Out of the Jungle and into the Fire - The Killers, Costa Rica, Gray Young, New World Highrise, Toon & The Real Laww, and Vienna Teng!

...Longest Blog post title ever? Well hold on to your hold-on-ables, as this is actually going to be a mostly pic-heavy post, to boot!

I felt a sense of obligation to explain to my faithfuls why there has been a huge black hole in my blog for the past few months, where Hopscotch should have been. Well, we all know I go through fits of depression and straight up laziness, which makes for inconsistent content. Alas, here i sit with time and energy and a steady internet connection, so here we go!

The Killers - August 12, Redhat Amphitheater

There are bands that on the neo-hipster scale that I absolutely adore that I'm sure most of my friends would agree are perhaps sellouts or too big for their britches, (U2 and Coldplay to name a couple obvious ) and I'm sure The Killers are in the non-in crowd as far as Indie cred goes... honestly, I couldn't give two shits. I LOVE them, always have, and used a small part of my well-deserved severance money (Oh, didn't you hear? I got laid off!) and bought the best tickets you could get for their show in Raleigh! My former bandmate and one of my all-time best friends, Jayseph, came along for the ride!

friends are friends forever!

It was well timed and staged perfection, and sounded SO GOOD as expected for a quasi-arena show for a megaband. I heard all my favorite songs, made friends with all the gay kids half my age in the pit and got generally overly emotional, as expected. 

Why so emotional? Well, good tunes with which I have unnaturally deep connections with, obviously ...(um, All These Things That I've Done?? Hello?) but also there was the whole "I gave away everything I owned and moved into the Jungle of Costa Rica to work on an Ecofarm, isolate myself and finish my Novel" thing.. which I did. Without going into too much public detail, (as it was a totally personally intense situation,) I didn't stay quite as long as I thought I would, but in the end, I didn't need to. Unfortunately all this self-reflection and Tao reading just happened to take place while Hopscotch rolled around, so I missed it. And the bluegrass festival...

Cut my hair off, stopped wearing a bra, and ran around in the jungle with a Machete for a few months... the only excuse I have for missing Herpskerch.

BUT! I came home just in time for:

The Last Gray Young show - Slim's - Oct 3

They say all great things must come to an end. But in this case, I am virtually inconsolable, as the VERY BEST THING has come to an end... for now, anyway... Gray Young has decided to take a little break. I am trying my best to come to grips with this now. Pre-show and about halfway through, I believe I was in a bit of denial... But as the entire Kitten Army was in attendance and once Dana and I hit the Bloody Mary's, it became all too clear that the end was neigh --- therefore the setlist was compromised and edited by your truly, I may have stagecrashed a little, and also forcibly broke the nearly 3 year vow of silence and all but attacked Chas on stage to thank him, basically for saving my life. I can't be completely sure, as the gods of convenient blackout drunkdom seems to have blocked out specific details, but its entirely possible i cried. like, a lot. It's what I do, man.

holy crap, i love you guys.

can't decide if this is my proudest ever moment or if should be mortified?

It was, for all intents and purposes, believe it or not, probably my favorite GY show I've seen, and I promise you, I've seen lots. Probably has something to do with the fact that do many of my favorite people were in attendance, that the last half of the show became a ridiculous dance party, and mostly because I was riding high on the surreal wave of my triumphant return from Costa Rica. 

I think I'm still in denial. They'll be back.

kinda hard to see, but I was handed a pen and was told to edit the set list, which I did.

The following sunday, after work, I found myself racing downtown once again to catch:

New World Highrise - Oct 6 - Slim's

The band that Jay was working so hard to make happen when we were tinkering around with the Clink - a mix of Jay's songs and the songs of others... a poprocks/80s indie postpunk - all good things - IT feels funny talking about them, because I feel like I'm bragging, as Jay called me up onstage to sing, as well. I had missed that, for sure!

I had actual face-pain from smiling so broadly with so much pride!

