Thank you for existing.
Love, Ami
Sitting next to my new turntable spinning a Joni Mitchell album that is sending the sweetest melodies into my tired mind. Tired from way more work than I am used to, way more excitement than I anticipated this week, and from an ammmaaaaazing show last night. Oh, Ben Gibbard. I adore his songwriting down to my soul and his voice is one of the best I've ever heard. Ever.
Last week I found out he was going to play a show at Largo which is a small venue in LA that holds only about 250 people. It sold out before I found out about it. I was concerned at how I was going to get a ticket because how would anyone have a ticket to spare to something this great. I mean, I saw this guy's band play the Hollywood Bowl last year. But with some hope and a good intention I put up a posting on craigslist asking if anyone had an extra ticket and saying I really want to go and get a big dose of inspiration.
The night before the show I got an email from a guy named Toby saying his sister got sick and he and his wife and kids are going to the show and now have an extra ticket to sell to me. I called him up and we made plans to meet and it was as simple as that. Toby was set on getting their early to get a good seat so I met up with him early, we got our tickets and I ended up in the second row! I had a couple hours to kill before the show started and as I wondered what to do with myself, the two girls who were in line in front of me asked me if I wanted to join them for dinner. So I spent the next couple hours around the Beverly Center with new friends, a super good ticket in my pocket, and the anticipation of seeing Ben.
When we got back to the theater we hung around outside for a while in this beautiful indoor/outdoor lobby. I ran into Dimitri Martin who was a friendly reminder of Risa, who would have been the ideal companion for this show, but at least I was there to represent both of us. She would have fallen to her knees when walking into the venue. I almost did. It looked like an old movie theater with a stage instead of a screen. Small and intimate. And my seat was so CLOSE. Right before 9 one of the staff members made some announcements to make sure everyone had their cell phones off and went over the guideline, the major one being no talking during the show.
I just adore Ben Gibbard. And not in that way, to make it clear I also adore is wife. I love that there is a human being out there like him that is alive and making music. He walked onstage casually with his guitar and went straight into Steadier Footing. Just him and his guitar, and sometimes he played piano. He played THIRTY-ONE SONGS! Even that flew by and he said funny things and sweet things and kept asking the audience if we were okay. The highlights to me were the Death Cab and Postal Service songs. He played Soul Meets Body on piano with a slower and darker rhythm so it was like a different song with the same brilliant lyrics. Cath acoustic had me melting. He played a bunch of covers too including a She and Him song which he said was written by his favorite songwriter. How does he keep getting better?
Such Great Heights brought back gorgeous travel memories. Watching sunsets at the ashram with Rory. Going up the lift in the Eiffel Tower with Risa. Being in the sky, somewhere. I listen to that song on almost every plane ride.
The show was one huge long moment of beauty. I was so happy to be there. I very much appreciated the simplicity of it. And there were quite a few moments where I realized this isn't a whole lot different than what I do. He messed up sometimes and smiled. He had his setlist next to him on a half piece of paper. At times his songs started sounding the same. He seemed so normal up there. A person playing songs.
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