I had this thought while listening to World Container the other day.
We all know that when we are younger, the passing of a year seems much longer, and 4 years ago seems like forever ago etc. etc.
When I became Hip obsessed in 2004 at age 16, a discouraging thought for myself was how I missed out on the 'classic' Hip days. In my mind, those years would have been everything up to 4 years prior, M@W. I would daydream about being born a generation earlier, and The Hip days of yester-year. When your 16, 4 years can feel like more than a decade (25% of your life up until that point).
In 2004, Nautical Disaster was a 'classic' rock / Hip song for me. In my time being a fan, Nautical Disaster simply just always existed. And it was a full TEN years old. What it must have been like to be a Hip fan during those 'classic' Hip days...
Well, as we get older, the years go by more quickly. It's 2016, and World Container is now ten years old. And to me now, listening to Family Band is just as classic Nautical Disaster. I used to dream about being there for 'Classic' Hip days, when I did not realize at the time that I was currently in the middle of all of it.
Maybe I had a few too many when I had that thought, but I wanted to share.
I know now how lucky I am to have caught on when I did. There are probably teenagers out there right now, discovering The Hip, thinking how long ago 2006 was. Hell, if your 16 now, Now For Plan A came out when you were 12, and We Are The Same when you were 9.
Sorry for the possible shitpost. /Psychedelic Ramblings
sean.bonner Wrote:Psychedelic Ramblings
10/10 on the reference. 0/10 on the post
Sean, I think your post can best be summed up by some dude in a white t-shirt who once said, "Oh, when I look back now, That summer seemed to last forever"
As you reminisce I think you are pondering the question of what the optimum time frame to have become a Hip fan is, which is an interesting question. Speaking as a fan during the "classic" Hip years, I believe anyone who became a fan after 2000 missed out on two things, the first one obvious, the second one more difficult to define:
1. The chance to see the Hip live during their peak performing years when being at a Hip show was, as described on the Heksenketel video, like being thrown into a steamy cauldron.
2. The opportunity to experience the tremendous feeling of the Hip being a part of the Zeitgeist.
This summer everyone got a chance to observe my second point when the Hip were back in the minds and on the tongues of a nation again. This was a great reminder of what it was like in the early to mid 1990's when the Hip were the dominant cultural force in rock music in Canada. What I enjoyed about that time was the eagerness and anticipation surrounding an album release, in a universal and not just individual sense. The buzz in the air of a high school hallway in the days leading up to the release date. Everyone on the school bus crowded around a disc man to get their first listen of FC. The overwhelming enthusiasm for the music when someone put on a Hip album at a high school or university party. These things don't exist now in a collective sense like they did in the 1990's, partly due to a more fragmented pop culture and partly due to a loss in popularity of the band (although the argument could be made that the summer of 2016 is the new peak of the band's popularity). This is what I miss most about the classic Hip years.
I think you summed it up perfectly! Sounds like a collective comradery between not just the hardcover fans but the whole nation. That has definitely been felt this summer.
potsie Wrote:Sean, I think your post can best be summed up by some dude in a white t-shirt who once said, "Oh, when I look back now, That summer seemed to last forever"
As you reminisce I think you are pondering the question of what the optimum time frame to have become a Hip fan is, which is an interesting question. Speaking as a fan during the "classic" Hip years, I believe anyone who became a fan after 2000 missed out on two things, the first one obvious, the second one more difficult to define:
1. The chance to see the Hip live during their peak performing years when being at a Hip show was, as described on the Heksenketel video, like being thrown into a steamy cauldron.
2. The opportunity to experience the tremendous feeling of the Hip being a part of the Zeitgeist.
This summer everyone got a chance to observe my second point when the Hip were back in the minds and on the tongues of a nation again. This was a great reminder of what it was like in the early to mid 1990's when the Hip were the dominant cultural force in rock music in Canada. What I enjoyed about that time was the eagerness and anticipation surrounding an album release, in a universal and not just individual sense. The buzz in the air of a high school hallway in the days leading up to the release date. Everyone on the school bus crowded around a disc man to get their first listen of FC. The overwhelming enthusiasm for the music when someone put on a Hip album at a high school or university party. These things don't exist now in a collective sense like they did in the 1990's, partly due to a more fragmented pop culture and partly due to a loss in popularity of the band (although the argument could be made that the summer of 2016 is the new peak of the band's popularity). This is what I miss most about the classic Hip years.
Excellent post. I too came of age in the early 90s and you've perfectly summed up what it was like at that time. At the height of the grunge explosion, the Hip were mentioned in the same breath as Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and the Chili Peppers in this country. They were easily one of the most powerful rock bands on the planet at the time. The fact that they were Canadian only made them that much cooler in our eyes. I remember a group of friends and I skipping class to go buy Fully Completely on release day at Sam the Record Man, and I remember lining up at midnight for the releases of DFN and TATH. Before the Internet, new albums would premiere on the local rock station a week or so before the album was out. We'd all tape the show off the radio so we could have an early copy to listen to on our walkmans until we could buy the real thing. My very first Hip show was their 1992 gig at Max Bell Arena in Calgary, unless you count the time my buddy and I stood outside the Silver Dollar Casino for two hours and listened to them from outside the door (we were too young for bar shows). The bouncer took pity on us and kept the door propped open so we could hear the show.
