take me back

this may make me sound like i'm a pre-teen. i recognize that. and today, i'm okay with it.

i am so pleased.

i just made the perfect playlist for my mood. i am so happy how it completes the perfect feeling for this morning. it consists specifically of older songs that i used to listen to on repeat. at one point in my life (early college?) they made me really happy. and then new music took over and i just didn't really listen a whole lot again because i tend to saturate myself with my current favorite bands since there's just so much good music.

hearing old songs is like greeting close friends again after you haven't seen them in a long time.
you never realize how much you've missed them til you're with them again.

i listened to the first 4 songs consecutively and now i'm listening to the rest on shuffle.

if you'd like to listen:

this outfit worked

a continuation from the last....

tonight, on the other hand,

i felt so very alive.

it started out with a really good night drive to a music night, 

and discovered so many friends there that i just really like a whole bunch. 

and it ended with a dance after-party. 

a really, really good dance after-party. 

and i felt so very much myself, 

dancing with those people down in that happy basement. 

i have no idea what i looked like, 

(in fact, i feel i may have looked ridiculous at times 

and potentially physically terrible by the end) 

but that's what fit me best tonight.

and i wouldn't have worn anything different.

white flag

::july 29, 2011::

i had been asked on a date by a friend. i stipulated that i could only go if we went to a battle of the bands to hear a band i'd heard was amazing. either that, or i'd have to go with him some other time. he agreed to the concert.

we doubled with one of my best friends and her date. i wasn't quite sure what to expect, but i was familiar with the venue and happy to be at a concert. i don't remember much about the first bands, but i'm sure they were good.

the time came for the band i'd heard about to play. as we stood there, close to the left side of the stage, i was overcome with something i hadn't expected. this music....this music was different. it was all instrumental--but i hardly noticed. there was something different about this band. something about the energy and the combination of rock band instruments plus a violin and cello...?! and the passion with which they played. i was stunned. i found myself standing there, transfixed with their music, but somehow in my own world, separate from the crowd i was standing in.

i left the concert on a high, feeling that something in my life had shifted just a little bit. and it felt good.

it's been a year and a half since i first heard searching for celia play that battle of the bands. i have since attended almost every concert they've played, first as an unashamed groupie, and eventually as a friend to each of the band members. but always because of my love for and belief in their music. i'd say that my regular attendance was because i'm a supportive friend, but many times it's been purely selfish: i need to hear their music. it does something for my soul that nothing else can tap into.

as i've listened more and more and have become more involved with their band, i realize that it has something to do with this:

as far as music goes, i guess you could say i'm primarily a "singer". at least i used to be. i grew up singing and in high school choir was my "thing". i've lost the majority of my ability since i let visual art consume my college life, but point is: i used to feel that i needed lyrics.

however, searching for celia made me realize the amazing effects of really quality instrumental music. specifically, instrumental music that really connects with me. because of the lack of lyrics, their music doesn't dictate specific things i should think about. rather it invokes feelings, filtering and directing my own thoughts--providing them a passage through which to flow, with momentum to do so. i suppose this could be true with any instrumental music, but searching for celia invigorates and excites me.

i often live too much in my head, and if left to my own thoughts, i can sometimes stay on one idea and stew. other times, that thought mixes with just a couple others and goes in circles. both are not terribly helpful and sometimes they can be destructive to my happiness or productivity.

since my interest in searching for celia stemmed, i've branched into other groups in the post-rock genre. not all the bands i've experienced have held my interest. i've only recently realized a reason why, though this is only one component. but here's the idea: the ones that i love and hold my interest are those which have distinct melodies or thoughts behind them. they're not just noise. their songs travel an emotional journey, exploring all kinds of feelings, dynamics and tempos, always with an actual recognizable melody, and are diverse enough to beckon you to come with them. and you want to.

that's my current thought, and it might not make sense in words, but i guess that's kind of the point. you'd just have to experience it.

