Sunday, October 11, 2009

Kiss and make up with your friend.


The first entry was about B.
The logical next step...Wolf & Cub.
I’m not sure where to start though. Let’s try this...

I’ve had a bad couple of weeks. Two weeks in LA and one week home in Sydney, and I’ve managed to fuck up a large part of my life. In these last three weeks, Joel Byrne/Wolf & Cub have appeared three times;

The first was in LA. After a few tries, Michael Park had finally pushed me to my limit. How he escaped with his life, I’ll never understand, but in my drunken/drugged/justified rage, I went home and used a computer. Not a good idea. I was a massive bitch to Joel Byrne, MASSIVE. I think it was his birthday too... (I SHOULD PROBABLY SAY HERE: IF YOUR NAME IS MICHAEL PARK AND YOU EVER MEET JOEL BYRNE, THANK HIM. HE TOLD ME TO “KISS & MAKE UP” WITH YOU).

The second was in LA again. This was probably the lowest point of the whole two weeks. I was packing my bag to come home. Michaela had left after a fight that I caused. Vessels was playing.

The third time, was last Saturday. I thought it might do me some good to go and see Wolf & Cub play. I figured, even thought my life was a complete and absolute mess, seeing them play would grant me at least one hour of unadulterated pleasure. It would also give me the chance to apologise to Joel Byrne...(I SHOULD PROBABLY SAY HERE: IF YOUR NAME IS JOEL BYRNE, PLEASE DO NOT READ ON. I’M SERIOUS. I’LL KNOW IF YOU HAVE)...

I should have probably started here....

Since we met, Joel Byrne has only ever been nice to me. And I know the entry prior to this one gives B all the credit she deserves, but Joel Byrne has taught me two very important things that deserve some acknowledgment.;

The first—He was my first ever interview. I was seventeen, nervous, a massive fan and nervous. From what I remember, he was nice enough to talk candidly about the band and their music. I realised then, how much there was to find out about the music I like (or dislike). This was the moment I decided I wanted to turn that into some kind of career.

The secondHe seems to care what I think about his band, or at least he’s nice enough to act like he cares. This is a doubled-edged sword. On the one hand, The Dictator in me (aka my massive ego) needs to learn that my opinion doesn’t matter, or isn’t always necessary. On the other hand, it’s also the reason I think I might have something of worth to contribute in writing or speaking about the music I like (or dislike).

So, like I said, after nearly three years (God! Three years!) of being more than nice, I transfigured into a monumental bitch. Actually, I was a total and utter cunt to him. So I ventured out on a raining evening, without booze (because I was driving to FBi after) and without cigarettes (I quit in LA) with the aim of apologising in person.

I arrived sometime during The Vasco Era. It was probably during this time that I should have gone and apologised to Joel Byrne, but instead I got accosted by a really foul drunk man, who wouldn’t let me escape. Actually, I probably could have excused myself easily by saying I had to go apologise to Joel Byrne, but I couldn’t. I don’t usually have problems apologising, especially when I have actually done something wrong. But the problem here wasn’t the apology, it’s the fact that Joel Byrne makes me nervous--I’ve always been eager to work out how he manages to do this, no one makes me nervous. Unfortunately, I couldn’t seem to combat my nerves or get away from the drunken sleaze before Wolf & Cub came on stage. I promised myself, if I had enough time, I’d fit in a quick hello/apology after the show before rushing to FBi.

Now to the set. It was a weird one. For one thing, Thom their bass player was absent. Replaced with someone—I forget his name now—who looks a lot like him. And I know he played the same stuff as Thom usually does, but still it felt different. Too different for me. Secondly, it was one of those sets where it seems like Joel Byrne drank too much red cordial beforehand. In some respects this kind of energy totally works, because it seems like he’s having a lot of fun, in turn, people in the crowd get into it as well. At other times, I don’t know, it seems like he isn’t enjoying it at all. Actually, no, that’s unfair. I think, it’s more that I associate, the hyper Joel Byrne with the poorer Wolf & Cub sets I’ve seen, rather than the better ones. Last time I saw them, hyper Joel Byrne really worked. This time for me, it didn’t so much. (I should probably say here:, the red cordial does wonders for his dancing—he’s no Tunde Adembimpe, but he definitely works his hips well).

That being said, the show certainly had its moments. The songs from Science and Sorcery, especially ‘Hearts’ and ‘What Are They Running’ were great. Hearing them played live has made such a difference to how I feel about the album—I think because it eliminates the presence of S&S’s (wrong) choice of Producer . On the whole, they played a really solid set, ending with one of the best versions of ‘Steal Their Gold’ I’ve heard them play in a long time. Unfortunately, they decided to play an encore. Unfortunately, they chose ‘Vessels’, a song which runs around 6 minutes long. Unfortunately, it was around 11:35. Unfortunately, I had to leave half way through. Because I left halfway through I can’t say if the encore was a good choice or not. I can say, I wished they’d left their set at ‘Steal Their Gold’. It was awesome, and it would have given me the time to seek out Joel Byrne.

I know, this whole thing seems pointless now that you find out I didn’t get to apologise, right? Right.

And Joel Byrne isn’t reading this anyway, because I told him not to, right? Right.

Hmmmmmm, I don’t think I can turn this into anything that has some kind of point.

Sorry.

(Photo credit for this entry: Macarena)

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