Toon & The Real Laww - King's - Oct 11

This show was a real "Should I or shouldn't I?" conundrum - I have seen these guys several times, but this was an EP release party, so I knew it would be a good one... I literally was indecisive until about 5 minutes before an awkward Landmark patio situation drove me into the arms of killer hip-hop!

I was glad I went. The crowd, every time I see them, knows more and more songs, gets denser and more excited... It's awesome seeing groups grow in the scene! Local music Pride!!!

photo taken specifically to taunt Sir Austin Parker

Professor Toon is a fan of House of Swank! YES!

I may have also incited a stagecrash at this show, as well. Which then erupted into one of the best post-show dance parties I have EVER seen!!!

I grabbed Laww and told him "IT'S TIME TO GET SOME SEXY LADIES ON STAGE!" and of course invited myself along!

And on that day, shit got cray.

Vienna Teng - Carolina Theatre, Durm - Oct 12

I found Vienna on a quirky internet channel I listened to for about 6 years straight before i discovered Spotify called "Radioparadise" - honestly one of the greatest radio stations ever - 90% of the songs are ones I love and the other 10% are songs I fall in love with; ergo Vienna... Blue Caravan was the first song I remember hearing and being all like .... "ohhhh mygah... what IS THIS? i love!" and then devouring everything i could fit in my earholes after. I was incredibly lucky to see her and Alex Wong a few years back at the Broad Street Cafe with an intimate crowd, that put me right up front. This time she played an actual (and quite beautiful) concert hall. The sound was pristine and the songs were totally emotional and my companion for the show was charming and my friend Amy is the best.

(haven't uploaded the only little video i took from the show, but here is a video from the last time i saw her at Broad Street, back in 2010 xoxo)

I've learned it best not to promise publicly or even personally, that I'll be anywhere at any time. I have learned that I am not fickle or flaky, I have learned to trust my instincts and my body and sometimes my instincts just lead me to bed early... Therefore, I can't promise you any reviews of any specific shows, but I can instead give you a pretty good idea of where I might be :)

Next monday I was tipped off that I would be a fool to miss Wild Belle at King's

Next thursday at London Bridge is a benefit for Cause for Paws, (a local charity I support wholeheartedly) called Pints for Paw - Try and come out!

Oh, the glory of no longer living downtown - an empty events calendar! But hey, I'm not saying don't invite me, or anything... If you hear about a I shouldn't miss or would like to use me to promote your shows, as always - I'm down, y'all. I'm always down...!

xoxo

Whatever Brains w/ The Invisible Hand - King's - 07/07/11; subset WB - Slim's 08/02/11

There are four types of shows I attend regularly. Here they are, listed in order of importance:
1) OMG YES I AM SO GLAD THEY ARE COMING I BOUGHT TICKETS THE DAY THEY WENT ON SALE NOTHING WILL STOP ME FROM SEEING THIS SHOW. (Such bands include: U2, Morrissey, Gray Young, any strange/obscure mid-90s alternative band that I obsessed over in the heydays of 120 minutes; pre-matt pinfield.)
2) Everyone will not shut up about this band, all the people whose taste I respect opinions I trust are telling me to see this band, so I better go.
3) I am out, who is at Slim’s?
4) It’s my friends’ band, man. Give them a chance!

Whatever Brains sits someplace cradled between the limbo of 2, 3 and kinda 4. (4, only because the guys in WB are not necessarily ‘friends’ but people I have seen around the scene since the dawn of time, so it counts.)  Also, for a frame of reference: WB are the guys that opened for Fucked Up last year at Hopscotch; the guy wore the Eagle mascot costume … Remember? Yeah, me neither. Can you believe Hopscotch is less than a month away? Yeah, me neither.

Dear Raleigh: you are killing me with your awesome Thursday night shows. Quit putting all the chilled out alt-country shows on Saturday nights and save shit like Whatever Brains for a weekend. My body hates me. Still. And you see how far behind this ‘review’ is; that’s pain.

