I HUGGED HIM

So a first. Again.

1. The place
I've never been to TT the Bear's before, but I really, really like it. It's painfully small--turns out, the smallest venue in Boston I've been to. The whole building is shaped like a sideways uppercase I, with the ends being bars (yes, two bars) and the middle being the stage. It was so cute. Oh my god glory glory.
2. The people
Literally I was one of six people under 21, pretty much everyone was mid to upper twenties or older. OH EXCEPT THE 45 YEAR OLD DRUNK DUDE GRABBING MY ASS. That was great. But then he got ejected from the place and I bonded with the other two women he was bothering. ROCKIN'. Plus, the whole audience was totally uninhibited; screaming, jumping, crying, singing at the top of our lungs. I want all audiences to be that happy and loud and joyous.
3. The performers
Rare is the occasion when a band picks openers worth seeing. Sometimes, they pick one that's decent, but that probably means there's a total turd between them and the headliners (see: Ash picking Kind of Like Spitting over Circle and Square to go on before them, We Are Scientists picking Bear Hands over Bad Girlfriend to go on before them). This didn't happen. There was a clear progression in quality from the opening openers (whose name I unfortunately can't find) to Dawes to Langhorne Slim, this is true, however, both openers were still good. Plus, by the second to last song of Dawes' set, the soul-stirring 'When My Time Comes', the drunk ass grabber had been ejected, so the song's jubilatory tone was all the more fitting. They were a little on the pop-soul side (The Fray) but the lead singer was so fucking cute I didn't mind. Plus they were, y'know, good. I pogo'd to an opener, dude.

Langhorne Slim, subsequently, destroyed a venue of less than 300.

For every scream we emitted, the band screamed back. Heartbreakingly cute saxophonist wailing away, bobbing around, the man himself pulling some bizarro faces and moves that made me LAUGH AT A CONCERT HOW LONG HAS IT BEEN SINCE I'VE DONE THAT. This is the way concerts should be--the audience gives high energy back to a band giving out just as much high energy in a great reciprocal ring of joy. He brought up the audience onstage for the second to last song and jumped into the audience for the last one--little wonder, given he had lost his voice. But it didn't matter. The backers (the War Eagles) and the audience were singing so loudly that he didn't need to any more.

I was tired by the end of the show. And not by boredom like at the Dodos. By sheer expenditure of energy.

He stayed around after everyone had cleared out, and we talked. Well, he hoarsely whispered in my ear, I talked. We hugged.

Until next time,
Stay sweet (potato)
WF
Bloody in Love

Dawes - When My Time Comes
Langhorne Slim - Loretta Lee Jones
Langhorne Slim - Cinderella