The Show Starts at 7

The Show Starts at 7

How many strictly entertainment activities have you attended that you can honestly say have changed everything about you, and the way you will view things? It wasn’t until I was told to think about this, that I realized that even I had one.

I was about thirteen when I went to my first hardcore show. I had been friends with some people who had been going for awhile, but I had never gone, so they talked me into it. Hoods was coming to town, and I had never really listened to them before so I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect. Supposedly it was a big deal though, and something to be really excited about.

We pulled up to the venue at about 6:30. It was a familiar tiny cement building located downtown. It held the name “Billiards”. There were so many people outside. I had never really seen faces and attitudes like these before. They were all wearing obscure band shirts that I’ve never heard of. More people than I had ever seen in one group had full arm tattoos. They were all so intimidating, and I was unsure about all of this. Most of everyone was smoking cigarettes, and the ones who weren’t wore big X’s on their hands, painted on with a big black Sharpie. I supposed that this probably resembled something.

The first band was about to play. It was a small local band that I had, yet again, never heard of. This music was crazy! Loud double bass kicks from the drums, simple yet strong riffs from the guitar and awesome slap lines from the bass. The vocals were the most unique though. Not screaming, like I was used to hearing, but yelling….And it wasn’t angry yelling either liked I had often heard in punk music, it was so positive. They talked about brotherhood, and passion for what they love. I had never heard anything before that made me feel more acceptance. I could not only hear the strong passionate words, but I could feel them more than anything. The chant, “We’re family through thick and thin, we all bleed the same. Let this be our pledge...