Pearl Jam fans from the United States and Canada have been camping outside the Videotron Center since Tuesday so they can spy their favorites up close on Thursday night during the first concert of the group’s North American tour.
Four tents were already pitched at the northwest entrance of the amphitheater, Wednesday noon, during a visit to the Journal.
Stevens LeBlanc/JOURNAL DE QUEBEC
As was the case in 2016 during Pearl Jam’s last visit to Quebec, fans from all over America decided not to miss their chance to have the best seats for this concert in general admission, even if it means missing out more than 48 hours outside.
“You want to be in front. That’s the passion,” explains Matthew Gagné, a member of a group of admirers from Maine.
Sitting on folding chairs, Kathy Brehan, originally from Seattle as her favorite group, as well as her friend Lory Tone, from Toronto, will also be in the front row.
“The people at the Videotron Center are very accommodating. It’s not everywhere that they let us settle in like that,” says Ms. Tone.
Under the stars
Arriving early is the mark of the real ones. Matthew Gagné chose to spend two nights under the stars. Without tent.
“I have a chair and a sleeping bag. That’s all I need, ”says the one who has nearly thirty Pearl Jam concerts to his credit.
For her part, Kathy Brehan saw eleven concerts this summer across Europe, including her fiftieth since following the quintet from the grunge movement of the 1990s.
Does Eddie Vedder ever recognize you, we asked him? “I think he recognizes my Wonder Woman sunglasses that I wear during the shows,” she smiles.
Soundtrack of a lifetime
For many, Pearl Jam’s music is closely linked to important events in their lives.
“I moved to Seattle in 1992, when everything was happening musically. I met my husband and all their music enveloped my wedding. These are just good memories. They make us feel so good,” says Kathy Brehan.
Ditto for Matthew Gagne. “It’s the soundtrack of my life. Every song and every album reminds me of where I was when they came out. »
Expected reunion
It is indisputable, the reunion with Pearl Jam is eagerly awaited in the capital. This concert was the first to be postponed at the Videotron Center, in the spring of 2020, when COVID-19 began to decimate the show schedule.
There are only a few hundred tickets left to sell, which suggests that we might approach the figure of 17,500 spectators in 2016, which remains one of the largest crowds in the history of the Videotron Center.
As for what Pearl Jam has in store for us on Thursday, that’s a surprise. The group rarely, if ever, gives the same concert twice and is used to giving marathon performances.