For the majority of my life i've been really into music. As in i'm not a passive listener, i'll actively search out for music to listen to, I go to shows, I buy merch and now i'm going to do a degree in music journalism. But along with this formed my inner fan girl. The obsessive side to this passion, the part that knows every detail about band members to a point it is actually kinda creepy - never as much as Ali King or those girls that broke into Hayley Williams' house, mind. I'm sometimes guilty of putting band members on a pedestal and lose sight of them as a person. And then I met a bunch of these band members and shattered the illusions I created for myself and began to see them as just talented people. I remembered that at the end of the day it's about the music and you should never expect more than that from a band - if they offer it that's great but you shouldn't expect it.
And then last week Anavae played their first show in Plymouth and I went to see them for the first time. Beforehand Becca had asked on twitter if there was anyone in the area who could put them up for the night and so as it happened they were to be staying at my house after their show. My mum went all mumsy and instantly started making beds and buying a ton of different foods for them while me and my dad went off to Plymouth.
Due to the intimacy of the show the members of Anavae were wandering around all night and I knew at some point I needed to go and say 'hey i'm here you're staying at my house' but I had worked myself up into this fan girly mess who would only of made an idiot out of herself and if I wasn't like that I had gone completely shy and was too scared to speak to them. My dad thought it was very amusing. But my head was screaming at me 'omg its them its really them the band I have loved for so long are stood in front of me' until after about half an hour I found my sane side and went in search of Jamie who I had seen go out the back. Luckily the idiotic fan girl shut the hell up and I managed to introduce myself to Jamie without him running a mile and he told us we had saved their lives tonight before I received one of the best hugs i've ever had. When we went back into the room my shyness returned and for the rest of the night I didn't speak to the rest of Anavae until after when we gave James directions to my house and I briefly chatted with Becca who expected me to have pink hair instead of my boring blonde. Our parking ticket had run out at like 10pm and it was now 11 so we had to leave them to chat with other people and left for home.
And I can now say that after spending the day with them - I made them watch Honey Boo Boo and took them to see the thrilling sights of the tiny village I live in - that not only are the nicest people i've ever met but it really was a sort of eye opening experience. I saw this band that I had admired and fan girled over as just normal people with lives and friends and opinions and feelings and who themselves were fans of bands - they all geeked out over me meeting Paramore. We talked weird fans, the unfair female vocalist comparisons, tattoos, how damn good my chocolate orange soap is and old bands amongst other subjects and spent a long time trying to get a photo of all of us and nearly killed James when he jumped/fell off the climbing frame. Eventually they had to leave so we hugged and said our goodbyes and my dad gave them the 'keep up the hard work you're welcome anytime' speech and off they went in the Anavan. So I suppose what i'm trying to say in a round-a-bout long winded rambly kind of way is that band members are just people too. Treating them like anything but that freaks them out - trust me on this one - but talk to them like a sane person (no matter how hard it can be) like you're just one of their friends and I assure you it'll make for a nicer experience.
People are just people.
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