[Smag-Al]
Several months ago, I wrote a fan letter to my then-favorite band, Japandroids. This was the first fan letter I'd ever written and actually sent, and I'll admit that I agonized over it as if it had been my MFA thesis. The point of a fan letter is simple, but since this was my first, I wanted it to be a good one. Re-reading this now, it appears to me the same way all my past writing does--juvenile, poorly structured, verbose and overwritten. But looking past all that, I have to smile. The sentiment that's expressed here is innocent and earnest. This is just a girl who was trying to find the right way to tell a band, 'hey, I like you.' It makes me want to reach back to my past self, the self who wrote this thinking, now here's a band that I could listen to forever, whose music, for whatever reason, really resonates with me in this particular moment in time. Even then, I knew that it was a temporal, fleeting interest. It doesn't matter that a month afterwards I'd invariably get sick of their album and have to take a hiatus from it, or that my perception of their music and the band itself has changed in the intervening months.
Going to see Japandroids at Mercury Lounge last night, almost one year later, the feeling I got was more nostalgia than giddy, adrenaline-fueled anticipation. But that doesn't negate or invalidate what past-me once felt about seeing this band. I'm not embarrassed to re-read this and think of the girl that listened to Post-Nothing on repeat for hours on end, the girl that felt compelled to write her very first fan letter and send it off into the ether. Despite her flawed writing and slightly neurotic, misguided admiration, I am glad she did.
+++++++++
This is just an old-fashioned fan letter...
As I went to see Mission of Burma at Maxwell's in New Jersey a few weeks ago, I was reminded of another great band I saw there not too long ago-- Japandroids. I happened to catch the last show of your tour a few months back, and was blown away by your performance, raw energy and musicianship. I go to a lot of shows, but yours is one that will stick with me, and I feel lucky for the opportunity to experience something like that. After the show, an almost certainly non-sober David rushed by heading to the bar and did a sort of double-take—maybe he was a little surprised that a small Asian girl like myself, in office attire and looking pretty out of place, would come out for a show like that. The fact is, though, I love your music. Although that night I had grumbled about trekking over to New Jersey from the city and I wandered in as a casual fan, I left there with my ears ringing and head buzzing from the intensity, truly astounded.
Sometimes I think it's better not to deconstruct the rationale behind why certain music is appealing. In this case, though, I can't resist. Your music hits upon so many themes that are universal and also happen to be particularly relevant to over-educated, urban-dwelling twenty-somethings like me--the tension between grasping for the future and yearning for the past, between fleeing responsibility and wanting to grow up, simultaneously loving and hating where you're from, the feeling of advancing through the progressive stages of life without having quite landed yet, and the restlessness that causes someone to constantly want to press reset, whether in terms of a job, relationship or locale.
But what I appreciate most about your music is that it's unpretentious, witty yet unironic, and hard-hitting, relentless fun. I'll always be willing to pay good money to see two guys up on stage who look like they're having the time of their life making as much noise as is humanly possible. Because at the end of the day, past all the angst and over-analyzing, it's like, fuck it. Seemingly poor decisions can lead to the best; breaking with convention and discarding the safety net even when there's a good chance that it will all get shot to hell is sometimes the only genuine option and the truest predictor of success. Through it all, though, good times with friends can be the ultimate redemption and help get someone past just about anything, and to me, that's what you're proving with every new release, and every time you take the stage. So, thank you for taking a chance with your music.
I can especially appreciate the aim of your singles series—I grew up in an isolated, semi-rural town and wasn't even aware that that sort of music existed until I got to college, and I feel like I've been playing catch up ever since. Looking forward to your upcoming singles and your next album, whatever direction it may take. And of course, can't wait to see you on tour again the next time you pass through New York.
