Sporting my favorite Levi’s, a black tank top indicating a rampant obsession with a specific band, and a choker necklace, I am dressed edgier than my habitual school polo and khakis. I find repose in this outfit, as the usual pressure to look prim and polished dissipates. The vast stretch of people behind me all dress similarly, hum the same songs, gush over the same album release as we collectively yearn for the doors to swing open. We immerse ourselves in, live for, the same music; this is where I belong. Before I realize it, I’m already crushed between throngs of others, unable to move more than an inch in all directions. While most would consider this position undesirable, I rejoice in the knowledge that soon, these few inches will evaporate as each individual in the audience scrounges for a better spot …show more content…
Only here is it acceptable to strike up conversation with all of those surrounding you. Only here do strangers learn to rely on each other, by sharing the almost-holy water bottle someone managed to grab from the sea of fingers with those dehydrated and deserving around them, or willingly acting as an anchor for the 4’’11 girl with the pixie-cut who lost her ability to breathe the second she entered the crowd. Although the root of this connection remains unknown, whether it be because of our shared hometown, a genetic taste for the emo punk-rock genre, or even a similar way of foraging for the truth about ourselves, in the moment, the reasons remain unimportant. When the band finally emerges on the stage, madness ensues. We become untamed, flailing and swaying and screaming ravishing words unintelligibly until our voice crack. We are deluged by the movement, the tangibility of the sound, the cadence drowning out the beating of our hearts, our pulses. We bask in the surreality of it all until we are forced to depart, drenched in the sweat of those closest to