"Hello Better Days" Gig Review
It’s still surreal. It’s been about 2 years since I last attended a gig so I’m a bit rusty. Okay, a lot rusty. So much so that I was nervous. “What settings do I use, again?” “How do I change batteries?” “How do I edit these, again?” “How do I post all of these?” Just a lot of insecurity brought about by lack of practice. This also showed in the performances. Forgotten lyrics, technical difficulties, mishaps - all bad things that have returned because we’ve all lacked practice. But there were good things too - raw energy, people singing along, meeting friends. These were all the things I missed about live gigs and thought I’d never see for a long time.
The venue was new for me but a place I have heard of. Motorista Bar is a humble place with a simple set-up. The “stage” is on the same level as the general area with the tables taking up most of the space leaving the moshable area about 2 rows deep - 3 if you’re feeling giddy. Of course, that didn’t stop the “kids” and actual kids from having fun.
The Charmes opened the night with a really lively post-punk set that set the tone for the evening. Next up were Paper Satellites, playing new songs from their upcoming album and keeping the energy going. Bird Dens made their first full band appearing with Nica Feliciano on bass duties and bringing their suave and groovy music to the masses. (formerly Maryknoll) finally made their irl debut after garnering a cult following since their inception during the pandemic. Their quirkiness still showed as well as some lack of live experience but their ability to make their students/choir (if that’s what we’re calling their fans) sing along will take them far. Having members of Parlor Parlor and Hazylazy in the band will also help with taking their live sound to another level. Superband spacedog spacecat also made their irl debut playing all their fuzzed out singles for everyone’s enjoyment. We Are Imaginary closed out the show with their usual set. A set I - and their fans - are very familiar with but haven’t heard in years, bringing a very “welcome home” vibe to the evening.
It’s hard to put emotions into words. There are a lot of things to be said for seeing and feeling something again after a very long time. More than the music, this event brought back a lot of what live music is really about - the sense of community. It felt more like a reunion than a gig and I do hope that we will see better days.
Check out the performances below!
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