~*~

last week, searching for celia released their first album! of course i attended their album release concert, which i might add, was sold out. i'm sorry if you weren't there; you missed out on an amazing experience. however, to console you, here's a link to find out more about how to purchase their album. and here is a music video for the first track on their album.

and yeah. you're welcome. :)

cannons ready

happy finals week times!!

this finals week is by far the most chill finals week i have ever experienced. EVER.
so i decided to dedicate this post to more important matters.

i give you, the top ten bands i've listened to this past semester ::

{image source}

1. jónsi
2. searching for celia
3. book on tape worm
4. youth lagoon
5. arcade fire
6. mumford and sons
7. explosions in the sky
8. the glitch mob
9.  album leaf
10. ratatat

honorable mentions ::
quiet company
quasi-stellar radio
imagine dragons

rapidly getting up there ::
vampire weekend
brandon flowers

i tried to name the top ten in order from band likely most listened to --> band likely least listened to. but i decided i couldn't really figure that out so don't mind the order too much. but it's probably sorta accurate.

a lot of it is more ambient/post-rock/chill (yeah, those can be different categories) because i spent a good chunk of the semester in the library researching and writing my paper. i found some of this stuff was mind-revving but not too distracting (maybe helpful for all you poor souls having to study for finals!).

the honorable mentions are mainly because had i discovered them sooner, i'd have listened to them more by now. the last category are bands i knew about but just started paying attention to.

what are some bands you're listening to?

up with the birds

preface: i got out of class early and walked to my car. the overcast sky was a bit chilly and sprinkled a bit of rain. but as i drove, the sky got brighter in its overcast state. as i neared my home, admiring the valley from that one view, coldplay came on my iPod singing this song. i could tell it was going to be a longer drive home than i'd originally intended. and i was perfectly fine with that.

i drove to a road where i could better view the sun and west sky, playing that song over and over. the following is the stream of consciousness which resulted.

4:40ish pm--

okay. 

currently i've pulled over on the side of the road just to sit here and type. i'm situated in the passenger's side of the car, because i have a better view and there's no steering wheel for my laptop to fight.

here's why.

obviously, it's been a hard few weeks for me. but i'm learning that amidst trials, to not stifle the sunshine spots that come along the way. 

literally. 

because here's what i'm experiencing from inside my car (in the order of which i'm noticing them from this point on): 

raindrops on the windshield and windows 

fog on the windows, thanks to my malfunctioning defroster

a hilly road ahead

an orchard on the left

with the skeleton of an old barn

an old neighborhood on the right

and chris martin is crooning "everything's not lost".

the driver's side window is down; i smell rain. walking to my car about half an hour ago, i discovered my new favorite smell: rain and campfire smoke. it wafted by only briefly, a moment or two; that's all it took. done. new favorite.

the air is slightly cool and completely clear. still smells of fresh rain. it's perfect. 

a guy just passed me on his run. he has huge headphones; i wonder what he's listening to. 

good for him! gosh, what i wouldn't give to go running right now. 

the sun is thinking about setting. but not yet. it's stunning. it's in the southwestern sky, completely diffused by clouds, however still super white and completely radiant. white light, not yellow. makes me wonder if this is a similar light quality as in joseph's vision. there are no traces of the mountains -- the mist completely covers them. for all i know, it's the inversion, but it's beautiful and i honestly don't care. it feels so fresh here.  

the gradient in the valley is super subtle: a beautiful light blue into gray into white and there are some yellowish tones above; the warms mixing with cools make it exquisite. 

cars pass here and there. it's nice to listen to them come and go. 

i love how the bare trees of this orchard across the way look: so stark and sharp, backdropped against the silky smooth sky. 

"life in technicolor"…love this song. brings back happy memories.

sun just broke through the clouds and now it's in my eyes. i'm not moving. nope, not one bit. i love the feel of sun on my face, even if it's direct sunlight.

this documentation doesn't do justice to any of this, but it's the only way i can share it, since no one is here to share it with me. which usually feels a little bittersweet. but gratefully, not as much this time. 

oh, coldplay….

it's interesting to feel the sun dim and re-light my face. 

speaking of my face, i just noticed its reflection on my computer screen; I didn't realize i'm half-smiling. a smirk, kind of. this is just a really nice place to be. 

yes. this one. 

the sun is back to being radiant and bright, creating an amazing looking rim-light on the bare trees. 

  

my fingers are cold. coldish. but it feels good and i like the clicking sound of typing, juxtaposed with the cars passing, the music playing, and the feel of the bass on the ground for my feet to enjoy.

aaand the perfect song to end my documentation by….

