This is verbatim the conversation I had with my buddy before the 1/13 show in Cleveland:
Me: You still down for the insane plan of driving 2.5 hours to be transformed through the magic of polka?
Him: Ive been on the fence but Im pretty sure that will be the thing I need that day. A friend of mine died last week and their memorial will the morning of the 13th.
And we went. He had a bemused, dazed look on his face for the first part of the evening. He had been crying while driving through a snowstorm for the better part of 4 hours. Dinner was a truly awkward affair.
But then the music started. And we had a blast. The people in the room were mostly sad because the Browns lost. My buddy had a deeper kind of sadness, the kind that lingers through seasons instead of weeks. And I watched his whole demeanor gradually light up like a kid on Christmas morning. I was half-joking about being transformed through the magic of polka, but it ended up being oddly prophetic. He was so fired up after the show that we refused to call the night quits and ended up staying up drinking, singing and shooting the shit until almost 3:00AM.
You'd better believe I was hung over, dehydrated, exhausted, with a completely shot voice from loudly singing along all night. And I had to catch an 8AM flight, and the line at Cleveland Airport for security went the length of the building. Truly a miserable experience.
And yet, as I was waiting to go through security, I was watching the videos I took on my phone grinning ear to ear like some kind of sicko that gets off on airport security lines. Texting back and forth with my buddy who was on the road back to Detroit. Our net takeaway was: zero regrets, so happy we did this.
It may come across as shtick when you're doing it as an intro, but for some of us it's all too real. And this is why I stand by my weird hero-worship moment at St. Vitus, saying stuff like "thank you, sincerely, from the bottom of my heart" and "I can't tell you how much this music means to me."
It's a slog. Airports suck and they've only gotten worse. Illness sucks. Timezones suck. Lack of sleep sucks.
But don't ever doubt for a second that what you do matters to a lot of people, and don't ever doubt the genuineness of that hallelujah.
We oddly don't have that guy on the random street corner with the cardboard sign yelling out to no one in particular in my town...especially if he's bringing the light of the polka/shanty/klezmer/punk salvation to us all! Just sayin', the job's apparently open...
In all seriousness, our group of friends that attended your Pittsburgh and Cleveland shows have all mentioned how we really needed that weekend. One of the cars travelling from Erie to Pittsburgh was totalled in that snowstorm on the way to the show - no one was hurt and every single person in that car said "we're still going, right?" and carried on. We collected them and their gear and made it to the winery just in time for the "sit down, eat your dinner, and drink your beer" opening, LOL
Every single person on that trip got sick afterward, go figure - 10 people, 2 cities, 2 concerts but not a single person said they wouldn't do it again exactly the same way because - "What a great energy and vibe - I think we all NEEDED that".
Of course, we committed all of the sins of the overly excited fans and bugged you guys after the show with drunken, endless messages to come drink, etc. but I guess we were going all out because our souls NEEDED that.
I actually got chills reading this. It’s amazing how music creates community. I’m an Atheist now, but I used to be a worship leader for many years, traveling around to churches to lead, and it’s crazy how even those goofy, generic worship songs can unite a group of people in a room and everyone shares the same energy. I’ve seen that kind of thing happen again in punk rock and hardcore shows, and got a similar feeling when we saw you play in Germany. At the risk of sounding like a crystal worshipper, it really is a spiritual experience.
Bahahahah holy shit I feel like if somebody came onstage after saying 'How y'all doing tonight?' and followed it up with 'DON'T FUCKING LIE TO ME!' my first thought would be 'The fuck is this guy selling?'
Religiously I am full-blown Epicurean acolyte at this point, living close to the Blessed life of an Epicurean God (haha!). Pleasure is the guide and telos! But it all started with The Dreadnoughts and Polka Never Dies that started my revolt against the culture and began to radically shift my chronically depressed disposition. The band was the spark that lit the way towards a joyous life of friends and family. Brought me into proper adulthood of confidence, laughter and integration with history and contemporary reality. Speaking of Family, I'm dragging the wife, kids and Grandma from Kansas to Ohio in May to see the show! See ya then!
HALLELUJAH!!!
