LESTAT Peabody’s Down Under November 24, 12

Well, Neurotics, I promised change, and change you shall have.

First of all, let’s recap for those just joining us.  I am a neurotic.  I have GAD, OCD, phobias, panic disorder, and major depressive disorder.  These “afflictions” have been present in my life in some way, shape, or form since … well, probably forever, but I was diagnosed when I was 14.  I am now going on 32.

For the last four years, these issues have grown in intensity.  I am terrified of dying.  Well, to be honest, I am terrified of everything, but the dying thing is what we are talking about today.  Anyway, this fear has been so intense that it interrupts my life.

I quit shooting concerts due to fear.  I stopped shooting everything due to fear, actually.

I’ve come to the realization that I will die.  I am not immortal like I felt I was when I was in my 20s.  I WILL die, and that will suck.  So, I have to acheive immortality in some other way.  Art.

That said, I emailed Evan of Lestat and asked if I could photograph their show on 11/24.  He said that I could.  The day of the show, my brain tried every tactic to talk me out of going.  I didn’t listen.  And that is HUGE.  But, enough about me, without further ado, some of the fruits of my labor:

Petals and Thorns opened up the show in their debut live performance.  I definitely enjoyed their set, and I recommend checking them out if and when you find yourself in Cleveland.

Next up came Bath.  I’ve seen these guys play once before, and I didn’t know who they were.  Never found out, actually, until last night.  You know when you keep hearing a band on the radio and you love the song, but the DJ never tells you who they are?  That’s about how this one went for me, except it was at a show.  If you like electronics and you like music, these are your guys.  I caught myself dancing, and I’m not dancey, so that should tell you something.

The Azoic came up next.  Remember that thing I said about not being dancey? Out the window.  They have a video coming out on YouTube soon, you should definitely check them out.

Also, I must add here that when Evan came out on stage during The Azoic’s set to sing “Obsession”, Melissa damn near peed her pants.  “I will have you, yes I will have you…”? Uh, yeah, you already do.

I’ve been a fan of Lestat since high school.  I used to doodle LESTAT in big gothic letters on my homework folders. 

Unfortunately, I never saw them live back then.  So, of course, you can imagine my joy and exuberance when, out of the blue, I looked them up in my Rhapsody app and found Vision of Sorrows, the album I loved in high school.  This prompted me to look them up on the Google and I found that they were putting out a new album!  Well, great timing, huh?  It was fate!  Anyway, I went to their CD release show earlier this year.  Yup, back in love with Lestat.  I vowed to shoot them.  And, well, as I suppose you’ve gathered, my time came on 11/24.

Seeing Lestat live is definitely something that can only be experienced and not described, for how do you explain Evan’s sultry dancing?  How do you describe Susan’s otherworldly presence?  Yeah. You can’t.  Shakespeare couldn’t write about it, and neither can I.  If that doesn’t make you want to experience it, I don’t know what will.  Of course, this is my first time writing about a show experience, so I don’t know how much convincing you readers will actually need. 

There is something … how to describe it … dark.  Aggressive, yet ethereal, mystical … erotic … about Lestat’s music.

So, I promise I will work on my descriptive writing skills for future posts.  In the meantime, go to www.lestatmusic.com and get obsessed.

 

Special thanks to the bands for putting on a fantastic show, and I hope all my readers enjoy.  Please, by all means, share with your friends!

Who needs a title?

Well.

My busy week ended last night with a bang at a show at Peabody’s. Lestat. We can sum this show up in one word: epic.

My week was so busy that I didn’t have time to clear a photo pass with the band, but I took a few pics with my phone.

Certainly, not my best work as a concert photographer, but then, I didn’t have my trusty camera gear!

Anyway, the show was amazing. They were on a 17 year hiatus, and they just released Arisen, their brand new disc. The show I attended was their CD release show, and I am SO very glad I was there! I ended up buying two of their discs, and I will be listening to those for the rest of the day.  🙂

So, I guess my point here is that I am beginning to have a life again. A life, granted, without my former best friend, which is what prompted me to write today.

I looked back at the time stamp on the last text I sent him, the one in which I told him to never again contact me. Two weeks.

Two weeks and he didn’t once say that he didn’t want to never again contact me. Perhaps he realized that he would rather be strangers than friends. That is, in fact, how he has been acting for three years.

So, what does this have to do with Lestat? Because I still hear songs every once in a while that prompt me to grab my phone to text him that he needs to listen to it. I end up stopping myself, but the urge is still there.

I quit smoking in July of 2011, and I still have moments where I feel as though something is missing. I realize after a few moments that the cigarette is what is missing, and I wonder if that will ever go away. I sure as hell hope it does, otherwise I will have two bad habits that I have to make a concerted effort to stay away from; smoking and the former friend. Let’s face it, neither one is very good for me. I don’t need cancer and I don’t need someone who constantly makes me feel as though I don’t matter.

Anyway, I have been hanging around with a much better crowd lately. When I tell these new people that I am feeling depressed, they ask “what’s the matter?”, they don’t disappear. So let this be a lesson to those who want to keep their friendships: the quickest way to lose someone is to make them feel like you don’t care.

All right, readers. Here is your assignment for the coming week: go to http://www.luceromusic.com and check out Lucero, then go to http://www.lestatmusic.com and check out Lestat, and finally, realize that words are powerful, but sometimes they aren’t enough. Sometimes nothing can save you.