The Shins, Menomena, Aqueduct, Devotchka, Andrew Bird, The Lashes, The Frames – with a lineup that includes all of those and more, could it possibly be a bad weekend for an indie music-loving concert whore? Hmmmm… well, bad might not be the right word. Surprising, maybe. Disappointing, quite possibly. Why you ask? Let me paint you a picture….
You're standing in a crowd of 40- & 50-somethings all doing their baby-boomer jig to Crowded House, a band they so fondly remember from their 20's. The band that brought them Don't Dream Its Over (you know the song, "Hey now, hey now, don't dream its over…" It's the one you can't help but sing to because you remember it playing on the bus ride to gradeschool). And you don't really mind the music, or even the generation gap. You don't even really mind that the sun is beating down on you from one direction only, ensuring a lovely one-sided sunburn. All of this is completely bearable in anticipation of The Shins. They are set to play next, and you are plotting your move to rush to the front as soon as mom and pop and their friends get out of the way after this last song. Oh wait, it seems that the parents haven't gotten the memo: you don't get an encore at Bumbershoot. Hello! We're on a strict timeline! Get the fuck out of the way. As soon as they figure it out, you grab your friends and start weaving, gently pushing if necessary (think of it like a bar and your posse is on the other side – you don't feel bad then, do you?).
Successfully you find yourself about 10 feet from the stage, right in the middle. Oh you can envision James Mercer now – its gonna be fucking awesome. Content with your spot, you start to take in your surroundings. Suddenly you are aware that not only have the soon-to-be geriatrics left the premises, but that they have been replaced by their pre-teen children? WHERE ARE MY PEOPLE?!?! You look around frantically and all you see is a sea of Jr. High and High School kids. Trying not to panic at the adolescence surrounding you, you take a deep breath and remember that in just a few minutes you will be within a few feet of some pretty damn good musicians.
Just when you think you might be too old for this shit and feeling a bit hypocritical as you are now the old geezers in the crowd, out emerges Mr. Mercer with his equally impressive bandmates. In a few short bars, they have the crowd's full attention, energy writhing up through all of your veins. And its great for about 3 songs. Then, just when you've almost forgot about Jr. next to you, you see it out of the corner of your eye… a crowd surfer. WHO CROWD SURFS AT A SHINS CONCERT? Of course, it's a 14 year old, who else would it be? Rolling your eyes, turn you attention back to the Kevin Spacey – Dave Matthews lookalike. Unfortunately only a small percentage of people in this audience shares your opinion of crowd surfing. That one dumbass 14 year old has started a trend. And we know how fast trends spread in the teeny-bopper scene. Like fucking wildfire. Over the next hour, you pass at least 15 kids over your head, and that's just the ones that were coming down your path.
James Mercer at one point remarks on the fly, "Its getting crazy out there; looks like a 1992 Jane's Addiction concert." What's so great about that comment? The immediate head turns among the preteen crowd indicating they all have no idea who the fuck Jane's Addiction is, let alone remember anything that happened in the year 1992. Afterall, half of them weren't even born yet. Nice one, James, nice one! Thanks for that little shout out to us "older kids".
.....to be continued....
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