I got to attend a recent underground / secret Basement set. It was held outdoors at Milky's and presented by Sound and Fury. You can read my official US Rocker Music review here.
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| Basement at Milky's |
Here's some additional thoughts on my end. I aimed to get at Milky's in the El Sereno neighborhood of Los Angeles at a little before 7 p.m. I was on the guest list so I didn't really worry about having to get there early to stand in line. I did read a comment on Instagram where one person said they got in line 4 hours before the doors opened. I do believe that comment, because when I drove pass the venue (trying to find parking) the line stretched around a corner. When I did find parking and started walking to the venue, I saw the end of the line in the alleyway behind the venue.
When doors opened for those on the guest list, I was checked in by an individual named Tim. He looked at my name and asked, "Did you used to shoot for Buzzbands?" I was like, yeah. I learned that he used to also work for Buzzbands, but not as a photographer. I have no clue how he knew that I used to shoot for Buzzbands. Maybe he was the one sending out photo requests to various bands / PR / record labels for the various photographers. Or maybe after leaving Buzzbands, he'd get photo requests sent to him. I didn't have time to ask.
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| Basement at Milky's |
The opening band, 16 Underground, went out at 8 p.m. Basement's set was scheduled for 9 p.m., but they didn't hit the stage until around 9:30 p.m. I do wonder if they held off as long as possible to allow as many people into the venue as possible (from what I could tell, there were only 2 people working the box office). It was an outdoor stage so I'm thinking there is a 10 p.m. curfew, which they broke by about 15 minutes so not that bad.
I made sure I was situated at the front of the stage, which was perfectly calm and chill for the ethereal sounds of 16 Underground. Then came Basement. The crowd's energy perked up for the opening song "The Way I Feel" and then went into overdrive for the title track of their latest album release Wired. The crowd pressed as close to the stage as possible, bodies next to bodies. Then the more thrill seeking / risk takers in the crowd started to squeeze their way towards the stage. They weren't there to steal spots from those upfront. Nope, they were there to jump onto the stage and stage dive off.
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| Basement at Milky's |
I'm a bit too old these days to be at the front of the stage for these sorts of shows. On the other hand, it was heart pounding and thrilling (maybe there isn't much of a difference between those two words).
It was a steady stream of stage divers. Maybe every 10 to 15 seconds. Unlucky for me, I was positioned at the exact spot where most of the stage divers wanted to take their leap. And many of those individuals were taking their leap from my blind side. One individual's leg smacked my glasses and my glasses almost came off. So what did I do during the rest of the time I was at the front of the stage? I tried to be aware of my blind side. As soon as a body came flying over me, I'd cover my head in order to protect my glasses from flying off. I would then take my camera and raise it above my head for a brief moment to snap photos. That isn't usually how I take photos, but those at the front were flinging their arms forward onto the stage so I couldn't get clean shows by looking through my view finder. I was thinking about staying at the front for 5 songs before shifting to other parts of the area to take photos, but after 3 songs I decided I better move out. I eventually noticed that a young lady took my spot for the remainder of the set. The difference between being old and being young. When I got out of the area and my thrill ride had ended, I could definitely tell that my legs were wobbly.
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| Basement at Milky's |
I've got to say this about the crowd at the front of the stage. They were young and having the time of their lives and yet very respectful. No one was trying to shove me out of my spot. From what I could tell, once I moved out of the area and could see a largely view, those who were squeezing their way to the front did so to get on stage for their stage dive and weren't there trying to steal someone's spot. Yeah, more than a handful of shoes smacked me in the head, but it was hardly on purpose. It wasn't like they were trying to kick me in the head. I loved it. I've been at other shows where people have tried to force me (and others) out of my (their) spot.
How many more shows like that can I fully participate in as I age? Who knows, but I got to do it this one time. Honestly, at some point, if there isn't a photo pit, I may just need to skip taking photos from the stage. But for a moment in time, I was up there with the teenagers.
Where did I shoot the rest of the set? Either from the very back, VIP section that was to the sides of the stage, or from the roof (which honestly I got lost trying to find my way to the roof, but luckily I ran across someone who pointed me in the right direction -- crawling out of an open window).
Setlist: The Way I Feel, Wired, Covet, Whole, Earl Grey, Pine, Spoiled, Head Alight, Time Waster, Broken By Design, Are You The One, Promise Everything.
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