Last night, we trekked to The Forum in Inglewood to catch one of my all-time favorite bands: Mumford & Sons.
When the Big, Bad, Beautiful Break-Up happened – I turned to Mumford & Sons. People turn to all sorts of things: ice cream, hook ups, alcohol, karaoke – whatever. For me, it was one song by M&S that I probably played two hundred times within the first month of being single: “Believe”. There was something in the words that just spoke to me – something that managed to make me stop to sob on the treadmill at the gym…something that made me feel so alive when I was driving with the windows down. Something that even prompted this post, the day after the (emotional) explosion:
“I guess, right now, my eyes are wide open. I’m seeing things in a new light. I feel so alive and so vulnerable and scared and I’m fueled by this aching in my chest to find a new sort of happiness, a new honesty, a new truth, in a different sort of way.
My heart aches, yes, but it’s also overflowing with love right now. For my friends, for my family, for the guy I love like crazy, for myself, for the future, for the past, for what was and for what could be – if we just take the time to open our eyes and finally feel something.”
There was something about the song, something within the lyrics, that just resonated with me and made me feel that regardless of what was going to happen, I WOULD BE OKAY. So when I heard that M&S would be playing in LA for the first time in what felt like forever, it was a necessity for me to track down tickets.
For those of you who haven’t heard it, this is it (prepare your heart):
I spent all last weekend sitting on Craigslist trying to track down tickets. I negotiated prices with probably twenty different sellers. I was so determined to see this show, since, in my mind, it was a way of bringing the entire experience full circle. It wasn’t just about seeing this band – seeing this song – it was about me taking ownership over a horrible, heart-wrenching experience, and making it something that filled me with joy. Trying to make it something positive.So, miraculously, I was able to snag tickets. Not just any tickets: GA floor tickets. I would be seeing the band in the pit, as close to the stage and to the band as I could possibly get. I managed to wrangle some girlfriends into seeing the concert, too, and on Monday evening after work, we set out to Inglewood to see M&S in all their glory.
Needless to say, they were INCREDIBLE. I’ve seen a lot of concerts in my life. A lot. But last night’s show, maybe with the emotional connection that came with it, combined the fact that I was a sweaty mess in the crowd, was probably one of the best shows I’ve ever seen in my life.
I’ll just put it this way when I say that Mumford & Sons said it best when they said: Awake My Soul. My soul was on fire. My heart was singing. And when “Believe” came on, I, for lack of a better term, almost lost my shit. It felt like a hug – like they were speaking to me. If only they knew how much that moment meant.
That’s something that’s so extraordinary about music that blows my mind a little bit – one song can mean so many things to so many people. And last night, Marcus Mumford and his band easily meant so much and spoke so much truth to the thousands of people in the audience. The room was so alive. It was on fire; everyone had sparkles in their eyes and joy etched on their faces and it was an wonderous thing to witness.
Overall, the experience was incredible. Extraordinary. And it really did help to bring things full circle.
Okay. Gonna go listen to more Mumford now.
Happy Tuesday, friends!
