Somehow I’ve developed a habit of taking people to their first concerts in foreign countries. Back in San Francisco, I remember taking a Japanese friend to see Late of the Pier and The Whip. I also took a Mexican friend to see Spinto Band.
Now, in London, I took two of my classmates (Richa, from India, and Junjie, from China) to their first concert in the UK: Good Shoes, at ULU.
Music is something that can be enjoyed by anyone around the world, no matter where you come from.
It’s one of those things that spans every different type of culture. You don’t even have to understand the language to appreciate music. It’s more about the feelings that are evoked when you hear music.
Since music is such a big part of my life, I was happy to be able to share this concert experience with my new friends.
Thanks to TFL’s weekend ‘upgrades’, we had to take the long way to get to central London, and ended up missing the opening bands.
We did make it in time for Good Shoes, luckily. Good Shoes are a band that I’ve been a fan of for a number of years, but never had the chance to see them in concert.
They’re from London, and they have never toured in San Francisco. Because of this, I was especially excited to finally get to see them.
At concerts, it is not uncommon for audience members to take pictures of the band during the show. You can’t go to a concert today without seeing people pull out their digital cameras or cell phones, trying to capture every moment.
In an unusual role reversal, the lead singer of Good Shoes came out and decided to take pictures of us, the audience.
It felt weird to be on the other side of the lens, but it was nice to see that even band members enjoy capturing these moments.
A ROWDY CROWD
I don’t know if it was the median age of the crowd (perhaps 17 years old), or the amount of beer being consumed, but the audience was particularly raucous for this show.
We started out in the middle, near the stage—for the first song, anyway. Then, the moshing started.
I usually associate moshing with more hardcore punk shows, and not with a band like Good Shoes. I’d like to think that, at least for a short while, we put up a good effort to keep up with the crowd.
However, we eventually got pushed out to the side, on the outskirts of the pit.
Despite the rowdy crowd, the show was a lot of fun. The band exuded energy and excitement, and played a good mix of old and new songs.
More than anything, it was nice to be able to share this experience with my new friends.
Music is a great way to connect with people, and I hope to continue to explore and share London’s music scene with anyone who wants to take part!