"a rainy day comes round, sometimes i just want it to slow down…"

anyway. wish you were here. 

seriously. 

postscript: 

as i pulled in my driveway, i looked up and saw one single bird silhouetted on the wire against the deep blue sky above my house to greet me. thinking of the original song i'd heard that propelled me to drive on, i grinned and thought this rather fitting to end my little afternoon jaunt. 

and then to my dismay

on saturday afternoon, jeff put it perfectly: it's as if there are so many thoughts trying to crowd onto the stage of my mind, that they're all just crammed in the wings so none of them even stand a chance of debuting on stage.

i was planning on articulating some thoughts over chocolate, which usually works, but the words didn't form like they usually do. so it was a more silent, photography-filled chocolate this time around.

and the cazookie was ridiculously tasty.

but i left with still too many thoughts and not enough thought-space in my head, with no pensieve in sight.

that night i was still meh-feeling and made a last-minute decision to attend a concert. that's where things changed. it was as if i'd given these bands all of my unorganized thought fragments -- of confusion, joy, worry, ache, melancholy, excitement, grief, wonder -- and asked them to process and synthesize them for me. and then, if they would, to please spit them back out into something beautiful. 

and they did. without me even asking.

even now, i'm still reflecting upon and soaking in the after-goodness.

chocolate photos are unedited and were shot on jeff's amazing canon powershot s90, which is rad.

concert details to come later. be very excited. 

when you're still waiting for the snow to fall

i'm done with finals! .....kind of. long story; you'll hear about it soon.

for now, though, i wanted to remember that it is december: it is Christmas. and i LOVE Christmas! And the accompanying holiday music......well, when it's good. and since i've have been and continue to be caught up with finals and other such stresses, music is the one thing that reminds me that regardless of stressful things, it's still Christmas time.

mariah reminded me of this song and video, and i remembered how much i like it:


for a lot of reasons. by the way, mariah's been posting lots of Christmas music, so you should check out her picks.

speaking of which, what Christmas music are you rocking out to? i wouldn't complain if you leave a link or two in the comments. :) 

iridescent light

i've been experiencing a lot of different emotions lately.

they are emotions i've felt before, but funneled through different experiences i've never experienced, it's almost as though they become new emotions.

dealing with them has been...challenging.

for example, today i left class early because my headache was getting worse. mariah picked me up and dropped me off. i'm safe in my home now, but i still feel very...unstable. against better judgment, i would have gone for a run but my headache is almost a migraine. so, next best thing: i put on my dance clothes and danced. i have no idea what it looked like (which is usually an obvious and essential part of dance) but it felt good. i got a little bit of relief there. not as much as i usually do, because of my limited physical condition, and i only danced to one song. and sure enough, when i sat down, my headache was back with a vengeance. so now i'm sitting here, writing this all out with pounding in my head, just so i can record yet another very human moment.

i had known exactly what song i wanted to dance to; it was a song that i heard over a year ago in carnegie hall, composed by eric whitacre. there is one line in the song that explains how i often feel so perfectly, and its melody has kind of haunted me since. after hearing it live once, then replaying it in my head for over a year, i don't know why i didn't look it up until 15 minutes ago.

but that's a different story for a different time. sufficeth to say, treading unfamiliar water is always difficult and you tend to breathe in a lot of chlorine (or salt, or whatever is in the water) but breathing is a sign that at least you're still alive. and living is, well, important.

with no disrespect to the &

last* night i attended my fifth tally hall concert.

...can you tell?

*by 'last night', i meant july 27th. as usual, i wrote this post back then and the pictures took a while. 

you now have THREE options (this is kind of like a choose-your-own-adventure post!!)

1. if you already know about tally hall, collect $200 (which you provide yourself) pass go (GO!), and skip to number 4. if not, go to number 2 or 3.

2. check out the first post i wrote about them which discusses our tally hall history in more detail. (2a. read that post, read jeff's post linked from that one, then come back here and skip to number 4.)

3. keep reading if you're too lazy decide not to click that. 

A. on sept 20, 2007, jeff and i went to a guster concert. he wanted to take me to a tmbg one, but i was < 21. so. guster it was, because he won free tickets. cool. i liked guster. however, the second opener was who peaked our interest. five dudes who dressed in slacks, white button-ups and skinny ties. jeff loved them right away. i was intrigued, started diggin their music, and was sold when one of the guys, rob, forgot the words right in the middle of a fast rap part and stopped singing, proclaimed he was kicking himself out of the band, and hopped off stage into the audience, with his head down in a mock-shame. omgoodness. love.