But I remember that '92 show like it was yesterday, and it was absolutely crazy. Moshing, crowd surfing, a giant blanket of pot smoke hovering above the crowd, and people just losing their minds. I went to school the next day with bruises all over my arms and chest from being crushed up against the barrier. I'm only 5'4", and being a small guy I only lasted a few songs before security pulled me over the barrier. Gord's plea for us to "take care of the people up front" mostly fell on deaf ears. But you went to school the next morning and those bruises were like a badge of honor. It seemed like my entire high school was at that show, as hundreds of kids showed up that day wearing brand new Hip t-shirts.
In an age ruled by Beyonce, Adele, Taylor Swift, and Kanye, it's weird to think that rock music was once the dominant force in pop culture. It seems like so long ago now. But here we are in 2016, and not only do the Hip have 16 albums in the Canadian charts, but they just knocked Frank Ocean out of the top spot. Before the announcement about Downie's diagnosis, who would have thought that would even be possible? They're back in the public consciousness in a very big way and I think that's incredibly cool, despite how bittersweet the whole thing is. Over the past month I've spotted a few teenagers walking around Vancouver wearing Hip shirts from the MMP tour, and it warms my heart that kids all over the country are discovering this brilliant band for the first time. This generation may not get to see them live again, but at least the band's peak years have been preserved on Youtube and hundreds of live recordings for them to discover.
That's unfortunate that the band had to deal with such disrespectful "fans". I mean, unless the band was encouraging a mosh pit, and it doesn't sound like they were, no true fan is gong to continue to be an ass when the band is asking you to keep the other concert goers safe. I hate getting to a band early, getting front row, just to be forced to leave because the crowd is dangerous. Especially after the band asks people to settle down. That's one thing I don't miss, coming in late to the Fandom.
sonichka11 Wrote:That's unfortunate that the band had to deal with such disrespectful "fans". I mean, unless the band was encouraging a mosh pit, and it doesn't sound like they were, no true fan is gong to continue to be an ass when the band is asking you to keep the other concert goers safe.
It was the 90s, man. Every show was like that back then. The fans weren't necessarily being disrespectful; it's just what we did when we went to a rock show. You knew what you were getting into when you went up front, and it was your own damn fault if you couldn't handle it. I remember going to shows by The Watchmen, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, The Tea Party, 13 Engines, I Mother Earth...every one of them had crowd surfing and people going crazy. Actually, more often than not I found people to be pretty good for the most part, especially if you were crowd surfing. I was a small dude, so I was light and easy to toss around. It was fun. Of course I can't stand that stuff nowadays. But when I was 18, it was the cat's pajamas.
Crowd surfing went out with acid wash!
Crowd surfing went out with 'Don't go there!'!
sean.bonner Wrote:Crowd surfing went out with acid wash!
Crowd surfing went out with 'Don't go there!'!
I know this is an obvious one, but i'm blanking. What show is that Gord quote from? Thx.
Chris Tanz Wrote:sean.bonner Wrote:Crowd surfing went out with acid wash!
Crowd surfing went out with 'Don't go there!'!
I know this is an obvious one, but i'm blanking. What show is that Gord quote from? Thx.
1998-07-07 - London, Ontario
MuchMusic presents: Something On
direwolf74 Wrote:sonichka11 Wrote:That's unfortunate that the band had to deal with such disrespectful "fans". I mean, unless the band was encouraging a mosh pit, and it doesn't sound like they were, no true fan is gong to continue to be an ass when the band is asking you to keep the other concert goers safe.
It was the 90s, man. Every show was like that back then. The fans weren't necessarily being disrespectful; it's just what we did when we went to a rock show. You knew what you were getting into when you went up front, and it was your own damn fault if you couldn't handle it. I remember going to shows by The Watchmen, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, The Tea Party, 13 Engines, I Mother Earth...every one of them had crowd surfing and people going crazy. Actually, more often than not I found people to be pretty good for the most part, especially if you were crowd surfing. I was a small dude, so I was light and easy to toss around. It was fun. Of course I can't stand that stuff nowadays. But when I was 18, it was the cat's pajamas.
Yeah I get it. I've just never been into that sorta thing,
especially when the band is very clearly concerned about it. If the band condoned it'd totally agree. Stand at the back if you don't wanna get hurt.
direwolf74 Wrote:sonichka11 Wrote:That's unfortunate that the band had to deal with such disrespectful "fans". I mean, unless the band was encouraging a mosh pit, and it doesn't sound like they were, no true fan is gong to continue to be an ass when the band is asking you to keep the other concert goers safe.
It was the 90s, man. Every show was like that back then. The fans weren't necessarily being disrespectful; it's just what we did when we went to a rock show. You knew what you were getting into when you went up front, and it was your own damn fault if you couldn't handle it. I remember going to shows by The Watchmen, Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, The Tea Party, 13 Engines, I Mother Earth...every one of them had crowd surfing and people going crazy. Actually, more often than not I found people to be pretty good for the most part, especially if you were crowd surfing. I was a small dude, so I was light and easy to toss around. It was fun. Of course I can't stand that stuff nowadays. But when I was 18, it was the cat's pajamas.
My first Hip show was Canada Day '94 at Molson Park and it was a massive mosh pit down front. I partly braved it and then fell back. I remember seeing my cousin crawl out of the pit at the end. It looked like he had been in a war and had lost 20 pounds sweating it out. And the look in his eyes: exhilaration.
sean.bonner Wrote:Chris Tanz Wrote:sean.bonner Wrote:Crowd surfing went out with acid wash!
Crowd surfing went out with 'Don't go there!'!
I know this is an obvious one, but i'm blanking. What show is that Gord quote from? Thx.
1998-07-07 - London, Ontario
MuchMusic presents: Something On
Is this the same show where the man in the wheelchair was crowdsurfing?