Sleeping on Gowns

It’s hard to keep up with all the goodness, but listening to Gowns’ Red State repeatedly the last few weeks has made me insanely angry with myself for missing them when they came to Pilot Light several months ago. I hadn’t heard their record then, and maybe got it confused with the singular Gown, who I had heard and liked well enough but wasn’t ever terribly excited about. Anyway I planned to catch what I could of them after the party or house show or whatever I was doing that night. What makes it extra hurtful is that I don’t even remember the party or show or wherever I was that night. It’s a total blank. I do remember biking down to PL late and getting there just as the band had finished. There were maybe 8 or 10 people there, including the opening band (Jen Rock’s, I believe) and everyone I asked said it was a really good show. No big deal, I miss good shows all the time.

Now, though, after getting into their spooky, dreamy treatise on narcotics, isolation and fear, I’d give anything to see how it translates live. And I know I’ll probably get a chance to see them again, next tour or whatever, but it won’t be the same — they won’t be in the same headspace or defeated, dreary mood. At least I hope not. It doesn’t seem like the healthiest place to stick around for too long.