Lockdown: a year without gigs

A year ago tomorrow (13 March 2020) I went to my last pre-lockdown gig. It was to see Modern Technology doing their industrial noise-drone stuff at one of my drop-in-fairly-casually-let's-see-what-the-bands-are-like places in Dalston, east London. A decent gig. It didn't blow me away, but it was pleasingly heavy/serious stuff and I was happy with what I got for my zero-pounds outlay (a lot of gigs at this place are free). Looking back now though, it was obviously a show taking place as the coronavirus storm clouds gathered overhead. I dimly recall thinking something like, "this might be one of the last gigs before they start shutting things down". With hindsight I possibly shouldn't even have gone (though as it was in the biggish backroom of the Shacklewell Arms which is nearly always two-thirds empty, it would have been fairly low-risk; plus I typically spend only about 30 minutes at these "drop-in" gigs, a peculiar habit of mine ...). 

Ten days later, the first big lockdown began - cue panic-buying of toilet rolls and pasta, daily news conferences, and ever-less-believable political reassurances from Johnson, Hancock & co, purveyors of the world's finest death machines. Gig-going would soon seem like an impossibility. Something from a barely-remembered, near-mythical time. What grandad, you could just go into places with lots of other people? And you didn't need a mask? And no-one got ill and died? I don't believe you! On 24 March last year, 11 days after the Modern Technology gig and one day after the beginning of the lockdown, I blogged about the the oddness of suddenly not having my regular fix of noisy musical events to attend every week. For sure, it's a minor thing in the scheme of things. But still, it's of some importance in its own way isn't it? (Music is important, right?). As I said in the blog last year, there is - when all's said and done - something irreplaceable about hearing music played live. Especially, in my opinion, hearing music played live at close proximity. Yep, with your ear pressed right up against the PA speakers. Anyway, I must now slightly spoil this thought-provoking little blog of mine by mentioning the fact that I actually went to one - just one - post-lockdown gig last year as well. The Rebel in Brixton in September (blog here). Good stuff it was too, but of course the between-lockdowns "window" was never open very wide and never for very long. So what's the moral of this blog to mark the world's annus horribilis, its musicorum horribilis? Er, not sure. Maybe it doesn't need one. All I'll say is that in my experience music can help get you through most things. And somehow I reckon it can even help you get through a pandemic (if, that is, you can survive the carnage caused by politicians and pharmaceutical companies ruthlessly carving the world to pieces). I'm pretty sure (certain actually) that I won't be at a gig on 13 March this year, but maybe I will in March 2022? Or perhaps well before that? Could be. If so, and if then I'm happily getting my few remaining brain cells demolished by a band like Modern Technology, then I'll probably be in an entirely different frame of mind. It will be a new time. When all crimes are paid and all is forgiven ...