Bradley's Buzz

Missed Again

There are numerous reasons I always wanted to live in LA, but a pretty big one has to be the fact that there are always surprise appearances by bands, cool bands that always missed the big fairground concerts of Wausau, Wisconsin. It's always been my goal to hit all these special shows, to see Beck pop up at a Silverlake lounge and what not, but it seems with all these great suprise shows I'm always the last to know or the least likely to actually see them.

Last night I booked my ass home from work, changed clothes and headed out the door to Amoeba Records in Hollywood to buy the new Tegan & Sara album The Con and to see a very special mini concert the girls were giving at the store. Yet another of those cool last minute surprises LA has to offer - a few weeks ago friggin' Paul McCartney played at the store! Anyway, as I got to the store I found a very disturbing thing - a friggin' line! Not just a line but a line around the corner all waiting to see the 6 pm Tegan & Sara show.

Thinking I'm so smart and cute I bypassed the line and headed to the door where a big security man informed me I could not just walk into the store and had to wait in line. So there I was walking past the million and one 16 year old alterna bois and girls. I waited and waited and then I called the Leivas to inform him I would pick up dinner - that's right it was my night to cook. This is when a man came walking to us and asked if we had heard the announcement yet? Looking around me I figured he was going to inform me anyone over the age of 25 was free to walk into the store so we didn't dehydrate and fall over in the heat, but alas that was not it - he told us that the store was at complete capacity and only a few of the hundred or so people ahead of us were going to get in.

I was peeved for it was the first show I had actually remembered and made an actual attempt to get there. As I was driving home it occured to me that I really am so lucky to live in LA because of all these great surprise and cheap (if not free) shows, and then it occured to me that I've missed every single one of the great surprise and cheap (if not free) shows I wanted to see.

So here's a run down of the things I've missed so far -
Rooney at the Roxy for $10. (I forgot to buy tickets and the day they played it was sold out)
Two (yes two!) surprise Courtney Love live performances
Paul McCartney at Ameoba
True Colors tour with Debbie & Cyndi (I was too cheap)
A $5 Metal show at the Roxy where audience member P!nk jumped on stage and sang a Guns n Roses song

I'm sure there's more but I just can't bear to think about it - at least I saw Josie Cotton, Joan Jett, the Motels and Berlin at Pride - maybe when Tegan & Sara and Courtney are on the oldies circuit I'll finally see them.

Labels: Life In La La Land

posted by swivek @ 12:02 PM