Tim and Eric Awesome Tour Chicago 2009, Great job!
Insane absurdist skit comedians Tim and Eric as well as many of their friends performed to a sold out crowd in Chicago recently and, lucky me, I was able to take photos of it.
First, a little bit of explanation to those who have no idea who the guys are, they're the creators of possibly the most insane show on television today. The show is filled with jabs at bad public broadcasting, karaoke hits, guest stars out the ears, and just about anything that'd make someone unacquainted to the show confused and possibly uncomfortable. I'll put it this way: a small, animated. screaming baby with an overly hairy face named "Chippy" is a common occurrence in between skits on the program. It's that weird.
The question is, does the show translate well to the stage? The answer - yes. Freaking absolutely.
The night started as any show night does. Waiting in line. It was cold. By cold I mean mind numbingly cold. The kind of cold that saps every bit of feeling from your extremities. Completely ignorant of that fact, hundreds were already lined up for the sold-out show over an hour before the doors were even planned to open. Finally, after a long wait, the queue was checked for camera equipment and let through to wait in front of the stage, enjoying some ambient Tim and Eric music in the meantime.
After a short wait, DJ Douggpound, a friend of Tim and Eric as well as the guy responsible for the theme song for the show as well as a lot of music featured in the show, came out on stage and worked the crowd.
Dj Douggpound works the crowd.
The main event began. A melodic techno-tune fills the air involving the word "diarrhea", and finally, Tim and Eric burst onto stage in their patented skin-tight costumes. Yellow this time around. The place went wild.
Tim and Eric dance for the crowd
Following the introduction, the show exploded into a menagerie of skits and video interludes reminiscent of the television program that we had all come to love. It included throwbacks to Awesome Show as well as completely original material that hadn't been seen before (for instance, Tim and Eric tried to sell the audience a hot tub in an effort to give us the special "Tim and Eric TOUCH"). Guest appearances were abound.
James Quall - Dun dun dun dun dun dun.
The puppet is looking at me....
Sire Sings "Sexual Romance"
Also, a surprise visit from John C. Reilly as the much-loved character Dr. Steve Brule. Unfortunately, I don't have the permission to post the photos that I took of him, so maybe another time.
To finish up, I'm going to dump a large bunch of the rest of my photos. I'm no writer, so I can't really say much more past the fact that the show was excellent and I recommend it to literally everyone who is a fan of the duo go see it. Even if you're not a fan and want to experience something like nothing you've experienced before, go see it.
Beaver Boys
Beaver Boy Eric
Spaghett Sings!
Spaghett tosses petals to the crowd
David Liebe Hart gets into it
Eric in all of his Magnificence
Tim and Eric Ta Ta Ta Touch
Eric Explosion!
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Obama’s Chicago Election Night Rally
Here comes a big set. It was an absolutely electric night. People of all types, of course, but the mood was euphoric.
Keep in mind the lighting while viewing these photos. I had the ISO cranked up to 3200 or 6400 and the temperature of the light changed so often I'd have a batch of blue photos followed by a batch of yellow photos. Either way, I'm happy with the results. Most of my photos were taken with my 50mm 1.8 prime lens, the rest were with an 18-50 and 70-200 2.8 if you're interested in technical details.
Almost immediately after getting off of the train, we were bombarded by various people selling all sorts of Obama merchandise. From shirts, to mugs, to hats, to posters, to freaking paper fans. No idea who would be interested in a paper fan in 50 degree F weather, but whatever. This particular guy was standing on a street corner selling Obama/Biden posters.
As we got closer to the fairgrounds, signs started popping up.
We were corralled into lines - sent through various checkpoints along the way to make the wait seem less. It was surprisingly streamline considering that every person entering the event was forced to open all bags and remove all metal objects before making their way through an array of metal detectors.
We made our way in, finally. It seemed almost staged. The entrance was on a raised area of the field overlooking the whole place. A sea of people stood before us, flags waving in the distance and hands raised. It was ridiculous.
The media was there, of course. This woman is apparently from CBS. The price of media passes were insane ($900+ per pass), so unfortunately only the bigwigs had access to the cordoned off areas.
Suddenly, an incredibly early win was announced. The crowd erupted in celebration. It was deafening. I actually forgot to start taking photos I was so swept up in it. Finally, I got my act together.
People were taking photos like mad, of course.
I moved over to the other side of the fence (the non-ticketed area) people were just as excited over there ,but this kid just looked tired.
The crowds were crazy on the way out, but oddly controlled. We all walked happily out there with literally no problems. People were happy, shouting Obama, dancing, playing music, waving flags. All down usually packed-with-cars Chicago streets.
More at my Flickr page: Obama Set at Flickr