JOY in the MOSH PIT

Heavy Metal = LOVE

I just want to share something special with you I experienced last night.

When I was 15, I found myself in a lot of pain inside, and instead of dealing with it, or talking about it, I embraced anger. It’s a long story, but heavy metal was the first time I heard the brutality of my inner-self expressed in art. (All photos: iPhone).

Concert night.

Fast forward many years later, and here I am, taking my son to his first in person live show.

NOT ONLY THAT, but Bradlee Beebee, a guitarist for the totally kick ass band Narcotic Self, was also there. The reason that’s awesome is because Bradlee is a former student of mine almost 20 years ago WHO IS ALSO MY SON’S GUITAR TEACHER.

Bradlee was a student who I instantly connected with. He is wicked smart, but he just didn’t believe in himself in high school. I’ve been able to see him, from afar, build an amazing life for himself: family, career, and living his dream as a METAL GOD.

Seeing Bradlee perform was one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen in my life. But to do all of this with my son for his first show and first mosh pit? I don’t have words.

We also saw GALACTIC EMPIRE, a totally fantastic metal band that plays (of course) metal versions of Star Wars songs and other 80’s favorites like Terminator and Back to the Future. So much fun.

And after that: PSYCHOSTICK. Yes. That’s a shark on stage:

Look. You probably think this is weird. I talk about how beautiful the world is, and I enjoy kittens and little tiny cute bugs I find in nature.

But the joy of a metal concert is pretty unbelievable.

My son and I rocked out. Put our hands in the air. Screamed. Moshed. Hugged.

I gravitated to heavy metal when I was my son’s age because of overwhelming pain and anger. I think my son finds some of the same solace in aspects of the music, but for different reasons. We’re talking about it all while having real human experiences in the world together.

My son won’t know, but during the concert last night, I broke out in tears. One of the big guys in the pit found out it was Logan’s first show and pit. He would see gaps in the music where the pit wouldn’t be too intense, and he’d motion for my son to come on out to have fun.

These little slivers of time - these moments - they come once and they’re gone. It’s hard for me to express how much fun it is to be his father and how proud I am of him for being the strongest kid on the planet.

Last night’s show was unbelievable. This video won’t do it justice, but I hope these short scenes show you just how joyful the mosh pit can be:

Thanks so much for being here and putting up with my random newsletter topics.

I had an entire other blog (half) written, and I was just too tired to polish it up. And honestly, all I can think about was hugging my son in the pit.

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