a lot of fun.

I felt a little bad for the bartenders. We got a round of drinks and were like the only people at the bar. The venue was at capacity - some 1,300 people!! Great showing, but I guess we were the only 4 Christians who felt comfortable buying a beer.

We were supposed to have Meet and Greet tickets, but our names never made it on the list. So Chad was trying to talk to a security lady, but she was pretty cold (can't blame her). Well, as we were ready to walk out, she abandoned her post and we paused at the door. As the other three in our party stood around, I walked through. I made it to the end of the hallway and turned around and no one had followed. I decided to explore the back hallways of the House of Blues.

I went two flights and ended up in the kitchen. I decided then to go up a level. I found a door that said "stage", so I went in. I was back in a control room with no one in it. I peaked around a corner and was literally on stage, but I heard guys talking so I made my way out.

I was back to the stairwell, and I figured everything was up. There were like 6 levels, and I went to what I think was the top. Through the door, I found a room where the band eats - food and drinks of all kinds spread out. There was a table with a MacBook Pro on it - must be a trusting atmosphere. Then I heard a bunch of talking behind a door, and I knew that was the Meet and Greet.

Sure enough, I came in and jumped right into a crowd of people meeting David Crowder and the band. I introduced myself and got a quick video with him b/c I knew none of the guys would believe me. Actually, I knew they'd believe me - I just wanted video proof. It was quite an adventure to sneak around the back hallways of the House of Blues into all the rooms so few people get to see. And then to make it to the desired "event" was really fun. I tried calling my brother, but no answer.

I went downstairs and out of the music hall - big mistake. They don't let you back in after that, and soon my brother called and said they waited for someone's All Access pass as they were coming out - they were in the Meet and Greet. I told him I was already there, and assured him they should stay and hang out.

My journey to the Meet and Greet was way better than theirs, but I'm glad we all got to meet Crowder.