Yesterday was lots of fun! I was a bit worried, because Ty and I were going to see the bands Rise Against and Rancid at an outdoors venue, so although I really wanted to see Rise Against again (they're one of my favorite bands (you may remember me talking about them when I
saw them back in December)) it was also rainy, which isn't so much fun when you're standing outside.
Since it was downtown, and my mom also had to pick my sister up and drive her downtown a bit later (Emi's drum teacher, who's a really cool guy, offered to have her sell her handmade stuff between sets at the place where his band plays), she dropped Ty and I off at a Metro (also know in other places as the train/subway) station, and we headed downtown! It was rather funny, by the time we got to the last leg of our commute, it was so obvious that the great majority of people on the train with us were also heading to the same punk concert we were! When we got there, the opening band, The Riverboat Gamblers, were about halfway through their set, so we watched them for a while. They were pretty good! However, it was raining pretty hard at the start, so even though I had a raincoat on, I still got pretty wet. Wet, but not cold, so I was still quite cheerful. :-) Next came Rancid. They're good! I'd only ever heard a few of their songs, so I didn't enjoy them as much as I could have, but I really want to hear more of their music now...
By the time Rancid finished, it was getting pretty dark, it had stopped raining for the most part (yay!), and you could feel the crowd energy rising. The crowd was definitely made up mostly of Rise Against fans! We stood around waiting, feeling the occasional cool rain drops on our face, breathing in the tons of secondhand marijuana smoke (there were seriously TONS of people smoking weed! I was amazed at the joint to cigarette ratio, since there really weren't many people smoking cigarettes at all. We were even offered some for free, though we turned it down of course. ;-) (Seriously, we did turn it down. Unknown dealer=bad idea!)), hearing the intermittent chants of "Rise Against!", and waiting with excitement. We worked our way right up into the front of the crowd, where we'd have a good view. When they finally came on, the crowd went wild! I was very happy to have the earplugs that we'd brought (always a good idea to have at concerts!). We had a great time, jumping up and down, singing along loudly, and getting bumped into nearly constantly by people. I've never really been in "the pit" at a concert before, and it can get pretty rough. You have to be aware of the people around you, keep your arms up to easily protect your head and upper torso, and not mind being squashed against multiple people! Except for one jerk who literally smashed into people with no care for injury, everyone was really cool though. The worst injuries I got were frequently squished toes and a fairly light elbow to the throat (and in the latter case, I instantly had a complete strangers hand on my shoulder and a concerned query if I was alright. As I said, most people were really cool. :-)). It also helped that there was very little real moshing, and when there was we were careful to stay out of it! At the closest, there was only one person between us and the barrier in front of the stage. It was really cool to have the lead singer actually that close, and singing straight to those of us right in front! :-D We ended up moving to a safer location later on in the show, when the aforementioned jerk moved into our area, but it was still a good spot.
After the concert ended, we stumbled into the packed Metro caked in dirt (the rain had made the ground very mushy, to say the least), sweat (ours and others), and beer (one time when someone threw their cup over the crown, I actually got beer in my eye. Ouch+eww) bruised, sore, tired, and smelling strongly of weed. We went to a station (still in town) where we were picked up by my mom and brought to the place where Emi's drum teacher, Nick's (not the Nick I've talked about previously, a different Nick :-P), band was playing (their set only started at 12:00). They are a really fricken' good jazz band! I loved their music. Apparently the previous two bands that had played before were good as well, so although Emi hadn't sold anything, she'd enjoyed the music. My one problem with the evening: a university student ended up hanging out with Emi for a while, and he was TOTALLY hitting on her. My little sister. Getting hit on. By a guy in his early twenties!!! He thought she was older than she was, and she made no move to tell him otherwise. Instead, she gloated at me, since I'd informed her she would never pass for 18, and she did. *Grumbles* But big sister over protectiveness aside, it was a great evening. :-P Frequently, Ty and I would wander out and wander around the street. Ty got something to eat, a slightly drunken guy played us a song on a ukulele, and, considering, he was pretty good! When Ty handed him a couple of dollars, the ukulele player happily informed us that it was enough for another beer. Oh dear. :-P
By the time we headed home, it was about 2:30. We said goodbye, told the band how much we'd enjoyed them, made plans for Emi to attempt to sell her stuff at the bands next gig, and headed to the car. We then proceeded to get lost almost instantly. Since we got lost near one of Montreal's well renowned bagel stores (one that's open 24/7), we picked up a dozen deliciously fresh bagels. "It's okay that we're lost" we giggled in cheerful tiredness. "It's an adventure... WITH BAGELS!!" Said Emi happily. "Every adventure is better with bagels.", I agreed with my mouth full. We also saw a depaneur (corner store) advertising that they were open 25 hours a day... Hmm, someone seems to be unclear on the concept. I also broke my personal record for how late I'd stayed downtown!
When we finally got home at about 3:40, I took a quick shower to get rid of the concert grime, then collapsed in bed. I slept until past 3:00 this afternoon, and I still feel tired! But it was a very good time had by all last night. :-)
Peace,
Idzie