B. we've since been to five shows. after each, we have taken a photo with the band (it first started with me and jeff and alie and stephen, and rob). each time, we've added the people with whom we attended, as well as another band member. we call it, THE PICTURE. (creative, yes? why yes, it is. when you put it in all caps and say it like we do.)

4. let's catch up...
the third and fourth concerts were especially epic. (summed up: they performed at an elementary school in provo, due to cheryl's classroom, jeff's persuasion, and a dang cool principal). that day turned out to be an adventure. and i turned it into a blog saga (blaga?):

part I: lunch with the band

part II: the classroom

part III: the kiddie concert

part IV: the big kids' concert

part V: the after-party

5. so, yesterday.

we went to see them again. jeff and i are kind of the self-proclaimed tally hall pioneers of this town. so of course, he flew up from texas to see it with our friends. this is the only tour the band is doing for their new album, good & evil. we couldn't miss it. and it was fantastic. 

concert highlights: 

1. when we were in line and rob and andrew walked by in normal clothes (most don't recognize them out of their typical tally hall uniforms). they totally recognized us and greeted us. i felt pretty good about that. jeff and i chilled and photo'd outside before doors opened. 

2. i decided i really needed a ballpoint mustache for no apparent reason. soon i curated some for all my friends there, too. that's really why i'm an artist. 

we decided to "mustache"(now a verb) one of the opening acts, casey shea. we stood there with mustaches showing, and in the middle of his song, he laughed and said into the mic, "i need a picture of that!" 

so here it is, casey. here it is. 

3. casey shea turned out to be pretty awesome. super friendly with the audience, talented performer and all around nice guy. really genuine. 

4. the other band, speak, was really good. ...though they looked like they were 12 years old. and the bassist: harry potter in college?  

5. bora opened the show! he's pretty fantastic and i really enjoyed talking with him after the show.

6. we kept mustaching. of course.

7. tally hall: oh how i heart them. loved hearing the new songs and still being able to sing along.

8. jeff won a competition and got to go on stage and play a weird instrument thingy! when he was done, rob complimented him on his use of his personality while using the instrument. apparently lots of people don't put a lot of style into playing it. (read jeff's excellent account here!) 

9. loved the finale -- all three bands came and played on stage. the moment captured below was one of my favorites. 

10. oh, and me and casey were kind of twins. with the same hair and outfit (except that i sort of think his pants were more tight than mine).

11. it was fun to chill after the show and also fun to have friends like mal and mariah, who hadn't previously been to a tally hall concert, share in the good times.

and here are the photo evidences to aforementioned points: 

and, of course, THE PICTURE. each concert we add another band member and it was joe's turn...if you look close, you can actually see him here. :) it was a 2-for-1; bora joined as well!

  sing while you hear it; don't deny it.

rooftop concert? yes please.

{{editor's note: here at warm fuzzies, we pride ourselves on our thorough posts. but this time, we just kind of went... ...*meh*.  but.  there will be videos of the concert coming soon. two of them. maybe tomorrow. the author is...a pretty impatient person sometimes and just wanted to post this now cuz she wrote it, well, last week. so check back. :) }}

remember how i used to write concert reviews? yeah. me too...barely. i have LOTS of them stuffed away in my drafts folder. i'll simplify them and get 'em up...sometime.

this past friday i attended a fantastic concert. consider and finish this incomplete equation:

lovely spring evening + free + friends + ROOF of a PARKING GARAGE = ?!

yeah. [don't] be jealous. it was just as epic and awesome as it sounds. 

and the performers? paul jacobsen and the madison arm, and fictionist (i heard emily brown played as well but didn't get there in time for her). it was my first experience with both bands.


we walked in. saw this. joined some friends:

thanks, angela, for braving the side crowd to get these shots!

and gosh, i was excited.

i *really* enjoyed the unaffected sounds of paul jacobsen and the madison arm. they just seemed like cool guys and i could just totally groove to their stuff. loved the harmonies and chill vibes.

left: paul jacobsen + madison arm, right: fictionist 

the members of fictionist are all apparently from utah, and it was cool to see hometown boys perform when as they're getting big (they are in a competition to get on the cover of rolling stone and today is the LAST DAY to vote-- do it!). both bands were really generous and appreciative.

some of us

i decided halfway through that my soul needed this concert (because of the elements of the aforementioned equation). i wished everyone could have been there. then again, music doesn't affect everyone the same way. so... i really wished that (ready for a really convoluted sentence?!) -- everyone whom it impacts like it impacts me could have been there to appreciate and love the concert as much as i did. you can go ahead and re-read that if you need, cuz i'm not editing it.





i didn't have my camera (WHAT?! i know, right?!) but it was fun to play around with angela's new iphone to take a few photos and videos. that was good for my artistic well-being, too.

i'll skip my usual intense analysis of every song and just say...if you weren't there, then i wish you had been.

