The best part about my first visit to Arena? Let's see. It was probably standing on stage and watching Rise Against play their entire set. Wait, let me think. No, yeah, that was definitely it.
The backstage is pretty nice too. The dressing rooms are alright, there's plenty of food and drinks for everyone, and the bathrooms have showers and a washing machine - there's no doubt that touring bands are treated well.
Here's the thing though: if I didn't have an all-access pass, I probably wouldn't go to a show here. The tickets are expensive, the venue is far too large, the sound is only OK, and unless you want to get right in the middle of things, you're not going to have a good view of the bands. Certainly, it's far too large for my ideal concert experience.
One impressive aspect I should note, however: the security. Those folks work their asses off, dealing with everything from crowd-surfing show-goers to nearly-fainting kids. Mad, mad props. read more