I suppose if you worked at New York’s Museum Of Modern Art
and walked by Van Gogh’s Starry Night every day, or if you worked at the
Sistine Chapel and saw The Creation Of Adam each day, eventually it might
become something you don’t think twice about seeing.
Back when Sean & I were roommates, we lived right across
the street from Seattle’s Puget Sound, and every day we looked out our living
room window or sat on our front deck and had an amazing view.
And after a while it became something we didn’t even think
about.
I sometimes fear that
I slip into that mind frame from time to time working for Alice In Chains.
The mind frame where I get caught up in the work of the day
or outside distractions that can keep me from focusing on the guys while
they’re onstage.
But then a night like the L.A. show comes around and reminds
me that I work for an amazing band that puts on a killer live show.
I realize as I sit here in my hotel room with a crushing
case of writer’s block that I really don’t write about the band too much
anymore, at least in terms of what they’re actually known for, which is writing
and performing music.
I’m still not so sure that I can sit down and properly
convey how great their live show is because I’ve seen it so many times, and
over the years I feel like I’ve written about nearly every song and every
aspect of the show.
But just because you’ve written about every brush stroke of
the Mona Lisa doesn’t mean it stops being an incredible painting.
I can still remember being on the Lollapalooza ’93 tour and
having the absolute time of my life, but I also remember occasionally standing
on the side of the stage during the show thinking about the next city, or what I was going to
do when the tour was over.
I think I sometimes failed to really enjoy how great that
tour was in terms of what was happening on stage, because the guys were killing
it that summer.
And I never thought about it ending back then.
But shows end and tours end and sometimes bands end.
And there was a point in time when having this second
opportunity was inconceivable.
That’s why I’ve tried not to slip back into that mindset of
looking ahead, or getting distracted from paying attention to what’s happening
out here with this band, because 23 years later they’re still killing it on
stage.
The L.A. show was a prime example. It was one of those
nights where everyone just seemed to be clicking and in great spirits, and the
crowd was loud and enthusiastic, which isn’t always the case in Los Angeles.
Someone asked me earlier this summer if I get tired of
watching the same show night after night.
That was an easy one to answer, because no, I don’t.
It helps that I love the music, and it also helps that the
band continues to put on great shows night after night and tour after tour.
So here we are, with only a handful of shows left on this
2016 run, and no real clue as to what’s coming next, or when it’s going to happen.
I may not have much left to write about as far as how great of a live
band Alice In Chains is, but I’m certainly going to enjoy watching them while I
still can.