The Good Groupie returns...

It was a quiet return to the music world for me Friday night. It had been more than 100 days since I'd last gone to a show - unthinkable for a girl who starts jonesing for a dose of live music after 10 days usually - so I was looking forward to closing my eyes and losing myself in the music for just a little while.

With a handful of friends (and after an exhausting day at work), I headed to Warehouse Live for The Literary Greats, Quiet Company & The Eastern Sea. I don't know if it was the huge gap between shows, the exhaustion, my impatience towards noisy audiences or inability of a venue to balance sound with crowd so the music isn't echoing across the room...but I left still not feeling like myself.

The bands themselves played great to the tiny, noisy room. Though I'm still trying to figure out The Literary Greats' sound (and maybe so are they - it felt like their songs jumped around, without a cohesive sound. I swear they were more mellow, less hinting-at-Americana, the first time I saw them...), I enjoyed their set. Their wide range of instruments always captivates me, and I especially love the addition of Sara Van Buskirk to the band. She's a local favorite of mine.

It's always interesting to see Quiet Company in Houston and watch how their fan base here changes. It's gone from a couple other people showing up regularly and singing along to an entire room crowding the stage, dancing and singing along to their tunes. When I bought their album earlier in the evening at Cactus Music, even the kid at the check out counter commented on their surge in press coverage recently. It's great to see so many other people falling in love with this band too.

My last time seeing The Eastern Sea (and come to think of it...my first time too) was SXSW 2011, so I was long overdue. Though I curled up in one of the side booths and listened to their entire set rather than watch it (old age from an impending birthday + long day = tired groupie), it was rather lovely. There's so much to The Eastern Sea's music, that I almost think I prefer them recorded versus live...but it was still great to see hear them live again - plus they played my favorite song, "Name," which dragged me out of my booth for a few minutes.

Still, something felt off when I left. I didn't have that music euphoria I've come to love, no matter how small the dose. But I'm slowly filling my concert calendar for the summer and am determined to find my way back.

Good Groupie Confessions

Hi. I'm Miranda, aka The Good Groupie, and I haven't set foot inside a music venue in 105 days.

That's more than three months. Three months with no real live music. Three months with no late nights. Three months of no 2 a.m. post-music-high drives home that make me feel whole again.

For a girl who survives on weekly or biweekly shows...105 days with no live music is a lifetime.

Where have I been? Drowning in reality, then picking up the pieces and putting myself back together. Sounds a touch dramatic, but it's the simplest way to describe the last six months. I mean, when you're a pop/rock girl and you're suddenly blaring stuff like From Autumn to Ashes in your car on the drive to work just to feel like you can get through another day, well...something isn't right.

So I made some changes. I quit a thankless job and haven't looked back once. I ran away to the opposite end of the country for two weeks of R&R. I turned my attention to another writing project that I'm really excited about and turns into something more interesting every single day. I returned to a previous job with creative people I'm excited to work with every day.

Now that I have myself back together, it's time to put The Good Groupie back together too.

While working on my other writing project (also music related) I came across something that prompted me to scribble this down in my journal:

I'm not a music analyst, I'm a music romantic.

I couldn't think of a better way to describe myself: a music romantic. There's millions of music critics out there to tell you your favorite band sucks, but I'd like to think there's a place for those of us who view music as lifeblood and just want to share that passion with others who feel the same.

So moving forward, expect more blogs with approaches to music as a romantic. I'm hoping to give my blog a face lift (Got an idea? I'm open to suggestions.), focus more on all the local bands I love, write some great interview pieces and even look for regular Guest Groupie contributors (e-mail me) who want to share a tour story or band they love.


And that all begins tonight with The Literary Greats, The Eastern Sea and (my beloved) Quiet Company at good ol' Warehouse Live.

See you out at the show,
xo.The Good Groupie