just stay close by, like all the time...

[behindthec]

- pics from the best night i've had in bandom, ever.

- video of part of "ship lost at sea" ... the lighting wasn't very good, so i didn't bother with much videoing, but still.  my favourite song.  gotta represent.

i am NOT cutting this because it's DARREN, ALEX, AND ME IN THEIR MOTHERFUCKING VAN, AND WE DON'T LOOK LIKE CRACKWHORES.

i crashed at my parents' last night so keri and pete wouldn't wake me, and had to make due with my dad's ambien, which did not work properly at ALL and i feel all dazed today.  so this won't be terribly witty or entertaining, really, but whatever.  highlights.  more random notes in the pics, so check those out.

so their set was ridiculously short.  for this reason, i am beyond excited for their headlining tour in february.  YES.  YES, YES, YES.  despite it, i loved every fucking second of it, alex is the greatest showman i know, works the crowd like no one else, etc. etc. etc., we all knew this.  it was amazing.

honestly, becca could probably give you an equally accurate concert report, b/c i pretty much texted her a play-by-play of everything phantom related.  "sam totally walked up stairs with a plastic bag!"  "sam walked down the stairs again!  no bag this time."  "mr. hadouken has entered the building."  and so on.  i also played their entire set for her over the phone.  there were buttloads of songs they didn't have time for that i really, really wanted to hear, but they still played "ship lost at sea" so i'm counting it as a win.  they're just amazing on stage; so grateful and happy to be there, no matter what.  it's so inspiring.  and impressive.  all the people they open for should be opening for them.  they're more talented than all these guys, but there's never any attitude that suggests they want to be anything other than what they are.  they'd be doing this if their only performance space was their mom's garage.  i mean, alex and darren have been together band-wise for FOURTEEN YEARS.  that's a long fucking time, people.  it's clear in their every move and every word that they love what they do, so fucking much.

on a side note, alex and darren are totally, totally, one hundred percent married.  it's the most stupidly precious thing i've ever seen in my fucking life.  if i didn't love them so much in a i-really-respect-you-as-people-and-musicians way, i'd be all over that OTP.  actually the only thing that's stopped me from writing fic is that i can't see them getting very far in sexual situations; somebody would laugh or slap the other and then someone would yell "HADOUKEN!" and it would all be over in a big fit of giggles.

so anyway, i was damn close to the stage for their set, and alex seemed intent on trying to pull me closer.  he grabbed my hand and smiled at me quite a few times, and okay, sure, he does that to people every night, but whatever, i still felt :OI$U(P*&F)(#*S$S#.  i swear he spent more time in the audience than he did onstage. XD  not that i had any problem with that whatsoever.  he's a big crowd surfer; he jumped right onto me like twice and i was just like OHAI YES PLS.  in case anyone was wondering, his skin is ridiculously soft, but cool, and he has really strong hands.  brb, orgasming.

he is really responsive to the dumbass shit audience members yell, too.  he always responded to whatever they'd say.  like someone yelled "you're so fucking sexy!" y'know, how they do, and alex just grins and gets a little blushy and looks down at the floor and he's like, "i think someone just said i'm sexy.  thank you."  i'm like, S:#KJHSP*FUP(*#$ MARRY ME.

they also crashed rocket summer's set and bryce made alex breakdance and sam played drums and that was pretty much the most amazing thing ever.

rocket summer was amazing, of course.  their fans are incredibly devoted, and happy.  bryce makes me feel good about being myself, for reasons i can't explain, but it's wonderful to be in his presence, to be surrounded by that kind of positive energy.  he's a very special soul.  i enjoyed every moment, even though he didn't play "story," which was the first song of his i ever heard/loved.  he did close with "so in this hour," though, which was both appropriate as well as awesome for ME, because that's one of the key songs on my soundtrack at the end of pwf. ;)  i was really hoping to hear it.  \o/ bryce!!!!!!! \o/

SO, the acoustic set.  HA.  basically here is how it went down.  it was drizzling, so they couldn't really sit outside and play guitar, so alex GATHERS US IN/AROUND HIS VAN AND PLAYS "KNOWITALL" BY REQUEST ON HIS DINKY LITTLE KEYBOARD (you know, the kind you had when you were ten, that's like, a foot and a half long -- ALEXXXXXXX <333333333).  during this time, he's chatting and laughing with us while he's trying to pick it out, and darren is in the seat in front of him LEANING IN TO WHISPER UTTER FILTH in alex's ear while he's trying to play, and alex keeps cracking up and narrating to us what darren is doing and being all, "darren, STOP IT, YOU'RE DISTRACTING ME!  here i was trying to maintain some ARTISTIC MERIT TO THIS SONG!!!" and darren is just giggling away.  quote of the night: alex (to us): "darren just told me to go fornicate with my mother."  ROTFLMAO.  anyway, they finally finished the song a cappella in amazing harmony, and i wish to god i'd videotaped it (at least becca got it over the phone), but my memory card was filling up and i thought they'd play more songs so i was holding out for "i don't mind," which i was going to request.  but it was getting too rainy and no one could really hear the keyboard very well so they just gave up.

no worries.  there is february. ;)

so then everyone does pics, and i was kind of surprised to hear other people express thoughts similar to my own, about how inspiring alex is and so on, because usually you just hear crap like "you guys are awesome, i love you."  and he was so fucking sweet to everyone about it, really sincere and he had no problem sitting there and having conversation with people.  (so ugh, for the fans' sake, guys, never get too bloody famous, or we'll never have these moments again.)  so when it's my turn i climb into their van and i'm like, so, hai, you guys and your music and your dumbass video blogs help my friend and i get through the workday, thank you so much, blah blah blah.  and of course they are utterly sweet and kind and awesome, and i had becca on the phone so they totally said hi and yelled "HADOUKEN!" for her in unison and becca pretty much owes me her soul now. ;)  then they took a pic with me, as you can see XD XD XD, and signed my thing and then sam came back so i got a pic with him too, and then darren and alex started telling me about how jeff was planning a BUNCH of new video blogs, and darren got all excited as he said to me, and i quote, "it's some of the funniest shit i've ever SEEN."  so, YEAH.  CAN'T FUCKING WAIT.

this disorganized muddle of comments doesn't do it justice.  they were awesome to hang with.  i've never felt more comfortable around a fandom object before.  i was totally cool laughing and joking with them and touching them (they're very free with physical affection, HELLO LIKE THEY WEREN'T AWESOME ENOUGH ALREADY).  usually i just sort of freeze and barely manage to say hi.  so, fucking shit, they're awesome.  did i mention they're awesome?  yeah.

so in conclusion, i called becca and we squeed and then i drove home and i couldn't stop smiling, the end.  best night ever.

thanks, phanplan.  you made my night/week/year.
 

anyway, i'm off today, so lemme get some chores done and i will totally work some on chapter 8, promise.