A flag flying for losers, somewhere in the heavens.
Last Saturday I got to go see my favorite band from my teenage years on their reunion tour. Everyone who knows me even a little bit knows that my favorite band is Five Iron Frenzy.
I drove into the city, fighting terrible traffic and awful parking and saw that even two hours before the doors were scheduled to open there was a line wrapped nearly around the block.
"Not bad for a band that hasn't toured since 2003." I thought. I had come there alone, but as I stood in line I found this group of strangers to be more talkative than anyone I had met since moving to Chicago.
I met a guy that had flown in from Washington DC alone just for the show. I met a guy who had been to every ne of their shows since they had gotten back together. I met more than a few people that were very socially awkward in most situations that seemed one hundred percent at ease in this crowd.
As the show started I noticed that the singer could have dropped out at any moment and the crowd would still sing every single word to every single song. In fact many times I difficultly hearing him over the crowd.
No one seemed to be nudging each other to say how lame the show was, how they had come ironically. Everyone was sincerely enjoying themselves, accepting each other, being genuine.
Five Iron has been known for drawing these crowds. People on the other side of cool, but genuine, real, sincere. Three things that "cool" people would never be as they would immediately lose "cool" status.
I drove into the city, fighting terrible traffic and awful parking and saw that even two hours before the doors were scheduled to open there was a line wrapped nearly around the block.
"Not bad for a band that hasn't toured since 2003." I thought. I had come there alone, but as I stood in line I found this group of strangers to be more talkative than anyone I had met since moving to Chicago.
I met a guy that had flown in from Washington DC alone just for the show. I met a guy who had been to every ne of their shows since they had gotten back together. I met more than a few people that were very socially awkward in most situations that seemed one hundred percent at ease in this crowd.
As the show started I noticed that the singer could have dropped out at any moment and the crowd would still sing every single word to every single song. In fact many times I difficultly hearing him over the crowd.
No one seemed to be nudging each other to say how lame the show was, how they had come ironically. Everyone was sincerely enjoying themselves, accepting each other, being genuine.
Five Iron has been known for drawing these crowds. People on the other side of cool, but genuine, real, sincere. Three things that "cool" people would never be as they would immediately lose "cool" status.
So what draws this group together? It's more than just the music.
You find the answer in the lyrics of their song Suckerpunch: "A song sung for underdogs, for all the left out, a flag flying for losers somewhere in the heavens, the God of everlasting comfort believes in me, loved me when I was faithless He still died for me."
The answer is simple. Acceptance. That night it didn't matter if you were cool enough. It didn't matter if you had the right clothes, attitude, piercings, swag. Everyone simply accepted each other, ready to have fun. No judging. Couldn't dance? have fun anyway. It was beautiful.
It was just a show. It was more.
It was beautiful.
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