overlap

One of the frequent reactions to loss or change, and I guess change is only the loss of the status quo in any case, is generally a heightened sense of carpe diem. Or in this case, carpe handbag. I haven't checked exactly what I posted last November, but I know that my reaction on leaving Brixton Academy was mostly that I was glad I'd been there but I wouldn't rush to go a long way to repeat the experience. Partly because it reminded me a lot of 1993, when the gig was largely ruined for me by an excess of testosterone and lager, and a distinct lack of consideration for anyone else. All the same, this one was announced a long time ago, and falls into the category of gigs where I bought the ticket at the time, but having only had the option to buy it on the day, I might have not bothered. With my first what next application taking up rather more of this morning than I might have hoped, I was still lamenting my perfume going off and doing my make-up some time after I'd intended to leave. With roadworks and more roadworks, and the onset of rush hour getting in my way, I knew I was going to miss the first support band before I even left the house. No matter, I've seen them before and great as they are, I never have moments of thinking I must listen to them immediately. Despite having grasped the concept of where I intended to park, I still got it wrong again, and that delay probably cost me seeing anything of the second support band. All the same, it was an interesting twenty-something minutes finding my way across town to the venue, though that bit worked pretty well. Something I sometimes find mildly frustrating is having a wardrobe full of clothes that I've never worn out. In a month where I've bought a new cardigan and a new pair of boots, and reacted to bad news by battering my credit card with a new pair of shoes and something best described as an item from the M&S partywear collection - oh yes, I am a cliche! - it seems almost a waste to not go out. And for a gig of a band I'd be seeing for the tenth time, well even if I didn't make it there are other criteria for a good night. Hat from H&M, halter neck top from M&S, cardigan from French Connection, jacket from TKMaxx, jeans from Next, new boots from George at ASDA, and Fiorelli handbag by way of Debenhams meant I had half the high street covered when I enjoyed the ritual handbag search on entry, before hiding in the darkness. Met by a wall of heat coming off the people who had made it in on time, I'd only been inside for a couple of minutes before Jim and Les hit the stage. After a brief trip to the bar, served by a very sweet girl working the bar, and though she was fine, the brighter bar area lighting reminded me how I'm used to being looked at funny whether I'm carrying a handbag or not, so I slunk off into the darkness to watch the stage from a distance. I'm going to be short on detail, as the getting there and being there is rather more important to me than exactly what it was like. Highlights were hearing Lets Get Tattoos, This Is How It Feels, A Sheltered Life and particularly Rent again - you dress me up indeed! - the setlist will no doubt be online elsewhere by now, and it may be almost as much a surprise to me. It's funny that I appear more approachable this way - ordinarily I wouldn't expect to speak to anyone, but this evening I had some guy pass the time of day with me in the heat of the bar, and some woman chatted with me just as the Carter set was coming to a close, though I'm not quite sure where the guy who used 'excuse me, you look like a junkie' as an opening line thought it was going to get him. That was on the street, not in the gig, so gawd only knows, but I put it down to a backhanded compliment that my size 14 hips in my skinny fit jeans make me look a little top-heavy, which is not really news. While the carpe handbag feeling is hot, I should try to get out closer to home, but one thing is sure - life is short. Carter though? Yes, very good.

Labels: Carter USM, gigs