This goes out to Beach House:
I'm sorry, and I was wrong. I was very wrong.
Long have I tauted Beach House as the worst band ever. You have to understand, this goes way back... about three years. My sister and I were going to see in concert The Clientèle in concert.
For those of you who know me well this might be met with a thunderous "What Kate see live music? Go to a concert? Has she taken leave of her senses?"
Because it's true, I hate live music like poison, the crowds, the loudness of concerts, the lack of anything to do during the concert... Don't get me wrong I like music, and live music can very cool, provided I don't have to attend the concert. It's just I never just listen to music without doing anything else. I read, or draw or clean or work, or walk or dance while I listen to music. I hate concerts because to me it's unnatural to just sit and listen to music.
But every once and a while I can be talked into going to a concert.
Thus the case with The Clientele, a band that I know one of their songs... Reflections After Jane.This is again a cause for alarm because if I love a band and know a whole bunch of their songs I will go their concert, because I can sing along. It's something to do.
Beach House was opening for the Clientele at the MFA, and from what I had read, they were an exciting band on the rise. I liked the name, but Beach House not so much. The singer explained early in that key on her keyboard was broken and it was throwing off the sound a bit. Which gave them a little sympathy because they sounded terrible. Nobody was applauding after the songs, and they sat on the stuffy little stage for what seemed like eternity. I think it was for about an hour. At one point they started a really pretty song, but soon the keyboard struck sour again. Beth and I decided that this poor band needed some encouragement. Not because we liked them, no this was out of pity, because we could imagine being trapped on stage with a broken keyboard, knowing that we had to finish the set, as people talked through or simply walked out on us. A few people joined us but our pity applause was even worse than no applause at all. After they finished, they told us their new CD was on sale in the lobby. It was met with shocked silence. And I thought broken keyboard or not this is worst band I've ever seen.
But I was wrong, so very wrong.
Years later, I read another glowing review that dreamy band Beach House. I thought, oh you've got to be kidding, that was the worst band I've ever seen. But I've only ever read glowing reviews of Beach House and I thought to myself, I have to check into this again. I picked the album that they had just released when we saw them.
I listened to it and... it really is dreamy and lovely. I'm slightly obsessed with the song "Wedding Bell"
I owe Beach House an apology because I for years I've been wrong about them. I've been telling the story of the worst concert ever. A broken keyboard had tricked me, I see Beach House in a wonderous new light.
And it's great.
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