--

ps, in case you're wondering about the crowd vibe, and i'm sure you were, this was basically a hipster mecca. don't know what a hipster is? then READ THIS NOW. remember hannah? yeah. awesome.


other reviews/pictures/buzz of this concert:
kristina (i sat with her :)
c jayne
muse music cafe

blah blah blah...so you've said

{image via here. copyright goro fujita.}

today is this kind of a day.

but REALLY. like, it perfectly describes how i feel and i can't really explain why. or rather, i don't feel like explaining why. don't worry; it's nothing deep or angsty.

thanks, tally hall.













in the end, i'd like to say no one's better than you.

mix tape

saturday night, i sent a text to a very ploxy friend asking to help me find good lyrics to express how i feel in general right now. it's kind of like a roller coaster in my head. we searched for a while, but i couldn't find any one song to capture it. while i still forage for the perfect song, here are ten that at least have parts of truth (whether it be in lyrics or just the mood) akin to a thought or two in my head. they are in no particular order:

1) hey jude -- the beatles
2) extraordinary machine -- fiona apple
3) eet -- regina spektor
6) soldier -- ingrid michealson
4) sheep go to heaven -- cake
5) keep breathing -- ingrid michaelson
8) dog days are over -- florence and the machine
7) marching on -- one republic
9) everything's not lost -- coldplay
10) sleep -- eric whitacre

it's only numbered so it looks more like a list.

what's on your life-theme song (or song list) right now?

as an unrelated side-note, i hope that the recent lack of comments isn't because i've somehow alienated you, my wonderful readers. i don't hate comments. just so you know.

also...if i make it through this week successfully, it will be a miracle. but i believe in miracles....

tally hall, no one's better than you. {part V}

{{the rest of the concert + after party}}


[because i wrote all 5 tally hall concert posts around the same time, then added videos and pictures later, the entries were all in varying degrees of finished-ness. tragically, a few days after i posted #4, i read what i had for this one, #5, and it said a lot of the same stuff #4 did but so much better and was so much more organized. alas, it will not be published on this blog to prevent repetition. sorry, reader. maybe i will edit #4 one of these days....]

this is the final episode in this series. :)

the rest of rooney::
i spent the rest of the time between rocking out with jessie and brooke to rooney and talking with jeff and the other guys with tally hall. rooney was good; i knew more of their songs than i'd previously realized. i was glad that jessie is a die-hard rooney fan- this was her first concert and she got to see both them and tally hall. by the end of the night, though, tally hall was still my favorite.

the task::
it was great fun to talk with the guys after the concert, but we had to wait our turn. see, we knew we had a task, a feat worthy of the wait. so they visited with the rest of their crazy fans while we kept, well, taking pictures of ourselves and talking. we waited until the end when most everyone had gone, to continue our long-standing tradition: THE photo.


the history::

we've taken the same photo of ourselves ever since their first concert, each person in the same position, and adding a band member each time, starting out with rob. it was sort of endearing; andrew seemed pretty excited to be the added member this time.

maybe i will post the others some time.


the photo::

it was hard to get all the guys together this time. by the time we had one we'd lost another, and so on. the bouncers were getting pretty upset that people were still hanging around, and started yelling that we all needed to get out (probably so they could turn the venue into a bar again by a certain time). so, being the awesome people they are, tally hall came outside in the front of the venue with us. all except for joe, who was nowhere to be found. [joe seemed a lot more silent and introverted this time around, it seemed like rob had taken the lead. interesting how band dynamics change. ]

we assembled together and took it: THE picture. it seemed kind of huge this time--so many people! it was way fun, and then we took a few individual shots and let them get pictures with the only other group of fans who had stayed around that late. after receiving a possible reprimanding call on his phone, andrew politely told us they had to go. with quick hugs goodbye and lots of laughter, they disappeared back into the venue.

