Octoberfesting

My Lord, what a month!

I spent the entire first week in Hawaii, which I won't say much about other than I loved being there. Lots of baby-love and friend-love and eating potato chip encrusted fish sandwiches and coffee toffee nut gelato.

After arriving home, I spent a few days stumbling around as if drunk trying to readjust to the five-hour time difference. I think I might be very constitutionally weak when it comes to jet lag. Then it was time for the biggest football game of the year, which I attended with my mom and brother and where we had a great time despite (a) the rain and (b) losing.

Then it was time for a road trip ... my brother and I drove 400 miles to see Brandi Carlile (opener: Amy Ray). It rained and took six hours and we got a little lost walking through the dark and desolate sidewalks between our hotel and the venue, but all was good. The venue was just fantastic, I cannot lie, and of course the acts were great. Amy Ray definitely rocks out way, way more when on her own, and she and her plaid pants were really great. Brandi joined them for a song or two, which obviously excited the crowd. Stand and Deliver was unsurprisingly a highlight.

And Brandi -- well, if you've seen her, you know what I mean here -- what can I even say? Even though I saw her in May, and even though some of the stories and moments and songs were similar, it was like a whole new world of delicious awesomeness in this beautiful venue with my brother.

I'd prepped my brother with some of her songs on the way there, including her new album which just came out last week, so he was vaguely familiar with her. But when she and the twins and the drummer and the cello player came out to sing "Oh Dear" in harmony with some kind of old-timey-sounding microphone, I was pretty sure I could hear his jaw dropping behind me along with everyone else's in the room. We all just kind of froze in the beauty of it. (Here's a video of the actual performance. While I am psyched this video exists, it absolutely does not do justice to the sound in the space. The acoustics were phenomenal.) Incredible opener! And now I shall list the rest of the setlist in order!

Looking Out: Amy Ray joined the band for this song, as she does on the album. Totally awesome! My mind was blown by seeing them together, for real. The sound isn't great here, but you get the idea.

What Can I Say, Late Morning Lullabye, My Song: These older songs were audience faves, of course, and we were encouraged to sing along, and lo, we did.

Dying Day: Performed unplugged at the edge of the stage. Sensational in every way. Video from our very show.

I Will: Acoustic. Here's the video from our show! This is a new song that didn't really make much of an impression on me until hearing it live. I got a tiny bit teary, to my surprise. I basically thought about various estrangements in life. "... It hurts to be the one that you'd regret. I have to say that I am proud to know you, and I'll never be the same because we met. You might not miss this, but I will ..."

Hiding My Heart: Acoustic. She said they rarely play this one in concert but had started to ask for fan requests, and this was one. Video from our show; gorgeous, obvs. This is quite a depressing song, in case you were wondering.

Dreams: Possibly my favorite song on the new album. You can see the official video here.

Before It Breaks: Kind of heartbreaking. (Video from our show.)

Turpentine: Audience singalong. Fun.

The Story: I am not sure how I have never noticed that she actually switches guitars in the middle of this song. Noticing this made me happy. Obviously, it was awesome.

Let It Be: Very Pretty.

Jackson / Folsom Prison Blues: I thought this first encore would be it! But it wasn't!

Johnny Rottentale: With Amy Ray. Very fun. I like when singers share a single microphone. It warms my heart.

(Brandi mentioned how she had done Cannonball with both Indigo Girls the night before in Atlanta, which made me fantasize briefly that Emily was going to appear. She did not, but here's a video of that performance. It might be a good thing I did not see this live, as I'm not sure my heart would have been able to take it.)

And still, there was more!

Calling All Angels: With her sister Tiffany Carlile. Unspeakably perfect & beautiful. (That link is an excellent video of the two of them performing this song).

That Year: Just Brandi and her guitar and a stool. Heartfelt explanation & lovely, very sad song.

Pride and Joy: Closed it out. (Video from our show ... starts out kind of dark but sounds GREAT.) A powerhouse of a finale to be sure. The instruments got so explodey at the end I thought the top of my head and roof might blow off. Greatness!

Overall, it was a magnificent experience and one that produced such euphoria that it was totally worth driving 800 miles in two days.

Meanwhile, I'm in the middle of this, which probably deserves its own post one of these days. And I'm taking a class on Saturdays, and this weekend is a high tea and a party and a book club meeting and it's just all kind of pouring over, the fun. So ... October isn't even halfway over, and it's already been so chock full of excitement. I'm liking this crazy autumnal bliss, even though it rains every single day.

To close, I would like to share an e-mail I received today from my mother, just because it made me smile. She is making her way through season three of Friday Night Lights for the first time.

I am sobbing. I just watched the scene where [spoiler about Smash redacted]......

I looooooooooooooove this show........except for too much casual sex, it's just about perfect!

Love you!
Mom

And my dad's reply:

So Mom comes into the bedroom all teary eyed and says [spoiler about Smash redacted]. I look at her and say, "Who the F* is Smash?" Clearly, I don't know the plot line.

Dad