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717 HXC IS ALIVE AND WELL

Just got back from a real fun night. I spent all day hacking on my perl/sybase code so by the evening I was psyched to get out of the house. I hooked up with Tim and we headed towards the school to check out a hardcore show featuring one of his friend’s band. The show was at a little place in Boiling Sprngs called the shack which is located in this alley behind the school. The shack is a small venue with a surprisingly good sound system that the owner uses for shows and youth group meetings. This was the first show I had ever been to at the venue (most of the past shows were primarily christian acts) and it was definitely a fun time. The first band to play was Disengaged from Anneville. They played a tight set of hardcore that got everyone moving and they finished it off with a clever and well executed cover of frosty the snowman. Get sick! The next two bands to play were pretty weak the first was just a bad rock band from Perry county who were very sloppy, played mostly covers of 80s songs, and had pretty bad vocals. At least they were having fun. The next band was also from Perry county and they played super-fast punk rock. Unfortunately, they weren’t very tight at all and sounded pretty poor. Hopefully they’ll practice more and be tighter and more enjoyable when I come home next time. The show was closed out with an awesome performance by Carlisle hardcore band Louder Than Words. My brother’s friend Mike (who is the younger brother of the girl who played bass in my band as well as the younger brother of the drummer from Schoolyard Bully) is in the band and another kid I know from hs plays bass. I had heard their demo CD and it was intriguing, but didn’t blow me away. Their live set was above and beyond my best expectations. The band had significantly tightened up from the demo CD and their frontman seemed to have unbridled energy as they blasted through an intense set of positive hardcore. They worked the small crowd into a frenzy and verified that the torch had indeed been passed from great Carlisle hardcore bands like Rightstart and Reaching for Tomorrow to a new generation of bands. It makes me wish that I was living in Carlisle again. Just the excitement of all the kids and the diversity of the kids in the scene is really exciting and is indicative of everything that I love about independent punk and hardcore music. These bands are striving for a dream and the music offers a truly positive outlet in an otherwise somewhat dismal community. Its nice to see that the scene that played such a huge part in shaping me as a person is still around for other kids.

It was a bit odd, however, as it seemed that the group of kids at the show was completely different from the kids who I hung out and went to shows with during my time in hs. Save for a few of my brother’s friends, I didn’t know anybody. I guess that’s really indicative of how the Carlisle scene works. The scene thrives on the hard work and passion of a couple of great kids and bands and then dies out when they move on to other things. Then, a few years later, a new group of kids discovers the scene and reinvents it for themselves. Its really kind of neat and exciting like that. On one hand you have sort of a tradition, but at the same time, you have something fresh and new and exciting. Going to the first local d.i.y. show in a long time its really great to see that the things that meant so much to me when i was younger are still there for other kids, but at the same time it leaves me feeling just a tiny bit connected. Oh well, it was still an amazing show.

After the show, I left with Tim to go to one of his friend’s house to hang out and watch movies and whatnot. I am generally easily loath to that sort of thing, but after and intense hardcore show, sitting back and chilling is just the ticket. That’s one of the great things about the Carlisle scene. You go to a show, and sure you see the kids in their perfect youth crew gear or spiked leather jacket. At the same time however, you see more mainstream kids who just happen to be friends with the bands, as well as the younger siblings and parents of the band members. Its really a neat diverse mix and it makes the shows more fun. Its definitely one of the things missing from the shows in Columbus. I’ve lived there for 2 years and I still don’t feel like I’m part of the whole scene. The Carlisle scene is all about fun and not about politics. It’s warm and inviting and withouth pretense. But I digress … What was really odd is how Tim’s friends have changed. I don’t really notice the changes that Tim has undergone, because I’ve always been around him and I suppose one just overlooks gradual change. However his friends, who had always to me seemed like just, well, Tim’s friends, now have transformed into real people. Real people with girlfriends, plans for the future, and memories of the past. Real people about to embark on the tumultous journey that I myself have only recently undertaken. Needless to say, it was significantly less akward hanging out with them than in the past which is fortuitous as I’ve severed most of my relationships with the crowd I hung out with in hs but still like to have people to hang out with when I come home. The kid’s basement was totally tech, just an array of old ghetto televisions and VCRs rigged up to gaming consoles. A total nerd valhalla. The kid calls it his fortress of solitude. We were going to watch the tapes of the dune miniseries, but the VCR had a mind of its own so we ended up just talking and watching the classic teen comedy “Better Off Dead”. All in all it was a completely fun night. A true Boiling Springs night. I’m going to go read a bit and then go to sleep, perfectly content