so until next time, tally hall, we'll miss you.

concluding in the end, i'd like to say no one's better than you.

tally hall, no one's better than you. {part IV}

{school is over and i'm back! please forgive my absence. i missed my blog, too.}

{{the big kids' concert}}

the original plan::
location: in the venue
concert time: 6:30pm
our departure time: as soon as jeff got off work (4-ish pm)
driver: jeff
the group: cheryl, blake, me, rocio, jeff, my friend jessie, and jeff's friend brooke

in actuality::
location: in the venue
concert time: 6:30pm
our departure time: 6:10pm
driver: brooke
the group: brooke, me my friend jessie...and later, jeff

explanation:: jeff was going to take me and jessie and rocio. rocio decided to do something else that night instead. okay, cool. still left me and jeff and jessie, all was good. but---[brace yourself for the run-on sentence]-- i couldn't reach jeff and he was supposed to drive us and my mom's van doesn't go past 40 mph cuz it's broken and jessie and i needed to get to the concert and i still couldn't reach jeff and it was getting late and i called cheryl and she'd already left with blake and i started to panic and i made cute hair flowers (irrelevant) and i told jessie i'd just come pick her up in the van so we'd be in one location and i did and we went to jeff's and he wasn't there and it was getting later and i called rocio and she said she wasn't going so she called brooke whom i didn't know and brooke was late coming anyway but she had a car so she met me and jessie at jeff's and the three of us girls got into brooke's car and brooke turned out to be awesome and we went to wendy's cuz we were starving and it was good and i got a jr frosty (irrelevant) and we raced as fast as we could up to salt lake and the three of us girls had compatible horoscopes and decided we'd be good friends and now we are and we drove and drove and finally got to in the venue and brooke was really good at finding it without a google map and we parked in some shady parking lot and brooke put on her new shoes with red laces and then we ran in the freezing cold -- ran-- to the place it was at and almost went in the wrong door so we backtracked and got to the right door and the bouncer let us in.

whew.

[note the shoelaces]

still couldn't reach jeff. until we got there. apparently, his shoot (he was working on a commercial in the middle of absolutely nowhere) went super long and was crazy and he hadn't gotten reception. sad. day. here's his side of the story.

when we got there::
we walked inside, and a really loud band was finishing their last song. i really didn't care for it, and neither did the other two girls. tally hall started to set up as soon as that song was over, and we were ecstatic to realize we got there in perfect time for tally hall.

jeff texted, saying he was still an hour away and wondered if it was still worth it to come. i said that of course it was; jeff was one of the pioneers of tally hall in utah! we had to take THE picture, dangit! so he said he was on his way.

we found allie and her husband. allie was there the very first time we met tally hall in this very venue. that was a happy. cheryl was nowhere to be found, though, and we found that she had a family emergency and had to race to that. that was sad. bless her heart.

the concert part::so, tally hall started their concert, even without jeff or cheryl. they started out with a slower song, which i thought was gutsy. usually bands start out with fast rowdy songs to get the audience into it. props for them for taking a double gamble: the song was slow, and it was a new song. but i loved it. it's called 'never meant to know' and it's the one that i had filmed backstage at the kid concert.

since i already blogged that one, here's another called "turn the lights off":



and here's how they laid the songs down:

Never Meant To Know
Welcome To Tally Hall
A Lady
Sacred Beast
Good Day
Turn The Lights Off
Cannibal
Spring & A Storm
You & Me
The Whole World & You

i sang along enthusiastically to all the songs i knew. maybe more enthusiastically than normal? [nah, probably the same. but i tried, and it was crazy] because a) the audience was pretty lame and didn't dance or anything and b) i had to sing for jeff and cheryl's sake. they deserved to be there.

right after they finished, i turned around and saw jeff. tragically, he'd just barely arrived.

the rest of the concert::
jeff was visibly disappointed he missed the concert, and more so, was shaking all over. he'd had an exhausting day and the mixture of freezing cold + middle of nowhere with no reception + full day's work in previously stated conditions + running to the concert + just barely missing it = one sad jeff. brooke and i felt so bad. we all wandered over to the swag table, where my new friend mike (the tour manager) was manning the merchandise. [check out mike's awesome hat.]

sad has a way of turning to happy, though, in the company of good friends and good music, and...tally hall. and tally hall's guest book.

