Ray Lamontagne Boston Concert reviews
Great Music - Beautiful Set - BUT, it was the wrong venue
My 4 star rating is 5++ for the music and 2 for the venue. Ray LaMontagne was fabulous - he is so talented and I love his music. Unfortunately, the Toyota Music Factory was not a good choice for a venue. Our seats were reassigned so instead of being in the center we were off to the side. I got over that, it happens. However, it was extremely dark once the music started, and there were no ushers helping people find their seats. So, everyone was using their phone flashlights (and not being courteous about it) so that was very distracting and, at times, blinding because no one seemed to care about flashing them right in your eyes.
But the worst part was the behavior of the audience! Ray's music is very quiet and soft. People were talking, laughing, and carrying on like they were in their living room instead of a concert. It was VERY DISRESPECTFUL to Ray and to the true fans who were trying to enjoy the show. At one point, there was a large uproar from an area in the middle section, because people finally got tired of their neighbors being so rude, and security had to come and escort about 15 people out. I ended up moving over to the vacated seats so I could hear better. Before I moved, the woman sitting behind was talking loudly and singing loudly and out of tune the entire show. I asked her nicely to stop so I could hear Ray LaMontagne sing, and she just laughed at me. I literally could not hear him over her. I have no problem with people having a good time but not when they ruin it for everyone else. And again, it was extremely rude to the artist and his band. Next time, either find a better venue (there are plenty) or have the security folks do their job and maintain order!