5. Glasslands // 289 Kent Avenue
This was the first concert I went to after moving to Brooklyn. I had won tickets through a blog contest, but I was only 19 and it was a 21+ show. I didn’t have a fake ID because I look like I’m twelve years old. I emailed a friend who knew Kip Berman, and he told me and my friend to come early so he could let us in. We showed up four hours early, before the band had arrived. I had heard that Williamsburg was a bubble of gentrified safety, but for some reason, I was quite scared of this part of town. Eventually, the band showed up, and they were very nice to us, and Peggy said she liked my bangs, which were a greasy mess.
4. Music Hall of Williamsburg // 66 N. 6th Street
After that first show left me with such a good experience, I saw them again a few weeks later, again in Williamsburg. This time it was a much more established venue. By then, I was listening to “Young Adult Friction” at least five times a day. The library pun at the end of the song was my favorite part, and I looked forward to hearing it live, with my actually knowing the song this time. When they played it, no one sang along during the end, which was very disappointing to me. I like the feeling of solidarity at shows, and it pains me when people aren’t freakishly obsessed with same line in songs as me.
3. Other Music // 15 E. 4th Street
During Record Store Week (Rant: Everything has a week, doesn’t it? Record stores, restaurants, indie bookstores, yoga studios. When will bodegas get their due?), the Pains were doing a DJ gig at Other Music. I like that store a lot, but the thing is, there isn’t much room to dance. While the band DJ-ed, people either stood and curiously stared at them or ignored them and continued to shop for records and badly photocopied zines. I did a little bit of both. But after five minutes I left because there is only so much standing and ignoring a person can do before they start craving some falafel.
2. Webster Hall // 125 E. 11th Street
Did you know this place used to be a polka ballroom, and polka dancers like their dance floors to bounce a little? So during this show, the floor was moving up and down, and I felt like I was in a bouncy castle at times.
1. The Bell House // 149 7th Street
This was the Slumberland Records 20th anniversary show and a pop kid’s wet dream: the Pains, Crystal Stilts, Pants Yell! and Lorelei, among many esteemed others. In short, this was the kind of show I thought I’d be going to all the time when I moved to New York. This was also the first show I attended after I turned 21. As usual, I arrived hours before my friend. I decided to order a drink because it felt grown up, and I had a wristband and everything. So I got a beer, sat down, and played Scrabble on my phone. This was exactly like the first 20 years of my life, but with a bitter aftertaste.
