vince mira live @ kexp 4/29/09

i used to do this thing when i was younger.

no matter what show i went to i always tried to hang around and meet the band after they played. i'm not sure why i did this exactly; it wasn't your typical fan-out scenario:

i wasn't trying to sneak backstage to catch a whif of the culture club or have a beer with mick jagger -i was seeing shows that were small. if the bands at these shows had any merch they were usually trying to hawk it themselves right off stage. if there was a stage.



i'm sure alot of kids that grew up listening to punk and it's subsidiaries probably did this. the small show-culture seems to nurture this kind of behavior.




i feel fortunate to have learned about music in this way.



i found skateboarding and punk rock which led me to california, which led to free shows in libraries, basements and living rooms. microphones held together with duct tape and couches stacked on top of each other.

the intimacy of it all just made it feel so special. this is ours. it's weird, knowing i could go watch a favorite band play then tell them how it impacted me completely roped me into music. putting eyes, voices and mannerisms to these songs somehow made the music mine. made it real.





somewhere along the line i started going to bigger shows and seeing bands that were less likely to mingle. maybe i became less likely to mingle. adult mingling has never been my forte. eventually i stopped shaking hands with bands. even still, there is a thread of those early years that still flows through my choices today. sure i listen to david bowie and morrissey but most of the music i latch onto - the stuff i dig my hooks into - is made by real people.

shooting musicians in the kexp studios has made realize all of this. that little studio could be a basement or living room. i think i shook 17 year old vince mira's hand at least twice. this kid is real. and for real.

if you haven't heard of vince you should check out his website here. his is one of those "uhm, wait that voice comes out of you?" type situations.



i was really glad to hear him play almost entirely original compositions. if you are fortunate enough to live in the pacific northwest, vince plays every Tuesday (for now) at the Can-Can in Seattle.

He is also playing this year's Sasquatch Festival - attached are some photos from Wednesday's session. it was awesome.