“Hi I’m Audrey and I’m on the list; she’s my plus one.” I’ve always wanted to be able to say that.
James Vincent McMorrow
Oh Wonder
I’m innocently scrolling through my Facebook feed when… BAM! A post from Oh Wonder’s Facebook page pops up saying, “Somehow you guys pretty much sold out our first ever North American tour in 3 hours?! Crazy. So we’re upgrading the venues! Extra Seattle, Boston and Philadelphia tickets are available now and the shows are all ages! Keep your eyes peeled next week when more tickets for the other cities will be released. We can’t wait for this!” and I’m just like, “UM I didn’t even know that you were having a North American tour?! Why didn’t I know about this?!” I’m still a n00b at this whole fan thing. I’ve never really been intrigued enough by concerts to spend money on them, but then I went to my first live concert, and once you listen to live music, you never go back.
Bryn Mawr Concert Series Fall 2015: Gallant, Javelin, & Lauv
I’ve been on the hunt for live music ever since my first live concert experience last summer, but as much as I enjoy live music, I’m also a very practical person. I’m not about to follow my favourite band around on their world tour or anything, but I have been keeping an eye out for artists in Philly.
When I heard the line-up for the Bryn Mawr Concert Series (BMCS) Fall 2015 Concert, I was so excited that I recognized 2/3 of the acts. Our resources are limited as a small liberal arts college, but when we do get someone, it is because of our small size that the experience is so intimate.
In fact, the second floor balcony of the Campus Center (the concert venue) was blocked off so that everyone would be standing close to each other and create a dense buzz of energy. Which is all well and good unless you’re short like me and this kind of thing only leads to a dense canopy of tall people.
At times like these, I like to exploit my reputation as a photographer. With my handy dandy fancy schmancy camera in hand, I ask my BMCS connections if I can go up to the balcony, surreptitiously bouncing the camera in my hand all the while, hinting that I’d be taking pictures, giving them the idea that they could possibly use my pictures (more like planting the idea (inception)), but without explicitly committing to it. Everyone loves having pictures, so of course they say yes 😉
George Ezra
In eighth grade math, our teacher was teaching us the difference between mean, median, mode, and range. To provide an example data set, he did a quick survey of the class. After we as a class determined that Maroon 5 is a popularly liked band, he asked us how much we were willing to pay for Maroon 5 concert tickets. As the price of the tickets increased, less people in the class were willing to buy the concert tickets. Now, I’m pretty stingy with my money, and I’ve never been to a live concert before, so I didn’t get the point and dropped out of the bid pretty early. I probably didn’t go over 50RMB, or even 40RMB. I mean yes, live music is nice, but 1) money, and 2) crowds. Wouldn’t I much rather listen to music from the comfort of my room? And what was I gonna do once I met them anyway? Be friends? Nah, I’d just be a fangirl of many. Which I don’t have a problem with, but I wouldn’t pay for it.
Then I went to my first live concert and everything changed.