Attending the concert of your favourite band does things to you and your eardrums. Case in point, it is two hours after the concert and I am sitting here in front of the computer screen, oblivious to the fact that I have a test in less than 48 hours or that I haven’t taken my shower. Instead I am sharing my awesome ear sweetening experience to the blogosphere, still buzzing on the inside.

I been crazy about the Strokes eversince I got hold of the song ‘Barely Legal’ via the net while I was still in high school. At a time when anything resembling rock is almost always preceded by the word ‘rap’ (the band L— B-z–t comes to mind, but let’s not mention them at good times like these), it almost seemed that rock was dead. Some guys in my class were into Westlife and the Backstreet Boys for crying out loud. Upon listening to the opening riffs for this mp3 from some unknown band called the Strokes, it gave me the impression that I accidentally downloaded something 60’s, like the Beatles or the Rolling Stones, what with their simple 4/4 drumming, repetitive chords that led to a very retro sounding melody in the chorus. Yet at the time when “Rollin’, rollin’ rollin’ rollin’” was everywhere on the radio, they definitely sounded fresh to me despite utilizing and reusing the musical style of the 60’s. Soon, I learnt that the Strokes were part of the garage rock revivalists in the vein of the Velvet Underground and The Stooges. Alongside other bands such as The Hives and The White Stripes, they were a new musical trend taking over the god-awful rap rock over in the West.

Maybe it’s the case of me listening to the Strokes first, but I always thought less of the other garage revivalist bands, considering them as jumping on the bandwagon led by the Strokes. Music critics may consider the Strokes as the ‘boyband’ of the garage revivalists, a band with the right look and the right style, the chosen representatives to be marketed to the MTV-watching masses. While it is undeniable how the Strokes have successfully reintroduced the garage rock trend and skinny jeans and Converse sneakers along the way, it only takes a ticket to a Strokes concert to shut up any detractor denying the Strokes any more credibility than hyped up pin-up boys.

Truth to be told, my excitement for the concert has been piling up eversince I secured a ticket.

Never in my lifetime would I expect to see them in person, they’d never include Kuala Lumpur in their tour dates and I’d never go to the States just to watch them. It was only after I came to the UK that I discovered so many genuinely talented musicians holding live performances throughout the year, one after another. This came as a really pleasant surprise, considering how seldom Kuala Lumpur gets live acts from English-speaking artistes. And back home where most western music is pop, the possibility of a band considered left-field by Malaysian standards (even by American standards) like The Strokes to perform there is zilch. Thus I promised myself to go to at least ONE gig of any bands I listen to but may never reach the Malaysian airwaves.

I have God to thank for letting me be at the right place at the right time. That the year that I was in the UK was also the year when the indie revival is everywhere in the UK, where The Strokes gain mainstream acceptance and thus choose to tour it. Also the perfect timing for me to be able to buy a ticket just TWO days before the concert when it was already sold out within half an hour on the first day of sale.

to be continued…