No More Malaise

Hauling yourself out of bed for a show on a Saturday doesn't seem like a difficult task until you're jumping up in terror, realizing that the blare of your last-line-of-defense alarm indicates that you have thirty minutes before you have to be in the car.

I've found that the onus of Friday night outings place a malaise over the weekend, in whatever form, that makes Saturday as unproductive as the night of revelry before. We often use the excuse, "Well, it's the weekend." Or maybe we try, "I need today to recover from yesterday." So on the way to our gig at Dance Marathon I think we all felt pretty lousy having fallen into that lethargic pattern for which we really have no excuse. Thankfully the show blew that feeling out of the water.

Dance Marathon 2011, courtesy of The Stanford Daily

Pete's new bass amp may have been the trick. Or it could have been the eroticism with which he gyrated on "Birthday Sex." My personal guess was that it was a combination of factors. In recent practices, we have been emphasizing watching each other and forming a band dynamic. With eyes locked every once in a while (like we actually like each other), we maintain a much smoother groove. The rhythm is all there.

During this show, I checked out my band mates more than I ever have (*wolf whistle*). I can still picture the color of Pete's curly locks when we latched onto each other musically and visually during the breakdown of "Do It Again". Try me. Send in a response and I'll provide an intimate description.

Finding Jupiter is making more and more progress. Beyond the frequent practices which are, clearly, paying off, we have begun to communicate our ideas and articulate our interests more candidly. The rhythm section is taking on more of the band's mantle, helping to organize press releases and composing new music to diversify our repertoire. It's an exciting time.

A gig is a gig, and an audience is an audience. We were rocking to a small crowd at DM, but those who were there saw one of our best performances to date. As selfish individuals, we love to see screaming fans, packed venues, and a couple of pieces of thrown lingerie. But as a musical ensemble, as entertainers, we simply want to perform the music that we have written to its full potential to make those watching us enjoy the show as much as possible. Finding Jupiter, in my opinion, is becoming that sort of ensemble.

If we can keep playing shows like that, I don't think that I'll have another unproductive Saturday again. Thanks, DM. Let's "Do It Again" next year.

Taylor