drivetofive

Odometer (Legend):  516,965

Odometer (ILX):  19,012

Besides a luxurious Acura, the most important ingredient for any awesome road trip is good music.  As some of my blog readers have seen, I’ve been to a few shows this summer.  Last night, I saw the Deftones perform live at the Marquee Theater in Tempe, Arizona.  It was the second time I’d seen them.

My friend Raul (who also saw Metallica with me earlier this year) drove out from Studio City, California in his white 2010 Acura TSX 6-speed for the occasion.

We had to get a few “sibling” pictures before sundown.

Though it’s not an Acura, Matt’s 2012 Nissan 370Z Sport 6-speed is a worthy ride, too (he’d waste us both in a drag race!) so he joined for the group shots.

“Enough with the cars; let’s get to the concert!” they said.  On the way to the venue, Raul commented that the ILX felt just as large as his TSX inside.

Marquee accommodates around 1,000 fans and had been sold out (and even OVER-sold) long before this event.  It was a shoulder-to-shoulder experience being crammed into the venue with so so many other people.  Good luck trying to endure the line for the bathroom at a concert like this!

Me, Matt, Raul, pre-show.  Ready to rock!

Opening act was Scars On Broadway, well known for songs like this one.

Finally, Deftones (established 1988) took the stage and the crowd lit up.  My favorite song, which received a ton of fan involvement, was Poltergeist.  When lead singer Chino Moreno took the stage and started clapping to the beat, everyone enthusiastically joined in.  I loved it!

In all, we heard 19 songs.  Chino spent very little time with “talk” and the band moved quickly from song to song.  Just the way it should be!

Here is one clip from “My Own Summer (Shove It)” that I recorded with my iPhone.  As one may imagine with a song title like that, there was a lot of energy in the theater and a lot of noise.  It was one of only a handful of times during the show when I seriously pondered, “Should I put those ear plugs in now?!”

The inevitable post-concert traffic jam in the parking structure after the show.  Folks were surprisingly courteous in allowing others to exit.  I didn’t mind the delay – after having stood on my feet for the last several hours, I was just enjoying my plush leather seat.

After the show, we wanted to re-live the moment for a couple songs in particular so we blasted the ILX’s 7-speaker Premium audio system to some of the selections from the band’s most recent album, Koi No Yokan.

Enroute to Whataburger for a midnight hamburger.  But, this wasn’t just any hamburger – this was a green chile double!   Two beef patties, Monterey Jack and American cheese, and seasoned green chiles.  This is only available in 3 states, of which Arizona is one of them!  Great food to cap off a great concert and evening.

I’m having a blast with the ILX and excited to close in on 20,000 miles soon.

Quick pic at my grad school for a visit yesterday.  T-Bird class of 2006!

‘Tis the season, right?  Check out this ILX Santa commercial that was released this week.

Long-Lived Legend

Looks like there’s another Acura Legend coupe in the running for 500k status.  My friend Alan shared with me this link to an Ebay auction for a 1994 L coupe automatic with over 418,000 miles on the odometer.  Impressive status!  Condition of the car leaves a bit to be desired, but I wonder how well it runs?

Holiday travels await the ILX this upcoming week, as I’ll be making my way to Utah yet again to spend time with family for Thanksgiving.  For those who will travel before my next blog installment, be safe and have a great holiday!

This entry was posted on November 18, 2012 at 9:55 am and is filed under Concerts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.