I don’t think this show was planned. In fact, I know it wasn’t. (This is the problem with waiting so long to write these things.) Jay mentioned it, so I tagged along. Me tagging along to awesome shows with Jay has been the theme of the last year of my life. Jay is the ultimate progenitor of Type 2 Above. Maybe I should just change that to “Jay said they were awesome, so I went.” In this case; Jay said I should go, so I went. While we waited between sets, we wandered down and got into trouble at Neps, whereupon I was approached by BShaw. I was then informed by BShaw that if I missed the next act, called “invisible Hands” that I would be “dead to him.” I suddenly realize BShaw belongs in the subset of Type 2 above, as well. I saw the band; therefore I am not dead.

i am warned of my imminent death.

YAY I DIDN'T DIE!

 These guys – WOW! From song one I was barely able to keep my jaw off the ground. Jay was texting me a lot saying things like “this guy is like Johnny Marr AND Morrissey at the same time” and then my brain exploded because I was looking at a smiths chimera. Oh god. I made a very specific, tipsy point to be downstairs during their load-out so that I may confront them on their awesomeness factor. I don’t remember much of the conversation, apart from the gushing and the dreamy foppishness of the LV’s (Adam’s) Morrissey-like coif.  

hard to get a non-blurry image because there was so much energy!

Invisible hand; so with all the Moz/Smith references thrown around up there, maybe I have already brainwashed myself into automatically comparing IH to something akin to a really pumped-up/darker Smoking Popes. (Remember them? They opened for Morrissey. Oh how I miss them!) They affect me in that same stop and pause way I felt the first time I heard, say, the Replacements or Sugar for the first time. The first time I really stopped and paid attention to David Byrne solo. That’s the vibe I got off these guys. They definitely had a really fun vibe and if anything, watching the bassist (Thomas) alone, you will find yourself dancing. I just discovered they are coming back to King’s Sept 29. I’m so there.

Then THESE guys.

I keep forgetting these guys are local. These guys went to Enloe for God’s sake. These guys apparently release more material than any local band in existence. These guys have no two songs that sound alike. I think these guys will play anywhere, anytime if you ask. Dear Whatever Brains, will you play my corporate luncheon next week? (I am kidding because they will do it because they are ridiculous and ruthless.)

I don’t know… what do you say? Whatever Brains is Punk? They are psychedelic Beatnik porn music? What are these guys? Every time I have seen them I stand there and I think; what the hell do you say about these guys? It always starts the same, everyone is kinda chilling and there are those 2 or three girls down front doing the one beer in the air/swing-n-sway/WOO!-dance. Then suddenly the songs are wilder and every song gets shorter and there are 50 shots of liquor lined up on the stage and people are screaming and losing their minds. Someone is naked. Something is on fire.

No, I don’t mean to detract from the music and say “oh this band is just a spectacle” no, that is not at all true. I honestly think they are so comfortable and strong with their tunes that they can afford a little playfulness. They can lose their minds because the music is solid, it’s almost as if they are the conjurers, they don’t really even necessarily need to play it, it’ll be there, but their bodies are the conduits. It’ll happen. So a little leeway is granted, sure, hang off of things and spit all over yourself, the music will hold its own.

co-starring British John as the Guest Vocalist

ALL MY FRIENDS ARE ROCK STARS... HURRRRR!!!11

 Some songs will play and you’ll be all like, “yeah okay, these guys are really into Sabbath.” And then 4 songs will play all together and they are all about 48 seconds each and you think “well, hell, when did this guy turn into Pete Shelley??” and then no, it’s the Cramps. No, Misfits. No, Agnostic Front. No… OH JUST WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON HERE JUST GIVE ME A GODDAMNED BEER.

Jay moshing. god love 'im.

 And that’s when you suddenly realize you love them and there is no going back. And then it's over and you're drunk at Neptune's and it's entirely too late to be out on a Thursday. These guys.

PARTII; in which I suddenly find myself at yet another unplanned Whatever Brains show, almost a month later with Jay.