they had a book on the table, open for anyone to sign it, so jeff and i took on the responsibility of pasting in each "the picture" from the previous concerts, along with a memory from each one. we wrote 3 entries, one on the inside of the front cover, one on the back, and one in the middle, with a dotted outline of the picture we were sure to get later that night.

we also took another cool picture:
and i liked rooney, too, so here's a well-known song of theirs. forgive the shaking; i was aware of it...i just couldn't help but dance to this one:




i really enjoyed just hanging out with my friends and the tally hall guys in the back by the table, though. andrew came out in normal clothes and smiled when he saw me. it was fun to see him since we'd been interacting all day, then almost as old friends after an 'official' concert (note that i'm not a psycho fan who imposes herself on strangers and celebrities. i know we aren't old friends. it was just sort of a cool feeling :D)

we all talked. words. i honestly can't remember what we talked about (this is the part that i didn't finish in december when i wrote this...it's now april)...which is tragic. i remember some stuff. contacts and dry eyes (as shown in picture above). mittens and their awesomeness (his were homemade). his impressions on the school concert. oh! he said that was one of the most interesting performances they'd given, and we asked what was the weirdest. i think he said it was earlier in their career and there was some sort of snow storm, so only a few (like, 3) people showed up to the concert and they performed for just them? something like that. all i can say is i wish we had a snowstorm concert.
the next and final installment of this tally hall series will come soon (no, really. i promise it'll be soon this time).

tally hall, no one's better than you. {part III}

{{the kiddie concert}}

keyboard, guitars, bass, drums...all on stage. a small one. behind a blue heavy curtain.
half curious, half amused adults lining the venue. teachers.
the venue: a school cafeteria.
one huge audience.
all under 5 feet tall.
oh boy. (!)

the concert was about to start. kids filed in, carrying their own chairs (i forgot we used to do that) and, of course, their tally hall signs. they were beyond excited. i was just as excited.


an entrance::
while the principle introduced cheryl, who introduced the band, the band snuck up on stage with fabulous fake mustaches on their faces and disappeared behind the curtain. what a fantastic sight. a few moments later, the curtain opened. the kids. went. nuts.

the concert::
i'll let pictures and movies tell this part. it was, after all, a concert.

fyi, the videos are super loud and noisy because my, can those young'ns wail....

rob [yellow tie] kind of headed up the group in interaction with the students, though the rest of the guys chimed in as well. i could tell that there was a mutual wonder between band and audience alike; neither had experienced this before. at the end of the first song [good day], there was a bit of silence, and i started clapping, [i'm sure some of the teachers did, too] then it was a ripple effect and the place was soon filled with tons of applause and yells.



at one point, they tried to get all the students to sing on one note....




other concert highlights::

-rob asked the most random and obscure questions to the audience, and it was perfect. questions like, "do you guys like sports?" and so on. it kept the kids amused and involved.

-the kids...loved dancing.

-comments like this: "of all the elementary schools we've ever visited, you are the most unique...?" can anyone else figure out what he says here? i remember he made some comment about how the kids liked dancing...anyway, brownie points (maybe even a brownie) to the person who can decode this:




-i enjoyed being backstage-ish. mike was cool and let me chill back there. we also talked cameras a bit. it was cool to see sam do his job. so i took a video of one of their new songs from back there. the video doesn't do it justice because i was just on one side of the stage (and it's a cheap camera). i have so many "normal" tally hall videos that i wanted to capture all the stuff you usually don't see. take a gander.


-the swaying of hands (i think one of the teachers promoted that) and the applause. the kids were told by a teacher before the concert that it's not polite to whistle, though. :)

-they ended with this song:



it was an elementary school. how perfect is that? they even had kids come up and give suggestions (that's the part that the camera drops (literally), so i could take photos of it. so beyond awesome.)

have you ever seen miss skinner, eating some dinner?

-and then they topped it off with this:
(rob's epic and very rebellious jump off of school folding chair. there were no smashing of guitars, however.)

...

the after party::

after the concert, the guys came back out and cheryl presented them with school shirts, as they are now honorary elementary schoolers. :)

as such, they took a class photo

or two

and hi-fives were had all around

and posters & clothing got signed (the latter with parental permission...for the most part)

and cheryl and the principle were given awfully cool stuff by the band

and things were happy.

next up: the night concert. there will be a lot less squealing from those videos.