SHARING THE SHOWS
That first week of meetings before the school year starts in August is my least favorite of the year. After going at an easy pace for the summer, I’m essentially thrown into the deep end of a pool filled with icy water. It stays busy for the next nine months, but it does get easier after that, as I don’t have to deal with all the peacocking and rambling that come from people who are supposed to be brilliant. Anyway, that’s my rant. The Shins show was the reward to come on Friday; this would be my third time seeing them (first was in El Paso with Ellen, second was in Norfolk with Drew/Brometheus). After spending the morning in a meeting rife with ranting, rambling, and drama, followed by an afternoon running around campus trying to do those tasks we must do before class starts (why do they only give us a half-day to do these things), I hopped on the Metro to get to the show. They should L’Enfant Plaza L’Enfant Maze because that’s what it is. After navigating the labyrinth of paths, I was able to make it to Ninth Street, which helped me get to the show. I was met by a long line just before 8, to which my thought was, with my luck, this will be the night a band actually starts on time. But there was an opening act: a group called Joseph, an all-female folk rock band from Portland, Oregon (where my spirit is located). They grooved pretty hard. I’ve reiterated this ad nauseum in previous blogs, but one of the great things about going to shows solo is the ability to meet new people. When I go with others, I’m insulated so I’m not going to be as willing to branch out to talk to strangers, but solo, it’s on. Since moving to DC, I’ve connected with John W (Better Off Dead), Pete (Trey), John S (though this was at Jones Beach during our adventure trying to find an Uber post-show), and now a new friend named Dani. While on Metro, I happened to see a message in a DC-based Facebook group on saying, “Is anyone going to the Shins tonight?” Dani was going with friends, but they bailed. My thought, why the hell not? So despite my wonky Facebook settings that occur outside my house, Dani and I met up in the back of the venue near the risers after Joseph finished their set. We had a good conversation about our educational histories, work, and DC life at large. The show was, as expected, fantastic. This was the 21st anniversary of their debut album, Oh Inverted World, which they played in its entirety, some of which was accompanied by the ladies from Joseph. My memory of how I got into The Shins is a bit hazy, but I think my first time was hearing “New Slang” in Garden State, which I borrowed from the library to watch this weekend. It was nice singing that opening “Ooooooo” with the crowd in unison. After they finished that album, they played a nice mixture of deep cuts from their other albums, my favorite of which was “Phantom Limb,” off my favorite album, Wincing the Night Away, which always gives me a skingasm. “Saint Simon” is second, followed by “Australia,” to which I “pogoed,” then “Mine’s Not a High Horse.” The rest are pretty good. Before “Simple Song,” James Mercer, the lead singer, said, “We’ve got one more,” which usually means two or three. I do love “Sleeping Lessons,” of which I needed about this time last year, during this major transition from COVID. This was a fun evening, and I’m always happy to make new friends. Texting song titles into sentences with Kelly also added to it. Don’t we love social media? Less fun was trying to find L’Enfant Plaza, with some confusing directions from my phone’s map. But I did make it home, and I got this nice picture to remind me of why I choose Metro over driving for these occasions: And the introvert in me does love when shows end early (10:30). Note to every jam band…
Just kidding. No, not really.
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May 2024
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