At the stroke of midnight two Saturdays ago, I turned 20 years old
at hole-in-the-wall all-ages club the Smell in smoggy downtown
Los Angeles. I was there to take a break from the stresses of English
102 and everyday life, but mainly to see Japanther, one of the
most energetic and exciting live bands I’ve ever seen. What better way
to celebrate the big 2-0 than to partake in one of the band’s legendary
sweat-drenched dance workouts?
But something just wasn’t right that night at the Smell. Drummer Ian
Vanek took the stage and pumped the crowd up with his usual
inspirational ranting. He and bassist Matt Reilly sloppily plowed
through their first couple of songs in their usual noisy style. But the
crazy dynamic of their Seattle shows was missing. This show just
felt tired. I ended up leaving before they finished, dejected and
disappointed with the whole experience. Was the band simply having an
off night? Was my enthusiasm for life already fading just an
hour after bidding farewell to my teenage years?
I decided to find out by giving Japanther another go this past
weekend in Seattle at the Booty Cave. I’m still not sure about
the place’s name, but the grimy warehouse/art studio
space—reminiscent of the defunct S.S. Marie
Antoinette—is a great place to see a band. With revelers
milling in and out of bedsheet tepees, bands all going on way too late,
and a drunk guy barfing on the floor, the show had a party vibe
that was sorely missing from the L.A. show a few days prior. But when
Japanther finally played at one in the morning, I realized that
something else had been missing at the Smell: a crowd of friends and
familiar faces bobbing up and down and chanting the words to the
band’s carelessly fun pop-punk anthems. No band makes me want to throw
an arm around my best pals and go nuts for half an hour straight more
than Japanther. After the show, sweaty and exhausted, summer never
seemed so close and the city’s air never felt so fresh. Sometimes it
takes a vacation to remind you how good you’ve got it at home.
