Bon Iver at the Troubador

I have to admit that the entire day of the show I was giddy like a little girl at a pony ranch. I'm a huge fan of Bon Iver's music and I've listened to their entire album well over a dozen times.
With that said...

Last night there was nothing in the world that could have diverted my attention from what was taking place onstage - I was entirely captivated by this performance. I've never seen four musicians weave such delicate tapestries of vocal and instrumental harmony and then, seconds later, melt your face (and heart) with some of the most passionate displays of rocking out that I've ever experienced.

This was, hands down, the most enjoyable show I've ever attended.
For me, it encompassed more than just the musical aspect of the performance. Bon Iver's stage presence was laid-back, honest and refreshingly authentic. Justin Vernon encouraged audience participation and politely interacted when "that guy" in the crowd yelled out something idiotic between songs. My favorite part (aside from the music) was toward the end of the set when Justin candidly admitted their plans for an encore, saying something like, "we all know that bands go off-stage and then come back and play some more, so we're gonna go upstairs for a few minutes, take a piss, then come back and play two more songs..."

My absolute favorite moment in the show was when Justin asked the audience to participate in a song called "The Wolves." He gave instructions to start singing a simple line during the second half of the song and to steadily build until the very end when everyone should just start yelling as loud as possible. I'm sure some were skeptical at first, but it came together powerfully and beautifully and at the end of the song, intense cheers erupted. I never thought that a room full of people yelling their heads off could be so beautiful and therapeutic.

This show has sealed the deal between myself and Bon Iver. In the future, I will see every show I possibly can and I will purchase (not copy from a friend) every album they ever make. These are musicians I feel privileged to support.

At Last...

I sort-of have an announcement to make:

After way too much time, I've finally signed up for a myspace music profile and I've finally posted a song. For those who haven't yet visited the page, I must give a disclaimer: it's not an original song, and yes, I do have originals, they just aren't recorded yet.

Now I must also say that every other forum I've used to announce this has just been to get the word out. But I'll use this space to keep it real.

This is a strange moment for me because I've been pretty apprehensive about this whole music thing (at least when it comes to my own creation/performance). I love music more than a good deal of other things and I have this fear that if I pursue it as a means of financial support I'll be inclined to fall out of love with it. Another example of this would be if I got a job at Taco Bell. On the list of "Things Kevin Loves," Taco Bell is just below music, but if I worked there I would probably get sick of it, right? So that's my theory (which is probably bogus, but nonetheless, that's where I'm at right now).

The other things that have been keeping me from jumping off the diving block include all the usual items (fear of acceptance, fear of vulnerability, fear of outright rejection, etc.). But, fortunately for me, I have amazing friends and family who have been so supportive that I almost have no choice but to jump. It's like they were forcing me to walk the plank, which sounds like a bad thing under normal circumstances, but for me it's been necessary and very, very good.

Here's the url:

www.myspace.com/kevinlemosmusic

I hope you enjoy the song because that's why I posted it.

no title

I'm sitting in the computer lab at school, and the thought just occurred to me that this is probably the last time I'll ever set foot in this room.
That makes me very, very happy.

I don't hate school, or anything. I'm just tired of being tied to hollow obligations - like class attendance and homework. I'm also sick of looking at the venetian blinds in this room that are always closed. I also can't stand using the shitty computers here. Sometimes they're so slow that it can take several minutes just to open a word document. I'm not exaggerating.
It's especially infuriating when all you need is to print out a paper that's due in five minutes. Anyways...

This chapter of my life is about to close, and during the next chapter I'll spend all my time whining about how college was so great and that I wished I could go back. That's what everyone tells me, at least. I guess we'll see what happens.

A Little Older, a Little Less Wise

It's been awhile since my last post, but a whole lot has happened between then and now. I don't feel quite as happy as I did then, but then again, I have quite a bit more on both my plate and mind. Maybe my somber mood has something to do with the fact that I'm listening to Sigur Ros, but lately I've felt like I'm in slow motion and everything else has sped up to the point where I can't do anything about it.

This Sunday I'm going to do something that scares me to death. I'm planning on performing some of my own music for the first time outside of kumbaya guitar circles among friends. I'm only singing 4 songs, and I'm not worried that I'll pass out or anything, but we all have concerns about being accepted. I shouldn't say that this will be the first time I've ever done something like this - in high school I was in a band and we played a few shows in front of way more people than I'll play for anytime soon. But still. I'm nervous.

I'm also graduating from college in a month.
These six years have just flown by...
My family is coming down for that and I'll be happy to see them. I just know that I'll be really tired that week since there isn't anyone else my family can visit while they're down here. Plus the graduation ceremony will be really miserable - it's scheduled for 8AM on a Tuesday in May in Northridge (it'll probably be really hot). But I'll try to make the best of it.

Two of my friends are getting married in July.
That will be one of the more enjoyable events of the year.

That's all for now.

Memoirs (Reprise)

I just found out that Huey broke the new shredder that we bought to replace the other one he had previously broken.

I just don't know what to think when people do things like that.
Sometimes you can look at a person who severely lacks common sense and say, "That guy would totally die if he got lost in the woods."

Memoirs of a Non-Profit Worker - Episode IV

I work at a local Boys & Girls Club. I have to admit that it's the coolest job ever. My typical job duties include hanging out with kids, playing music with and teaching music to kids, recording kids playing music...anything that involves kids and music, really. This is the only job I've ever had where I can be playing a guitar and say that I'm working (and not be lying).

Lately I've been helping out with finance and accounting work in the mornings before the kids get out of school. This is great because it breaks the monotany that has built up over the last two years of working at the Club (although, when you work with kids, you generally don't get too bored - kids can detect boredom and respond by being noisy and/or obnoxious).

Yesterday I worked on my coolest office assignment yet - shredding old documents. For several hours I got to destroy box after box of old reciepts, bank account records, etc.
It was awesome.

The best part, however, was when I got the opportunity to work with a guy who had just started working there. I'll call him Huey because he reminds me of Baby Huey (keep in mind that he is a grown man with a college degree - it's relevant to the story). We were stuck in the basement shredding papers and, despite prior warnings, Huey decided that it would be a good idea to shred 30+ documents in a shredder that explicitly says "24 sheets" on the front of it.
Well, guess what?...it broke.

The best part wasn't the fact that the new guy broke the expensive shredder - it's what he said right afterward. After Huey realized what he had done, he broke out this great little gem:

"Well, I sure feel like a horse's patoot..."

I almost laughed in his face when my brain finally registered that a grown man had just substituted the word "ass" with "patoot." I know that some people don't feel comfortable using profanity - and that's fine. I just think some substitutions for cuss-words are really funny.
Shredding papers was awesome, but Huey's comment was awesomer.

College...and then?

Soon and very soon I will be making a certain journey across a graduation stage. I will shake hands with someone I have never met and a piece of paper will be pressed into my hand - a piece of paper that says I'm smarter than all the people who don't have one like it, but not quite as smart as the people who have more of them than I do.

I don't know how to feel about graduation but different people tell me different things regarding how I should feel. My family members (most of whom do not have college degrees) say that I should be proud and excited while many graduates have told me that I should prolong my college career because the real world is much more demanding and difficult than being a student.

The main thought/fear/worry that looms over my head right now is what to do after I graduate. Sure, I'm excited about never having to take another exam, write another report, study another flashcard...oh, but wait. That's a total lie. I'll still have to do all that but, from now on, the stakes will be much higher than which letters end up on my college transcript.

After graduation I'll probably get a full-time job that will take more than "full time." But regardless of who ends up giving me a paycheck, I'm pretty certain that I'll survive, so I can't complain.