Concert Survival 101

11/20/15 - A Memoir

11/20/15

I stand in line, my heart racing and fiddling with the rubber bracelets that cover my wrists. I try to control my breathing as I take steps forward. Three years ago I would of never believed I would be in this situation but here I was, in line to meet my heroes.

"Give me therapy, I'm a walking travesty". It was the summer before freshman year, and I sit on my bed admiring the familiar faces plastered on my walls. I listen to the bass chords carry the melody of the musical genius that is Nothing Personal, All Time Low's third album. The album is composed of uplifting yet sarcastic hits like Weightless, the brother sister duo of Stella and Lost in Stereo, and melancholy but hopeful ballads like Therapy. Overall this album became a statement in my life that summer, it became apart of who I was.

"Maybe it's not my weekend but it's gonna be my year" Lost, confused, and small. Those were the words that described how I felt that morning. I walk up the cold stone steps entering a foreign building I didn't know. The taller girls walked past me without a care in the world as I slowly try to find my locker. I get to my locker and struggle to figure out how to get it open.

"Hey I'm sorry to bother you but it's my first day and I've never had a lock on my locker before. Could you open it for me?" I nervously ask the sophomore beside me.

"Sure thing!" She responds putting her bag down. She opens my locker for me and I thank her.

"Wow had to ask someone to open my locker for me...great" I think to myself. I grab my books for class and head for a class room that I didn't know how to get to. I turn up the volume on my headphones, filling my ears with the only positive words I would hear all day.

"I'm ready to go but she's so lost in stereo" "Please let me go it would mean the world to me" I pleaded. I click out of the slide show titled "Reasons Why I Should Go To The ATL Concert" and turned my computer off. I look at my dad with hopeful eyes praying that he would give me a yes.

"Yes we can go but you have to do all of your homework beforehand" my dad says. The simple three-letter word "yes" meant everything to me in that moment. That word allowed my dad to drive me an hour to New Haven on April 30th 2014 to see the band that I loved so much. The night was filled with drunk college students, jokes from the guitarist Jack Barakat, and the happiest highschooler in the world.

"Love yourself so no one has to" "OH MY GOD" I screech as the lights go down. I'm squished against some poor stranger in front of me who was leaning against the barricade. I was standing in the general admission pit of my fourth All Time Low show. The familiar chords of Citizens of The Earth by Neck Deep start playing and Ben Barlow comes out on stage. I immediately feel goose bumps rise on my arms as the heavy pop punk lyrics about the new generation looking for a purpose in life are sung. The mosh pit behind me grows and crowd surfers kick me in the head. To most people this would seem like torture but to me this is home. After the wild set comes to an end, Sleeping With Sirens take the stage. I use this time to use my portable phone charger and talk with my peers since I am not a Sleeping With Sirens fan. Their set finally ends and I feel that spark of excitement in the pit of my stomach. "Marissa we're seeing All Time Low!" I attempt to tell her over the loud chatter of fans. We can't help but freak out a little bit as we anticipate our favorite band being a few feet away from us. Sadly there is a white curtain between the audience and the stage, but I know it will drop soon.

Suddenly the lights go off and my heart beats even faster. I give my little sister Walsh, and Marissa one last look before my eyes are glued to the stage. The guitar riff I know like the back of my hand begins to play as the crowd roars. I hear Alex Gaskarth sing, "wishing on a star that's just a satellite " and his silhouette appears. As Jack strums the last chord of the song, the curtain falls, and there they are. In the back Rian Dawson, an amazingly talented drummer, plays like a pro and keeps the beat of Kicking and Screaming going. On stage right the gorgeous Zachary Merrick carries the song with his bass guitar. Jack Barakat, the lead guitarist, is constantly running around the stage interacting with fans. Last but not least Alexander Gaskarth is dead center right in front of me. I cant' help but smile as I sing along. His fingers are like magic over his guitar and his powerful voice gives me the chills.