Spring gets heavy

On Sunday we drove to Memphis, donned our dancing shoes, saw Out Hud and Hella and drove back to Little Rock. Memphis, only two hours from Little Rock, is so completely different, so ornate and dilapidated. We hung out on a friend's porch and had beers before walking to the bar. My friend Rett said the weather was like being in a pot of soup that was about to be reheated. It's true. Walking around at night these days is perfect; the air is heavy with flowers and all the cars had coats of pollen on them. But there is this thickness, like something is brewing underneath, and I'm starting to take people's warnings about the summer here seriously.

The show was really fun. Watching Hella's drummer was like porn. Like he had muscles in his arms that just don't exist in normal people, and a huge hole in the crotch of his pants. We were all just staring. I can't say much for the rest of the band. Seeing Out Hud was like if Peter Gabriel had just left all his prog rock instruments on the stage (electric cello, etc.) and all these attractive young people sauntered in and started playing dance music. We danced a lot. I sort of wish every band I saw live was a dancing band.

In other news, I will be in Chicago for about fifteen hours, from Saturday night to Sunday morning, and New York for a little longer, from Sunday afternoon to Tuesday morning. I expect birthday celebrations at each stop. (I turn 24 on Friday...)