Live Shows

This past weekend was very busy. On Friday night after work I met with friends and had dinner, on Saturday I went to a punk rock concert in a small live house, and on Sunday I met with a friend and went to the ocean. All of these were a lot of fun, but I wanted to write about the concert.

A friend from work is a big fan of Japanese punk rock, and last time he took me to one of the shows, since he knew I was interested in Japanese rock music too. I blogged a little about that concert here (scroll down to "Rock Concert").
I really loved one of the bands, Vision, so of course when my friend told me they are playing again, I wanted to go.

There were 7 bands playing that night. The first one was interesting, the ones that followed were not the kind of music I usually listen to, then there was one more that I really enjoyed, and finally it was Vision's turn—they were playing last. I've already been to a similar concert, so I guess at least I wasn't surprised as much, but still, the concerts here are so different than what I imagined. Since I didn't blog so much last time about what the concert was like, I'll write now about my impressions of both.
I've never been to small live houses in Toronto, like that one on Bloor street (whatever it's called), so I really didn't know what to expect, but certainly I didn't expect anything at all like what the concerts turned out to be. The live house was rather small, maybe about the size of the Timmys on Bloor St. next to OISE. Sorry for such a weird comparison, I really couldn't think of a better place to compare it with—the atmosphere was of course completely different. The light inside was pretty dim, and people were smoking a lot, but that's probably pretty normal for live houses around here. There was a stage at the front, and no seats, everyone just stands and watches the show. If the band is particularly...hmmm... what's a good word? particularly energetic, then it's not a good idea to be in the front, unless you want to jump around, because everyone at the front is really excited, and jumps, and the musicians sometimes get down from the stage and into the front of the crowd, and do crazy things (haha, yes, if you want to know more, you will have to wait until my novel is done :P, I am not going to elaborate here).
Depending on the band people would sing along, and jump around, and cheer, but in general it's a very interesting atmosphere—everyone is really excited, and if you like the band, it feels really good to participate.
The first time I went I really didn't expect the concert to be so interactive. Before, after, and even during the concert the musicians would be there together with the people watching, and it's really quite an experience, something completely different from just listening to recordings.
I got to talk to some of the musicians both last time and this time, and they are all very friendly guys and girls. Both this time and last we were invited to come to the after-party, and it was really interesting talking to everyone.

Anyways, I am getting really sleepy, so I'll stop here. I might write more on my private blog, but before I go, I just wanted to say that music-wise I am really glad to be in Japan. Um, there's quite some progress in my research for the novel too, haha ;).

^ ^