moshing
13 Jul
We arrive at the Sound Academy amidst a throng of baby doll dresses and fishnet stockings; we make our way past the most gay men I have ever seen in one place at the same time (who knew Courtney was so big with the gay boys!?), and we proceed to the VIP line where we are – get this – ID-ed. We move on to the stairs, get our bracelets and make our way up to the balcony. As I look down at the floor below I feel my heart sink as I see an opening about 5 people back from front-row-centre. I look over at Joni and say “You realize there’s no way in hell I’m staying up here, don’t you.”
She takes a gulp of her wine as, I am certain, she is flashing back to 1995 – memories of herself screaming at me to kill the Hole (or she will kill me) run through her head. “I think I need another one of these first”, she moans, as she heads back to the bar.
A few minutes later we’re standing on the club floor surrounded by what I can only describe as a motley crew of teenage whores. I love it.
We stand, chat, fight off people trying to force their way past us for a better spot, all while a young band from Ireland tries to get the crowd pumped for the show that is about to begin. There is no need – the crowd is rife with anticipation. You can hear people wonder aloud whether Courtney will show, if she will be out of it, will she be on a tirade, will it be a good show… It’s funny how everyone wonders the same thing.
Anticipation builds until the band finally takes to the stage. Courtney wales out the lyrics of Pretty on the Inside, then kicks it in to a heavy version of Sympathy for the Devil. She transitions into Miss World and I see two young girls in white baby doll dresses and plastic tiaras singing along to the words in front of us. I lean over to Joni and scream “you realize we have tattoos older than some of these people, right?” She nods and looks at her feet.
Before she gets a chance to raise her head I am jumping on the shoulders of the guy in front of me and headed for the mosh pit. Old habits die hard.
Arg, I was so into Hole when I was a teenager but, seems I lived in the middle of bloody Snowdonia, I never got to see them play live.
I’d quite like to see Hole v.02 but I’d be worried it would kill my memories. I mean, it’s not really Hole anymore is it?
You could definitely feel the different vibe. I don’t think Hole will ever be the same without Eric, and Melissa’s harmonies were definitely missed. That said, Courtney has enough energy to fill any stage.
If you have the opportunity to see them this time around you should still go for it. I mean, everyone should be able to say they saw Courtney Love play live, right?