Well, some backdrop of this big picture I'm painting: we set out at 4 pm that day, a brimmingly hot August 13th of August. It had only been two fortnights since we heard of this concert and everybody was giddy as a gopher to see it by this point in time. We had five in our crew - Myself, Dylan(Dylflon), Sean(Typhoid), Shani, and Becky(my girlfriend). Our mode of transportation was the utterly swank 93' Mazda MPV, which was white enough to reflect off any evil heat rays from our burning star. Our charming chaffeur was none other than my Y-donating parental unit who was more than happy to accompany us on our one-of-a-kind expedition.
Our trip had four stops - one to pick up Sean, who didn't realize he was supposed to walk to our launchpad, Shani's house, which was ridiculously easy to find, Becky's house, which was on route to the border anyways, and the Jack in the Box / 711 complex where we used the ATM and toilet facilities - and also to gawk at the magazine selection. (Large quantities of mints were also obtained.) Our trip was rather guileless and filled with interesting conversation, spiced with the selection of music generated from my PSP through the car kit, in turn glorifying the ambiance of the MPV.
We arrived one and a half sticks of time after eventide. Originally we couldn't see it, because the place was literally a hole in a wall. But the semi-large blue sign that said Paradox eventually clued us in. The doors hadn't opened yet, so we moseyed around to the back-sort of area, because we recognized a few spinto members. While we were walking past, in a glorious moment, we saw Sam Hughes(
The Germanator) walk out of the door. This was the man we were looking for.
Good conversation was had - but our stomachs were tugging at us, so we bid a short farewell to Sam, and drove back to the Jack in the Box. There we dined on fine American Cuisine, and also sampling the fine flavours the fountain had to offer. After we left, Becky realized she dropped her wallet while we were sitting down. She ran back in. And then a fellow with a bird crow in his hand came up from behind the 711 and was talking gibberish to people! I looked for bushes around, but I couldn't see any. Only trees.
Becky found her wallet, and we were already hasting away from the establishment. So we returned to the paradox after the doors had opened, and we met up with our other group, Kristie, Kyle, and Chris. We went back to talking with Sam, and we discussed many grand things, such as soda/pops, and Beast Wars. I still believe Kangaroo would win against Cow. I've stood by that for a long time. We also met other members, such as Jeff, Joey, and Thomas. They're all cool. I commented on Thomas' project mustache, and he was a bit surprised. He inspected my growth of mustache and advised me to colour it. I may colour it one day, if I ever let it past the 1 setting on my trimmer, I told him. There was also a British Guy with a pimp cane there, and he commented on my Death From Above 1979 shirt. I felt glee. Eventually they had to run in to set up, so we went in and got our handstamps.
Inside, we promptly excursed in a beeline to the merch desk. We met Jon Eaton there, who was also a cool guy. Only I was able to buy merchandise right away, because they had to set up. So we went inside, watched them set up, and then it was time.
The performance was spectacular. Surely a unique experience for every one of us. Becky and I stood off to the side, and Kristie and Dylan were off to my right. The rest were scattered into the crowd. Yes, crowd. Crowd is a delightful word to use here, and I like to see that they were supported well that night. I can't speak for anyone else in the group, but I was singing all the words to the songs and bopping some part of my body through the entire performance. I saw Dylan out of the glimpse of my eye singing, but I couldn't be sure. The only bad part of the entire performance was that it was too short for the distance we travelled! But, I digress, I would describe it as short and sweet.
As for individual songs - my favourites were definitely Did I Tell You and Crack the Whip. Also, Trust Vs. Mistrust was a pleasant surprise. The best part of the performance was the way they all moved, for sure. Firstly, they have Jon Eaton off to the left, Ent-ing around in serene bliss, plucking away beautiful parts where he's needed. Off to his left is Nick, who's chugging away on his guitar(s), with the classic wiggle dance. It's like the Beatles wiggle dance, but adapted for modern times! Then there's Joey, who's the cool of the group, rocking around with the longest hair in the group. Then, ah, Thomas Hughes, the center piece to this busy, yet wild, feng shui. No matter what he's playing, he's always thrashing away, and the crowd's reaction was grand. Behind him was his brother, Sam, who mentioned how hard it is to dance while playing a keyboard, but on the last number, he was knee-swaying to high-heaven. The knee-sway was my personal favourite. And of course, Jeff in the back couldn't move much, but he was the glue to the entire group, and promoted all this movement.
So, after a great peformance, we all headed back into the vestibule and concession area. We met up with Sam right away, who was shaking from the excitement, and I inquired him about signing my three pages that I had printed out. I printed them out that morning; two of the standard full-group shot, and one closer-up of the full group. (Both available as high-quality .tif files on spintoband.com's press page.) Eventually, Kristie got me to work her CD into the signing procedure, as her group was leaving for the day. I got to meet everyone in the band personally, and I got everybody's signature. They're all great guys, but I wish we could've gotten to meet Albert too. Ah, perhaps one day. Anyways, I also got Thomas to draw me a Carol Cleveland Sings picture in Blue sharpie. I will find a way to scan this and use it digitally, as it is an awesome doodle.
I also bought into some Head of Femur merchandise, mostly buttons. The HOF completes my trifecta of awesome buttons I wear daily everywhere. After that, it was cavorting with people, and having a good time. Eventually Heads of Femur were set up and playing, and we had put all of our merchandise on one booth table, so we had to keep guard in turns. Head of Femur is a delightful band with a little older tastes than Spinto. With a dash of ska, their sound is pleasant to listen to in the background of anything. I suppose as you get older, you like music that doesn't jump out or rock out as much anymore. Maybe that's why old people listen to Anne Murray. They see something we don't.
Unforunately, eventually, it was time to end the night. We said our goodbyes. We said goodbye to Jeff earlier who left earlier. I ended up hugging Sam after Sean. I gave Sam the gift of being on an Admin's good side. The ride home was not long but quiet at some times because people were exhausted. Then, like the car-baby I am, I fell asleep at one point, only my head was facing up unpreferentially, which let gravity take the soft palate in the back of my mouth, leading me to snore. The border crossing was uneventful, but we had to take the one farther from Becky's house, as the other one was closed for the evening. The group fell off one by one as we dropped them off. Then my parental and I finally arrived home. He proceeded to sit in his Benz because he missed it all day, and I came inside. It was just before 3 am, but I popped in Nice and Nicely Done anyways, and I enjoyed it very much.
My conclusive thoughts are that holy god, I wish we had more than just my camera phone. It's times like these I wish I had a little friend who just liked taking pictures. I like pictures, I like taking pictures, but I don't like taking pictures during events, because I could be doing other stuff. But yeah, pictures.
All in all, it was a grand experience, and we will be serious about getting them up to Canada by next summer. There's new and different sodas to be tasted, fans to be groped, and weird money to gander at for them. It's an offer they can't refuse.
Abridged version, in deustch-speak:
Das Spinto Band ist wunderbar.
Now go let your eyes focus on other things so you don't go blind.
-Phil
Originally posted at
spintobandfans.
The Great Spinto Band Foray 2005 (Generous read)
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