... to be alive at such a time.
It's easy to forget, especially if you're taking in the constant shitstorm that seems to be modern politics. In fact, if you are, it's more like "what a bit of terrifying fucking fate it is to be alive at such time", but there's also luck and it's important to remember that. I get downcast when the BS hits, but also propelled as good things arrive.
On Saturday, such a good moment came watching Jack White take the stage at the Troxy in London. I'd been hoping to see him live again for a few years, being blown away by the first couple of times. Though things, especially long-awaited and hoped-for things, tend to be less intense and pitch-perfect as we remember them, don't they? Not so with Jack. He brings with him such a wave of energy that you're mesmerized from the second he comes on stage. He plays, as my brother so aptly put it, like Kurt Cobain when he was 24 (although he's turning 50 in a few months). His performances on this current EU leg of the tour are short (only 85 mins or so), but electrifying. Keep you in a thrall from start to finish, as he powers through hits as well as obscurities from his several music projects.
Did I mention he changes his setlist from one night to the next? On the ride back home, I was listening to some guy who'd seen him the night before in London, also, and he mentioned several songs that JW hadn't played at this show. I imagine it must be a challenge, playing with someone like him, having to stay ready and keep jumping from one era/style to another.
He doesn't talk, and the little he did say was purposefully made to sound like gibberish, which in turn enhanced the immersion, I thought. I remembered seeing the Dropkick Murphys, whom I love, a few years ago, great outdoor gig in the Italian summer, only to have the singer stop mid-way through and start ranting about Roe v. Wade in the US. Important issues, for sure, but neither the time nor the place. Broke the immersion. Jack doesn't do that. He keeps you there, jumping, ecstatic, sharing in this fantastic musical blast with thousands of strangers you'll never see again.
To say it was worth working for the tickets would be a great understatement.
In the past, he used to do this thing where he'd have people's phones sealed in pouches on the door, so that you wouldn't be filming/texting or otherwise leaving the moment, or the people you were with. I loved it, and had hoped he would do it this time around as well, but no such luck. Interestingly enough, though, being sat quite high up, I got a great view of the crowd from above, and it didn't seem to me as many people had their phones up as they would at other shows. Maybe I just wanted to think that. Maybe I looked down at less well-known numbers (not that it mattered, the music induced such a phenomenal flowing vibe you no longer really paid attention).
Some things are worth putting your phone down for. :)
Anyway, it was a complete blast, and since today is Tuesday, I wanted to take the moment to share some tunes since @ablaze makes us think about music today :)
Smile on her face
She does what she damn well please
And she don't care about the things people used to do
And she don't care that what she does has an effect on you
She's got freedom in the 21st century
I wasn't too keen on the studio version of this, but when I heard it live, I was absolutely enthralled. About eight times wackier than in this performance above, but a good taste of an indescribable moment.
This one's actually from the night itself, though the quality isn't great. Couldn't resist this fantastic cover of The Stooges classic.
And now I'm ready to feel your hand
And lose my heart on the burning sands
Had my mind changed by these guys who were the opening act and in mid-show when we got there. When I heard their stuff blasting through the open door of the auditorium, I thought fuck me, I'm gonna go deaf in that noise. But by the end of the set I was lost to the music, even though it's not my normal cup of tea. Sometimes, that's how it is.