A Safe Place to Rock Out
Lollapalooza is quickly approaching, so I thought this would be a good time to finally publish the random things I've written about attending the festival since 2011. Please take note of the date for each entry, they span a few years. I'm going to start this series out with an essay explaining my struggles attending an event designed for, and attended by, people much younger than me. The first time I went was a few days before my 44th birthday. Although I felt a little awkward about going, I just couldn't pass up the chance to see a ton of great bands in a beautiful setting for yet another year, so I went. I dragged my brother (who is way too old for these things) the first couple years and as my kids got older, they joined us. Here is what I saw and what I thought about it. Thanks for reading!
August 2016
Where can a middle-aged man, such as me, go nuts and jump around to my favorite music? There are a few criteria that need to be taken into account. Cell phones should be turned off and doors should be locked. Some degree of privacy is desirable, it is imperative that no one I know sees me enjoying myself. The obvious choice is my own home when nobody is around, but I actually only have the place entirely to myself maybe six or seven times a year. I think my favorite place was in my old VW. The engine was quiet, the windows were tinted, and it had a kick-ass stereo.
The best place that a person can almost get away with these public displays is at an outdoor concert under the cover of nightfall. This summer, my son and I went to see LCD Soundsystem at Lollapalooza. My oldest son was there as well, but he wanted to see Die Antwoord instead. I can't even deal with that band. Anyway, my middle son and I reached an accord - we would both see LCD and we would both jump around, but we would do it where we couldn't see each other. We then disappeared into the crowd. There are small communities that form within the audience at a concert, especially if the band inspires a devoted and fanatical following. They key is finding the right one and enjoying the same space for an hour or two. I did and had a great time. I don't try to hide my age or act like I'm cooler than I am, I just try to get lost in the music. Why bother, even if I tried to not act old at a show, it would never work out. Young people just know. Even if I improbably busted out some sweet dance moves, something embarrassing would eventually happen. My bottle of Centrum would probably fly out of my pocket, I'd bend down to pick it up and my pants would split as I crawled around chasing this bottle through the mud and around people's dancing legs until I collapsed. "Sir, is there someone we can call for you?" Thank you, no. Just leave me...just go.