So the apparent “theme” of band practice has turned into; play a bit, drink a lot whilst playing; wander downtown and see some other band play much better; drink more. On one such apparent practice theme nights, the crew and I descended upon slims and our dear friends, Whatever Brains were playing YET AGAIN. It was a wee bit tamer this night, but only because it was Slim’s, so therefore everyone’s ears were burning out of their skulls and it was a late-nighter on a Tuesday. Not as many folks out.  

halfway through practice and the night out planning begins, you can see it in me eyes!

 However, the intimacy brought a level of psychosis out of these guys I had yet to see, I do believe. I wish every week I could see whatever brains just so I could study the reaction of the crowd vs. the level of intense madness it brings out of the LV. Like, a really shitty anthropologist.

can never be normal. not even for a second.

mad because he was not asked to guest-vocalize?

besties, united in our inability to take non-horrific pictures at rock shows.

I could write a really shitty thesis on this phenomenon. “Level of Lead Vocalist Vehemence in direct correlation to Audience participation and size” By: Dr. Karla Anne Bullshit-Maker-Upper.


I was married thrice, once to a Jeff Maker and then a Eugene Upper.
I’m kidding.
Although in my early 20’s I was engaged to a British dude with the last name “Bull”.
That, I’m not kidding about.
I was, once upon a time, almost Mrs. Karla Anne Bull. 

John Brodeur, Xray Eyeballs, The Clink - Slim's - 03/08/11

Is reviewing your own show a conflict of interest? Or just the pinnacle of egomania that one can possibly reach? I had considered passing it over completely, pretending it ever happened, assuming someone else would do the dirty work, (Roo told me the second we left the stage he already had his review mentally written). I am totally sure he won't be biased at all; I joke. He will be fair. I'll give you the stage-side view in a minute.

First up was Xray Eyeballs, a Brooklyn group fronted by the wildest little Asian dude i have seen on stage maybe ever. (I don't know if I've ever seen an Asian dude on stage, now that I think about it. and I am thinking about it hard. I am probably forgetting someone obvious and amazing. Someone leave a comment with another artist or band with an Asian lead that i have probably seen that will make me feel stupid for forgetting. Does the lead guy from Deftones count? He is only halfsies.) It was a Tuesday night at Slim's, none of us were really expecting a major crowd; there were mostly locals who would most likely be at Slim's anyway, and bands watching the other bands; this is where we came in. And I gotta tell you guys that came in late, you actually missed a hell of a show. I don't want to get hung up on looks or races or whatever, but this band was a total Benetton ad, I loved it! Adorable Pilipino front man, tall Slavic goddess bass player girl (dear god i love a girl bassist) and a gangsta ass Hispanic dude rocking a synth that i swear looked like he wandered in from Compton... I would have never picked out these people to be in the same band and if i did i would never have guessed the kind of music that came from them... it was fantastic! somewhere between early Sonic Youth, Screamo power pop, clean cut synth rock - all with the lead (OJ) going flipping WILD! This is my truest love; bands that play for the music, not for the size of the crowd. XRay Eyeballs could have been just having rehearsals, but we got to watch; they were having some serious fun and sounding incredible in the process. I later got to talk to them a bit (they were touring their way down to SXSW) and developed mini-crushes on every single person in the van. I wish them the very best of luck and I'll definitely be seeing you guys again!

John Brodeur; our headliner, although for some damn reason we went on last? I really still don't understand how this lineup happened. But John Brodeur is the main guy. When Jayseph told me who we were playing with, I of course went online and hit up sites and sounds; I liked what i heard, of course. Jay kept mentioning "he reminds me of Matthew Sweet" (which, by the way, is an awesome person to compare anyone to.) John is from New York, has a pretty solid rep and okay, man, he is totally cute. like, blush-inducing-anywhere-within-my-vicinity-cute. He took the stage alone, which was not surprising, but i wasn't expecting it really. and as a musician surrounded by bleeps and bloops and electronics, I was really super impressed with the myriad of pedals and toys surrounding his feet on stage. and then he began to play and i swooned. no fair to be that gorgeous and to have that voice and that level of talent! biggest mindblower of the night was the live sampling he did as the last song, something i have dreamed about a little. i may have should have talked to him about well, HOW THE EFF DID YOU DO THAT? but t this point, it was time to scramble and get going on final preps.