This is verbatim the conversation I had with my buddy before the 1/13 show in Cleveland:
Me: You still down for the insane plan of driving 2.5 hours to be transformed through the magic of polka?
Him: Ive been on the fence but Im pretty sure that will be the thing I need that day. A friend of mine died last week and their memorial will the morning of the 13th.
And we went. He had a bemused, dazed look on his face for the first part of the evening. He had been crying while driving through a snowstorm for the better part of 4 hours. Dinner was a truly awkward affair.
But then the music started. And we had a blast. The people in the room were mostly sad because the Browns lost. My buddy had a deeper kind of sadness, the kind that lingers through seasons instead of weeks. And I watched his whole demeanor gradually light up like a kid on Christmas morning. I was half-joking about being transformed through the magic of polka, but it ended up being oddly prophetic. He was so fired up after the show that we refused to call the night quits and ended up staying up drinking, singing and shooting the shit until almost 3:00AM.
You'd better believe I was hung over, dehydrated, exhausted, with a completely shot voice from loudly singing along all night. And I had to catch an 8AM flight, and the line at Cleveland Airport for security went the length of the building. Truly a miserable experience.
And yet, as I was waiting to go through security, I was watching the videos I took on my phone grinning ear to ear like some kind of sicko that gets off on airport security lines. Texting back and forth with my buddy who was on the road back to Detroit. Our net takeaway was: zero regrets, so happy we did this.
It may come across as shtick when you're doing it as an intro, but for some of us it's all too real. And this is why I stand by my weird hero-worship moment at St. Vitus, saying stuff like "thank you, sincerely, from the bottom of my heart" and "I can't tell you how much this music means to me."
It's a slog. Airports suck and they've only gotten worse. Illness sucks. Timezones suck. Lack of sleep sucks.
But don't ever doubt for a second that what you do matters to a lot of people, and don't ever doubt the genuineness of that hallelujah.
We oddly don't have that guy on the random street corner with the cardboard sign yelling out to no one in particular in my town...especially if he's bringing the light of the polka/shanty/klezmer/punk salvation to us all! Just sayin', the job's apparently open...
In all seriousness, our group of friends that attended your Pittsburgh and Cleveland shows have all mentioned how we really needed that weekend. One of the cars travelling from Erie to Pittsburgh was totalled in that snowstorm on the way to the show - no one was hurt and every single person in that car said "we're still going, right?" and carried on. We collected them and their gear and made it to the winery just in time for the "sit down, eat your dinner, and drink your beer" opening, LOL
Every single person on that trip got sick afterward, go figure - 10 people, 2 cities, 2 concerts but not a single person said they wouldn't do it again exactly the same way because - "What a great energy and vibe - I think we all NEEDED that".
Of course, we committed all of the sins of the overly excited fans and bugged you guys after the show with drunken, endless messages to come drink, etc. but I guess we were going all out because our souls NEEDED that.
Please preach on, and thanks again.
I actually got chills reading this. It’s amazing how music creates community. I’m an Atheist now, but I used to be a worship leader for many years, traveling around to churches to lead, and it’s crazy how even those goofy, generic worship songs can unite a group of people in a room and everyone shares the same energy. I’ve seen that kind of thing happen again in punk rock and hardcore shows, and got a similar feeling when we saw you play in Germany. At the risk of sounding like a crystal worshipper, it really is a spiritual experience.
Bahahahah holy shit I feel like if somebody came onstage after saying 'How y'all doing tonight?' and followed it up with 'DON'T FUCKING LIE TO ME!' my first thought would be 'The fuck is this guy selling?'
You should consider passing the plate during polka sermons. No telling what you might get.
Preach it, brother. Someone's gotta.
Just catching up on these awesome blogs!
Religiously I am full-blown Epicurean acolyte at this point, living close to the Blessed life of an Epicurean God (haha!). Pleasure is the guide and telos! But it all started with The Dreadnoughts and Polka Never Dies that started my revolt against the culture and began to radically shift my chronically depressed disposition. The band was the spark that lit the way towards a joyous life of friends and family. Brought me into proper adulthood of confidence, laughter and integration with history and contemporary reality. Speaking of Family, I'm dragging the wife, kids and Grandma from Kansas to Ohio in May to see the show! See ya then!