The Hedonism of Pitchfork

So, I ended up getting into Pitchfork for all three days. For free. I mean, did I really doubt myself? Of course not. Friday night I lucked out because a friend didn't want to go so he gave me his pass. Sonic Youth was pretty damn good. Saturday I handed out Chicago Innerview mags for a couple of hours then my editor rewarded me by buying a ticket from a scalper. I should get something out of working for free for the past three years. Then another friend gave me her press pass which got me in for Sunday. Having a press pass gets you free water, Fuze, and photo access. Saturday was kinda crazy. My friend and I decided to see back to back dance acts Dan Deacon and Girl Talk which entailed cramming ourselves into a small outdoor space with hundreds of sweaty people, getting crushed, and almost suffocating while everyone tried to dance and crowd surf for an hour. It seriously became a death trap. At one point the fire marshal shut the first act down. For a while, I thought I was going to die and prayed I wouldn't get trampled by hipsters. Despite the perilous nature, I think it was the highlight of my Pitchfork weekend. It was an experience I'll never forget. None of my other friends got to experience it, but I did. I seriously needed a shower afterwards. Getting kicked in the head, having a water bottle land on my head, and the bruise on my arm was worth it. I'll never understand why people do this shit, but hey, it was fun. I guess. Afterwards, I caught Yoko Ono for a bit with her avant-garde "music," if you can call it that. I do have to give her credit for being so active at her age (74). Unfortunately, she'll always be known as the chick who broke up the Beatles. I'm not sure why she was booked in the first place. Only the curious stuck around then quickly left. She kept howling like a dying dog. The best part (and using this term lightly) was when Thurston Moore from Sonic Youth came onstage to play guitar against her yelping. Soon after, I left and headed for my friend's b-day party which was a nice alternative to the fest until a crazy Polish chick made my friend feel her up. What a day.

Sunday consisted of another long day. It was a lot of standing/walking around, the hot sun beating down, and more popular acts playing. At least this year wasn't as hot as last year's scorching 100 degree weather. I caught some more acts and mingled some more. The best part about the fest is seeing people you know, especially those you haven't seen in a while. The Onion was there and so were a couple of my New York acquaintances. I wish I would've seen some people for longer than I did, though. The VIP area was the place to be but unfortunately a press pass doesn't get you in to where the free beer, ice cream, and Chipotle truck is. Yes, 24-7 of FREE Chipotle! I did borrow the VIP pass for a minute and got a chance to scope out the scene. The Chipotle line was too long, but not the beer line. Free beer is the best. This year the fest expanded with an extra stage and monitors. It's becoming too big, I think. Festivals can be sorta rough and exhausting and maybe a little boring because there is so much to see you end up only sampling bits and pieces. I have no attention span and spent a great deal of time texting people to find where were at the venue. Overall, I was so happy to be apart of Pitchfork. I had a blast. The fest is a celebration of youth, of the music culture, and what it is to have a passion for the artists there. It's also sometimes a fashion show--a ridiculous fashion show at best. Lollapalooza is in three weeks which will be the behemoth festival. I'm not sure how I'm going to get into that one. I can't possibly begin to think about it now.

Pitchfork reminds me how far I've come but how much farther I need to go. It's nice when people I know come up to me and say they saw my name in a magazine. I had a few write ups in the Chicago Innerview Pitchfork issue in which thousands of people read. My friend remarked I should feel good because so many people are reading my stuff. It does make me proud, but I still know people younger and more successful than me who are doing cooler things. I just wanna get paid doing what I love. I simply won't be happy until I'm making a living as freelancer. It just has to happen soon. I won't take no for an answer. I guess I need to keep pushing and fighting.

Enough about Pitchfork. Something incredibly horrible happened this weekend. My brother called me late Sat. night to inform me a drunk driver drove a car through our house!!! I was stunned. The car went through my childhood bedroom destroying everything. This is the room I sleep in when I go home. Luckily, I wasn't there this weekend or I'd be dead by now. These sort of things only happen in movies, not in real life. Unless of course you're Billy Joel. My mom is freaking out. I talked to her last night and she was totally out of it. My mom is one of the most sober people you'll meet and she was totally falling asleep talking to me. I think I need to go home this weekend and help clean up my room. I guess I'll have to sleep on the couch.

Despite the near death experience and car accident, it was a great weekend with great company where everything seemed to click. For the most part. I'm going to yet another show tonight. I think I'm making up for the past two weeks where I haven't gone to shows. I know in another day or two, the euphoria from the weekend will wear off but until then, I'm going to dream about hot and sweaty hipsters.