Ladies and Gentlemen, introducing: THE CLINK.

it went down like this: Jay's girlfriend runs in, fresh from Mardi Gras Party, throws big red (!!) beads around my neck and hands me a shot of something magical and alcohol-y. And hey here's something they never tell you; When you are in the band, they give you FREE BEER. After i found this out, i almost cried a little. I made Jay pinky swear with me that we would do this forever and get really famous so we never had to pay for beer again (isn't that the only reason anyone is in a band? I am kidding, btw. i think.) So I'm not going to say "hey we were so good and this is what we sounded like"... i don't know how to do that to myself. What I will say is that my god we had fun. SO MUCH FUN. and Whatever we actually sounded like to the crowd, I know that from where we stood, it was a blast. I could point out every time my computer glitched or i missed a cue or a note, but i later decided since it was really the first time we played out, no one knew what to expect anyway, so HA HA IT WAS PERFECT AND WE NEVER MESSED UP.

Roo has written me a letter:
---------------------------------------

Karla,

So, in the hours since your first show as The Clinks I have taken some time to think about how to write this review. I cannot write it in the same way I would write a normal review because I will be biased in your favor no matter what if I am speaking to the deep, dark chasm of the interwebs. I refuse to be biased in any way, so I have to write you a personal letter in a constructive criticism vein to be posted, or not posted, on your blog as a review. You're incredibly important to me, and I am very proud of you for moving forward with this musical endeavor, but you need open and honest feedback so you can continue to grow and improve. What you choose to do with this is up to you.

Before I get too far into this I want to just make the basic statements: 1) I enjoyed the show very much, and 2) I am so very happy for you that you've found this outlet.

Let me start off by clarifying how I understand The Clinks so you know where I am coming from. It seems that Jay, who is extremely talented, has been in a several different bands, including The New Euphemisms. It seems that TNE never really played too many shows in a row with the same line-up. It seems that he is finally letting go of that and moving forward with something new with you, but that in the time being you two are playing several of their old songs while you build up your own set lists. For this reason it is natural that Jay would play the role of the front man at the show. They were mainly, after all, his songs.

Now, if I were to comment on the dynamic between you two I would have to say that the two of you need to work really hard on writing new materiel so that your stage presence is balanced much more than it was at this show. Jay basically dominated the entire set. Again, that was apt to a point due to the situation as I understand it, but it was almost too much. He has an AMAZING voice, is obviously a talented musician and has a breadth of musical knowledge verging on rock-dork-supreme. BUT he still came on really strong and the presentation was such that he was often "the show" and you were tucked off to the side. He seemed to myself and several other people in the audience (read: our friends) that you were not given an opportunity to shine. Of course he has more experience than you at performing and making music in general and he is intimately familiar with the set list you were playing. I understand why he was the focus of the night, but at one point in particular it seemed like that took over and he stopped playing for the enjoyment of the audience.   

In between songs:

Jay: "Is the guitar too loud?"

Audience members: "Yes, it's too loud."

Jay: "Whatever, let's go..."

*music starts*

Now, the audience didn't stop enjoying themselves. I don't mean to imply that, but it was something akin to a DJ playing only obscure music despite the fact that people are standing around wanting to dance. There is a fine line between jamming out hard and being too cocky to listen to feedback your audience is giving you that could greatly improve your show. That being said, the sound at Slim's has always sucked and will always suck, so it may have been unavoidable.

Also, I really like Jay from what I know of him. He has a pretty stellar personality and I am glad he showcases that on stage. You two just need some balance and to watch your volume on certain instruments/mics.

