Teenage Riot

Love Affair

I feel like i have actually been struck by a heavy blow.  No, my world has not been torn apart by illness, death or poverty. To someone like me, however, the weight of the world has just come crashing down upon me. i know that it is intrinsically ridiculous to be affected by the dissolution of a group of people who came together to make music-but this one is personal.

i have , on many occasions, been a part of(and broken up) many bands in my short lifespan.  i own over 1,000 records in various formats, so let’s just say that i’m not hurting for things to listen to.  but, honestly, i feel like the music has stopped and that in it’s place is a cold, dead void.  with the break up of Lakeland, Florida’s Copeland, a piece of my heart has gone to it’s final resting place.

you see, Copeland is indirectly(well, probably directly) responsible for the advent(and dissolution) of a few of the local bands i have been a part of.  i have include numerous songs of theirs on many of the mix tapes and cd’s that i have customarily made throughout the years.  They were the first concert that i took my little brother to, and he subsequently passed out during their set.  but that is a story best saved for another time.  Copeland is also the first band that my wife and i went to see together, and because of the distance and time to and from the show, they were the reason we were able to spend the night together for the first time(please don’t read too much into that, it really was innocent).

one of my multitude of failed rock combo attempts even had the good fortune of opening for Copeland once.  it was at a tiny club in Johnson City, TN and was definitely over capactiy. we played our meager attempts at songs and bustled off of the stage to await the granduer that was to come.  it was not a letdown.  after the performance, due to the small size of the club, we were able to help Aaron, Bryan, James and Rusty(former drummer) load their gear out.  we spent the next hour talking to them and genreally having a good time. Aaron even commented on my Denison Marrs shirt, which for a hipster like me, was like God parting the clouds and giving me a high-five.

i’m sure that i have a myriad of other fan-obsessed stories i could tell about the band, but it would not do them justice.  i believe that their records speak for themselves.  Copeland may not be the biggest band on the planet, or considered visionaries in terms of artistic endeavors, but to me they are monumental.  i guess i just took the time for granted, always thinking that they would inevitably tour in the fall or spring.  but sadly, even the best and brightest have to know when time the avenger is calling to them.  So to Aaron, James, Bryan, Jon, Stephen and Rusty: You Have My Attention.

Autumn Offerings

Increasingly, i find myself contemplating the worth of my life.  I sit by and watch people, children, who are younger than me doing things that i dream of.  They start businesses, corporations, websites, magazines, bands and record labels.  Meanwhile, i sit in a classroom working on an undergraduate degree at the age of 27. 

Th is is a poor excuse for living.  I am too afraid, sometimes, to walk out of my front door.  I fear the unknown and change.  I am afraid that i am holding my wife back because of my fears.  I would rather stay in a perpetual state of non-movement rather than relocating to another city.  All of this because i am comfortable where i am.

Instead, i further retreat into a world of comic books, British authors, singer songwriters and a local “scene” that is vapid.  I have a few good friends but nothing to give them in return.  At the age of 15 i was convinced that someday i would have success on the radio and not have to ever be an hourly employee again.  Suprise! Twelve years later i am still a wage slave, just in a different mine.

I really don’t have a conclusion for this ramble.  I just felt i needed to get it out, sometimes that helps.  Sometimes it just makes me feel like a fool.

Haha, once again JFF comes through by “liking” my posts…thanks man.