A Tale Of Rain, Lightning And Progressive Rock

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[{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1507628606593","data":"\"If it was a British band, they would have played their set anyway,\" said the 30s something man huddling behind me for cover from the rain. <\/p>Mumbai's rains are infamous. The city is so used to being flooded due to excessive rains that it does not even care anymore, people are used to it and plan their commute and help others accordingly. So when I heard that Dream Theater, a band that I had idolised for years, was finally making their first trip to India with a show scheduled in Mumbai on October 8, I knew we would have rains to deal with. What I did not expect was frequent lightning strikes and claps of thunder. <\/p>Concerts like these never start on time, even in perfect conditions. In some cases, it doesn't start at all, like Metallica's gig on October 29, 2011, in New Delhi. We waited for the band to come on the stage since 4 in the evening, only to be told, 5 hours later, that the band wouldn't be showing up at all and to come back the next day. The crowd went berserk. <\/p>In Mumbai, outdoor events do not have permission to continue beyond 11 PM, a rule that is strictly imposed with the police keeping a constant eye on things, probably the only city in India where the rule to stop playing loud music after the appointed after is strictly enforced. So when it started to rain and us peasants in the silver category, those who couldn't even see the stage properly, ran for whatever cover we could find to not get drenched in the downpour, we worried that the gig might not happen at all. <\/p>Except it did happen, with a start so memorable, I will remember this gig for the rest of my life. The band had just arrived on stage and started playing their set, with Jordan Rudess working his magic and a God of the Guitar, John Petrucci just beginning to strum his guitar. It was at that exact moment, a gigantic fork of lightning snaked across the sky, lighting up the grounds, followed by a crack of thunder. It was as if the Gods themselves were present to witness Dream Theater live and were welcoming them onto the stage.  <\/p>"},{"type":"img","id":"img-uid-1507632951813","data":"59dcaa4eb68d7"},{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1507632953981","data":"The band stopped after their opening song because there have been cases of people being struck by lightning at concerts like these, which led to us huddling under cover again with the rest of the newly minted friends I had made at the concert. It was then a gentleman from Bangalore made the comment about British bands I posted above. Iron Maiden, we both said at once, would have powered through the entire set without stopping, even if someone got thunderstruck at the gig. <\/p>The lightning continued, of course, when it rains in Mumbai it pours. All of us huddling together had to decide, go home and miss a potentially great gig, or get soaked in the rain, risk pneumonia, but have a once in a lifetime experience. The choice seemed obvious.  <\/p>All pretentions were abandoned as Dream Theater took a short break and came back to start with Pull Me Under, arguably their most popular song. The cover we had was abandoned, the rain was pouring over our heads, but we were there, standing under the thundering skies, listening to Petrucci's riffs and John Myung's enchanting bass guitar. Pull me under, screamed James LaBrie, and we were, pulled under a spell only Dream Theater could manage. <\/p>"},{"type":"youtube","id":"vid-url-1507634001916","data":"SGRgAULYgWE"},{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1507634013688","data":"I never bothered to find out why Dream Theater was touring with Images and Words, an album they released all the way back in 1992. Having only been formed a few short years before the popular album, maybe they thought since they've never been here, this would be a great album to tour in India? Or perhaps it was because they weren't ready to perform their latest album, titled 'The Astonishing'. As a friend joked - and we both agreed - if they started playing anything from The Astonishing, we would walk out. <\/p>Despite the incredible experience, attending a concert in pouring rain is a terrible idea. I mean, it sounds great on paper, but it is a risk nonetheless. As we left the concert, a visibly distressed fan was screaming unpublishable obscenities about Mumbai because the rain had ruined the gig for him. Hey, some of us do not like to get wet all the time. <\/p>But, I'm glad I travelled to Mumbai for this gig. I mean, certainly, it was not easy risking my health and risking damage to my phone as I pulled it out of a plastic cover that I had taken from a restaurant earlier that day to occasionally take pictures. This was one of the best gigs I've attended in my life, not that I've attended many gigs, but at least so far, it is the best. There was an ethereal quality to how it all went down, with the stage lights dancing to the power riffs and the crash of the cymbals, punctuated frequently by a flash of blinding white light and a crack of thunder, the Gods roaring their approval along with the cheering crowds under the dark pregnant clouds. <\/p>"}]

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