My point in telling you this is to encourage you to make a strong effort to evolve into a band that plays songs you have written together or new songs you have written separately for The Clinks specifically. Do not allow this to be The New Euphemisms II. Make this new. Decide now that you will create a catalogue of songs you can perform together. Within a few weeks/months you should stop playing TNE material all together, otherwise there is no was to escape the imbalance.

Now, a few things about you. You were having fun. That showed BIG TIME! That is my favorite part of every band I enjoy live...that they are enjoying themselves. Just last night I was discussing with Jonny Tunnell and Sarah Fuller that the reason I love watching The Big Picture play is because they are having their own little party on stage and the joy they create as a band is infectious. Your happiness was that way. Of course I could sense your nerves, but I'm me and you're you and we can read one another pretty well.

To be honest, I was curious to hear you sing. It had been years since I heard you belt something out, and I didn't know what to expect. In reality, there are a lot of differences between now and back then and I didn't know what might have changed. Luckily for us all, you still have a beautiful voice. You'll want to work on your comfort with a microphone, but that's just something that takes a few attempts to really get down. At times you were too far away from the mic and it became difficult to hear you. Make sure you're within the right distance and at the right angle to be picked up properly. Also, your keyboard was way too loud. I know you knew this and that's why you decided to play it very minimally. That was really smart of you and improved the set dramatically, however I would have loved to hear you play more. Next time just be assertive and ask the sound guy to fix it. That's his job.

Have I mentioned you were really cute? I loved your look. It has little to do with the music, but I know it's important to you to present yourself well. You achieved that.

All in all I had a great time at your show. I loved your sound and where you're headed musically appeals to me a lot. Your beats were sick. Jay's musicality and technical ability on guitar is strong. I really think I enjoyed it separately from "watching my bestie play a show" and that makes me really excited to know what you'll come up with next.

I love you, and I hope this is helpful.

-Roo

-------------------------------

I really want to say thanks once again to all my friends for their support and for coming out. We are in a little transition at the moment (literally, jay is moving house and i am setting up the [electro] practice space in my house) and recording is imminent. stay tuned!

Marnie Stern with Gray Young and Tera Melos - King's - 03/01/11

I have this weird habit of creating in-jokes with myself. I find something, some action or phrase, that i personally find extremely amusing and it becomes a running joke... with myself. (A good example of this is drewbombs.) I don't know why it amuses me the way it does or why i continue to carry the jokes; no one gets it or cares, least often the other people inadvertently involved. This night of shows included two such in-jokes with myself in which either the other people involved do not care or do not even know. I AM HILARIOUS TO ME.

In a frenzied "oh shit, our show's coming up!" effort to practice every moment we had free in the last week, Jay and I decided to meet up at his house for about an hour before heading out to see Gray Young and Marnie at King's. Losing track of time, as we tend to do because we are usually too busy being entirely too excited about whatever noisy mess we are making, Jay and I headed out a little too late, causing me to miss the first half of Gray Young's set. I am still extremely upset about this. and by "extremely" i mean to say, when I think about it, I get a little annoyed with myself. And by a little, I mean I AM EXTREMELY ANNOYED WITH MYSELF.

Okay kids, let's be honest.... Wait, Okay kids, *I'LL* be honest, yeah i bought the tickets to see Gray Young. of course I did! If Gray Young was opening for some so and so band, let's say someone random like Tori Amos, and the tickets were $60 a pop, I would try to publicly justify over and over again, despite the fact that there is no living artist on the planet I despise more than Tori Amos, that "I'm just willing to give her a chance, It's just an added bonus that GY is playing too!" No. That is bullshit. I paid $60 to see Gray Young, because I am an asshole. and by asshole, i mean to say, I AM THE SUPERFAN. (also I would leave before Tori Anus played because i really fuckin' hate her.)

here are the two in-jokes with myself explained; they are both in regards to GY... First is this one: For the first few shows that I saw of them, there were always these two or three guys that were always down front with me, rocking out... (James, Mike and Dana! love!) and it's become one of the things I like best about seeing them live; the Gray Young Army. I don't really know why I decided we are an "army", I have this feeling we are all really chill, nice people. Maybe it should be called "The Gray Young Caring Club". ....uhoh. see what i just did there? That made me laugh out loud. from now on, we are the Gray Young Caring Club, and that is funny as hell. I am making t-shirts. there will be kittens, maybe. (aside - I finally got me one of the super-pretty GY shirts designed by birds & arrows. oh hell yes.)

