I went to a gig
Nov. 10th, 2021 11:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
anefI kind of have a love hate relationship with the Junction. It's a venue 10 minutes' walk from our house, run by a community-based charity, and presents a lot of interesting stuff. It has three stages: J1 with a bar and no seats, where they have live bands: J2 with seats where they do folk gigs, comedy and am-dram, and J3, a larger hall with seats where they do stand-up to larger crowds (and a lot of other things, obvs, but somehow M keeps persuading me to go to comedy shows). My back isn't really up to standing for long periods, so I tend to avoid J1 except when tempted by someone I really like, which I usually end up regretting. Last experience before Covid was Garbage - too loud, too crowded, too many tall people in front of me.
But I stay on their mailing list, and I noticed This is the Kit were playing (last night) and I listened to some of their songs on-line and they seemed interesting and melodic. And I needed an impetus to get my Covid pass organised. The Junction require proof of Covid-free status before they let you in, which is a blessed relief. They also ask people to continue to wear a mask indoors, and maintain a safe distance from other guests at the event where possible. Hmm.
So I booked, and decided not to go to the support act, so was just getting a drink when the band started. And they were great, though I have been trying to describe their sound and it's kind of indescribable. It doesn't have the driving rhythms of rock, or the strong melodies of folk. It does have both rhythm and melodies, but they are subtle and rapidly changing. Sometimes the music sounds ambient, sometimes more like North African or Malian music, sometimes it starts off with a rhythm like rock or pop and then stops so that the singer can do something else, and then resumes with a sort of collage effect. Meanwhile the singer's voice wanders above, around or through the music.
Was it crowded? Well, they claim to be able to hold 850 people in J1, though that might be if the bar area is packed as well. I didn't count the numbers but I would have said there were considerably fewer than that. I found somewhere to stand with a reasonable view of the stage, and although I was behind a couple of tall people (they get everywhere!) I could see quite well between them. I would have said that on average there were 2 or 3 feet spare between me and other people. Masks? About 10% of people were wearing masks, including me.
So, bottom line, would I repeat the experience? Yes, for carefully chosen acts. Definitely not for super-popular ones which would be a lot more crowded. I had a good time, and it's possible that next time I may be able to persuade M to join me.
But I stay on their mailing list, and I noticed This is the Kit were playing (last night) and I listened to some of their songs on-line and they seemed interesting and melodic. And I needed an impetus to get my Covid pass organised. The Junction require proof of Covid-free status before they let you in, which is a blessed relief. They also ask people to continue to wear a mask indoors, and maintain a safe distance from other guests at the event where possible. Hmm.
So I booked, and decided not to go to the support act, so was just getting a drink when the band started. And they were great, though I have been trying to describe their sound and it's kind of indescribable. It doesn't have the driving rhythms of rock, or the strong melodies of folk. It does have both rhythm and melodies, but they are subtle and rapidly changing. Sometimes the music sounds ambient, sometimes more like North African or Malian music, sometimes it starts off with a rhythm like rock or pop and then stops so that the singer can do something else, and then resumes with a sort of collage effect. Meanwhile the singer's voice wanders above, around or through the music.
Was it crowded? Well, they claim to be able to hold 850 people in J1, though that might be if the bar area is packed as well. I didn't count the numbers but I would have said there were considerably fewer than that. I found somewhere to stand with a reasonable view of the stage, and although I was behind a couple of tall people (they get everywhere!) I could see quite well between them. I would have said that on average there were 2 or 3 feet spare between me and other people. Masks? About 10% of people were wearing masks, including me.
So, bottom line, would I repeat the experience? Yes, for carefully chosen acts. Definitely not for super-popular ones which would be a lot more crowded. I had a good time, and it's possible that next time I may be able to persuade M to join me.
