Jason Myers, a freshman in the College of Engineering, attended the Fall Ball and plans on attending more local events in the future.

“Shows, for me, are a completely different kind of connection to the music that you definitely cannot get from recorded material,” Myers said. “The emotions of different songs and genres of music are definitely shown by how a band or artist performs and interacts with the crowd. You don’t get this on a CD.”

What is it about concerts that gives a rush of adrenaline to everyone in the audience? Concerts join people together who have a common interest. They are an outlet for fans to express their appreciation, fascination and devotion to the artists. Whether it is a Lil Wayne, Brad Paisley or Cobra Starship concert, fans flock to the ticket booths in hopes of getting the best seats. Hearing the person or people you admire sing the same songs you belt out to your steering wheel is one of the greatest feelings.

Behind every great production is the people who put it together. Justin Moralez, event coordinator at The Rave, offers a venue’s perspective.

According to Moralez, the decision process in choosing which bands are worthy of playing at The Rave takes a lot of work.

“There is an awful lot of research that goes into each band, being that the amount of people they bring to a show is essential to the business,” he said. “Bands may also be referred by others in the business.”

The communication process between The Rave and bands on major tours is quite simple.

“Tours are generally routed by their agents, and scheduling is worked out well in advance,”  Moralez said.

The Rave’s Web site says popular bands like AFI and Blink 182 made their Milwaukee debuts at The Rave and encourages local bands to book shows.

“It’s always fun to see banks make their way through the ranks,” Moralez said. “The Rave is taking active steps to make sure we capture moments like those on video.”

In order to have the show and to book the concerts, it all comes down to one element: the musician. As much as fans want to hear their favorite musicians, the musicians want to be heard just the same.

Matthew Suglich, a junior in the College of Engineering, started playing the guitar when he was 15 after he decided that there was no reason he could not make music just as well as the artists in his music collection.

The Union Sports Annex, 804 N. 16th St., allowed Suglich to play his own shows.

“What attracted me to playing at the Annex was just a sign that said, ‘Send an e-mail to this address if you are interested in playing a show,’ something I did often in high school and enjoyed,” he said. “So I eventually got in touch with Chris Porterfield who set me up with a solo show in January of my freshman year, which would be 2008.”

Suglich has played at the Annex a total of five times.

“My personal favorite experience playing at the Annex was last year the day after Halloween,” he said. “I played with a good friend of mine, Tom Sullivan, and we got a headline so we ended up playing for almost three hours. We would play together, then each play a couple songs individually and switch back and forth.”

But sometimes playing it safe is not enough in the risk-taking world of the music industry. Suglich said taking risks with his musical passion has paid off.

“That particular time stands apart because the songs we chose to play were a bit more on the edge of what we thought people would like,” he said. “We played a lot of material we had written ourselves. At one point I played ‘The Rainbow Connection’ in a Kermit the Frog voice which went over extremely well, much to my surprise. And we were both really nervous. Everybody really liked everything we played, and that was just a great feeling.”

Suglich said he has really enjoyed playing at the Annex.

“I would absolutely recommend it to anyone, and I can’t wait to play there again,” he said.

Whether you are playing on the stage, working behind the stage or trying to make your way closer to the stage, concerts are unforgettable experiences.