SO - yes. The other superfans. One of which, being Mike G. and there have been instances where Mike has not made it to shows. and I have started this in-joke with myself of judging him for missing shows. So there are now a series of pictures of me "judging" Mike;

ps, I am beautiful

ending in the epic photo taken this night entitled "Haaaay! I didn't have to judge you!"

The second in-joke i have with myself began after the first review of GY whereupon i gushed and conveniently forgot that people have the internet and read what i had to say. I may have let it slip about having a secret soulmate bond with Chas. oh hey, guess what? it got read. and in an effort to downplay any sort of "oh that girl is insane" assumptions, I have therefore turned this awkwardness into a game/in-joke. I still have not spoken to him and now i *will* not, despite the fact that I literally see him everywhere I go. One particularly amusing/pathetic exchange happened at LBLB a few weeks ago in which I was outside drinking/smoking and decided to go back in through the exit, just as he was walking out. we did the whole "oh you're going left? I'm going right. Oh, you went right, I'll go left. Are we dancing? This is fucking stupid and my face is going to melt off Indiana Jones Nazi Style because I am so embarrassed" thing... to which my only possible response could be to turn completely around, go the other way, and announce "GUESS I'M NOT GOING *THAT* WAY!" in an effort to save face, but resulting in me only further embarrassing myself.

In keeping with this theme of hilarity, the afternoon before the show at King's, this happened:

I am entirely open to the possibility that the traits in myself that I consider endearingly quirky may be construed by others as "batshit crazy," I've accepted this. Part of me really wonders if this guy thinks I'm out of my mind, or finds this whole game extremely hilarious as well. It is pointless to speculate because i will never speak to him to find out. The set, what i saw of it (GOD DAMMIT), was stellar, of course. I am almost too mad at myself to continue.

Tera Melos, i had done no real research on and knew nothing about, i decided to let it be a surprise. however, there was some Super Double Ultra Mega Superfans in attendance:

Not even joking.

These guys drove in from, I want to say Greensboro, to see the band. Their enthusiasm manipulated me into being really excited for Tera Melos to play. and when they did, I was a little confused, by no fault but my own, to find them a little more tame than I expected. I don't know how i had convinced myself that by attracting Pokemon Superfans, this band was going to be ballistically exciting, but they were just... cool? I don't mean that in any way to be negative. I mean it in the psychedelic rock I wasn't quite expecting but still dug on sense. They were a little math-rock, a little feedback-y, which i am always down with. I remember thinking they were like if Trans Am multiplied themselves and dropped acid. If they come back around, I'll most likely see them again without any preconceived notions.

At some point between Tera Melos and Marnie, Jay and I decided Jager was a really good idea. JAGER IS NEVER A GOOD IDEA. especially on a weeknight. I am 99% convinced Jagermeister makes the majority of their money on people who are already wasted somehow convincing themselves it's a good idea. sober people don't drink jager. I dare you to challenge this idea.

These are the kind of pictures that happen in response to jager shots.

poor our faces :(

And then what happened? MARNIE STERN BECAME THE GREATEST THING I'D EVER SEEN BECAUSE I WAS DRUNK!!!!11!!1

I did realized, however, that i did know and own many more Marnie Stern songs than I thought I did. I kept hearing myself say out loud to no one in particular, like they could hear me anyway, "Ohhh! I know this song!"

It feels like I blinked and this amazing night was over. I gotta stop blinking.